Glenfiddich 12 being sold in Israel with fake kosher certification

Glenfiddich 12 being sold in Israel with fake kosher certification

 

Whatever your personal halachic position is on drinking single malt whisky which has matured in sherry casks is, there is no getting away from the fact that none of the world’s most respected Kashrus organisations will give a Teudat Kashrut (Kosher Certification) to any whisky which states openly on its label that it has been matured, partially matured or finished in sherry or other Yayin Stam, (non-kosher) wine casks.

 

So, when I saw Glenfiddich 12 for sale at Osher Ad Chareidi supermarket in Yerushalayim, I naturally assumed it had no Teudat Kashrut and opined over the fact everything in Osher Ad has to have, not just kosher certification, but has to have a Badatz certification, that is, everything including water and salt, except that is, when it comes to Scotch whisky.

‘Aquavitae’, The Golden Water of Life, (Scotch whisky to you and me), even a whisky that openly states that it was matured in sherry casks, it seems, is totally exempt from any need for kashrus certification at all!

I have already written a blog complaining about Osher Ad selling Glenfiddich 18. (See my previous blog post about Glenfiddich 18).

https://rebmordechaireviews.blogspot.co.il/2018/01/osher-ad-chareidi-supermarket-selling.html

However, upon closer inspection of the bottle’s label, there is a Kosher Certification printed on the Israeli importer’s Hebrew sticky label by the Badatz Manchester with an “ishur” from the Israeli Rabbanut.

I immediately knew that this was either a mistake or an intentional fake certification as Manchester Beith Din, being one of the better kosher certification organisations, would never ever give a Teudat Kashrut to any whisky matured in sherry casks, even partially.

A quick look on their Internet site list of kosher whiskies confirmed this. Moreover, the real certification as found on the Glenfiddich 14 YO Rich Oak, looks like this:

http://www.mbd.org.uk/site/kashrus-update-news/whiskey

Their is a list of single malts as follows:

Balvenie 12yr Single Barrel,

Balvenie 14yr Caribbean Cask,
Balvenie Peat Week,
Alisa Bay,

Balvenie 25yr Single Barrel,
Glenfiddich IPA Experiment

Glenfiddich 14yr Rich Oak,
Glenfiddich 14yr Bourbon Barrel Reserve,

Glenfiddich 50 yr,
Glenfiddich Age of Discovery 19yr Bourbon Casks,
Glenfiddich Excellence 26 Year Old Casks,

Monkey Shoulder Malted Blend.

 

I took photos of the incriminating evidence and shot them off to a Kashrus Rabbi friend of mine who works at the OK Kosher organisation. He sent them to his contact at the Manchester Beith Din and within minutes I received a reply that the certification was FAKE. (As they say in Hebrew, מזויף – “Mezuyaf”)

 

I tried to speak to one of managers at the supermarket but while I was in mid-sentence, he turned his back on me and started talking to someone else. In any case, I don’t suppose it is Osher Ad’s responsibility. As far as they know, the teudah is genuine. Why should they listen to a stranger with a funny foreign accent speaking in bad Hebrew, telling them that one of their products is less than “kosher”.

Anyway, Manchester Beith Din have been informed and I am sure they will be on the phone to the Israeli Rabbanut this morning and hopefully (?), they will act swiftly to remove these products from the shelves and demand that the importers relabel them without the fake certification.

Stay tuned…

*** UPDATE *** 10/05/2018

The MBD has just issued the following statement:

Kosher Alert - Forged Certification

We have been shown a label of a bottle of whiskey with the following information printed on it.
This label is a forgery as we do not give our Kosher certificate to Glenfidich 12.
This information is wrong and also the importer did not have any permission neither from the manufacturer nor from the Manchester Beis Din to print such labels.
We would request that these bottles are removed from the shops immediately and not be sold.
We advise that Glenfiddich has been notified and are proceeding with legal action.
Product: Glenfidich 12 year, 1 litre.
Manufacturer: William Grants Scotland
Importer: Rotem Metro Import [2015] Aba Achimeir 22, Petach Tikvah, Israel

*** UPDATE 2 *** 16/05/2018

It was pointed out to me by two wine shops that the above Importers of this whisky are NOT the regular importers "Shaked Imports" of Glenfiddich in Israel. They seem to be the suppliers for Osher Ad supermarket chain.