The question surprises people. Jordan is a Muslim-majority country, the question goes — how can there be wine? The historical and geographic reality is more interesting than the assumption. The Levant is where viticulture originated, and Christian communities in the region — particularly the Greek Orthodox communities of the Jordan highlands — have been making wine continuously for well over a thousand years. The modern Jordanian wine industry is small, largely unknown internationally, and genuinely worth discovering if you are curious about what a Levantine terroir produces.
The vineyards of Jordan
Wine grapes grow well in Jordan’s western highlands, where elevations between 700 and 1,100 metres and a Mediterranean-influenced climate — warm, dry summers with cool nights — create conditions that are fundamentally similar to parts of Lebanon or the Bekaa Valley. The soils are calcareous and well-drained. The challenge is the summer heat, which must be managed through canopy work and harvest timing.
Jordan’s main wine-growing regions are in the Karak governorate south of Amman and in the central highlands around Zarqa and Madaba. These are not places with a long commercial wine tradition; the current industry is essentially a 20th and 21st century construction. But the vines are genuinely old in some areas — local table grape varieties have been cultivated for centuries — and the terroir has unexplored potential.
The main wineries
Saint George’s Winery
Saint George’s is Jordan’s oldest commercial winery in the modern sense, producing wines under a religiously significant name — Saint George is the patron saint of the Christian communities that have maintained viticulture here. The winery produces a range that includes Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Chardonnay, and some blends.
The wines are available in Amman at better off-licences and restaurants. Quality is variable across the range but the better reds — particularly the aged Cabernet — represent genuine value and are interesting as expressions of this specific terroir.
Zumot Winery / Saint George
Zumot is arguably the most ambitious and internationally recognised Jordanian producer. Their flagship label, Beit Saraya (meaning “house of the seraglio”), produces wines from international varieties grown in the Jordan highlands. The Beit Saraya Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah have been favourably reviewed by international critics who tasted them without knowing the origin.
The winery is owned by the Zumot family, one of Jordan’s prominent Christian business families, and has invested in modern winemaking equipment and French oak ageing. The resulting wines punch significantly above what you might expect from a small Middle Eastern producer.
Zumot wines are available at the winery (north of Amman), at selected Amman restaurants, and at a few off-licences. The Reserve range is typically 15–25 JOD (USD 21–35) per bottle at retail.
JR (Jordan River) Wines
A third producer that occupies the more accessible end of the market. JR wines are widely distributed and often the Jordan-produced label you encounter on a restaurant wine list at a mid-range price point. Quality is honest rather than distinctive — reliable everyday drinking rather than wines worth seeking out.
Where to drink Jordanian wine in Amman
Cantaloupe restaurant
One of Amman’s most talked-about restaurants, in the Jabal Amman area, with a rooftop terrace and a wine list that specifically features Jordanian producers alongside international options. The atmosphere is upmarket casual; it is a place where young professional Ammanites drink wine on a Friday evening.
Beit Sitti
The cooking experience venue in Jabal Weibdeh pairs Jordanian wine with its meals — guests who visit for a cooking class sometimes discover Jordanian wine alongside the food they have prepared. The combination is deliberately educational.
Hotel restaurants
The higher-end hotels in Amman — the Fairmont, the Four Seasons, the InterContinental — all carry Jordanian wine on their lists, often alongside Lebanese imports (the Lebanese wine industry is more established and more widely distributed internationally). This is the most reliable place to encounter a curated selection.
Off-licences and supermarkets
Alcohol is legally available in Jordan at licensed off-licences (known as liquor stores), which exist in Amman’s Christian-majority neighbourhoods and in certain commercial areas. The Zumot and Saint George’s wines are available here. The selection at a good off-licence is broader than at most restaurants.
What to expect from Jordanian wine
The character of Jordanian wine varies by variety and producer, but some general observations:
Reds: The warm growing season produces ripe, full-bodied reds with relatively high alcohol (13–15%) and prominent dark fruit character. The Syrah and Cabernet tend to be the strongest performers; they suit the cuisine well, particularly with grilled meats and the spiced lamb dishes of the Jordanian table.
Whites: More challenging in the climate. Chardonnay is produced but tends toward heaviness without the acidity that makes Burgundian Chardonnay interesting. Some producers are experimenting with earlier harvesting to preserve freshness.
Rosé: Increasingly available, particularly from Zumot. These can be among the most refreshing options.
Price: Jordanian wine is not cheap at restaurants, where a bottle typically runs 25–60 JOD. At retail, the better producers are 15–30 JOD. This is not dramatically cheaper than international imports, which benefit from the free trade agreements Jordan has with various wine-producing countries.
Wine vs other drinks in Jordan
Alcohol is legally available in Jordan and widely consumed in the Christian communities, among expatriates, and at tourist-facing venues. However, the country is Muslim-majority and alcohol is absent from most local restaurants, markets, and public spaces. Understanding this context avoids awkward situations.
Beer is the most commonly available alcoholic drink. Amstel is brewed locally under licence and is significantly cheaper than wine; a pint in a bar or restaurant runs 3–5 JOD. Local variants of Heineken and other lagers are also common.
Arak — an anise-flavoured spirit closely related to ouzo and pastis — is the traditional drink of the Levant, consumed diluted with water (which turns it milky white) alongside mezze. Lebanese arak (particularly the Touma or Fakher brands) is more widely available than any Jordanian equivalent, though some small-scale local production exists.
The Arab custom of drinking heavily sweetened tea and Arabic coffee (qahwa, flavoured with cardamom) is as important to Jordanian social life as wine is to European. Do not underestimate the role of non-alcoholic drinks in understanding Jordanian culture.
Alcohol and Jordan’s complex relationship
The legal and social framework for alcohol in Jordan is the product of several competing forces: Islamic religious tradition (which prohibits alcohol for Muslims), Christian minority rights (which permit it), the tourism industry’s economic interests (which require it for international visitors), and the Hashemite state’s positioning as a moderate, pluralistic Muslim country.
The result is a set of rules and norms that are internally consistent but not always obvious to visitors. Alcohol is legal and available in Jordan. It is sold at licensed off-licences (typically in Christian neighbourhoods or near international hotels), served at hotel bars and restaurants, and consumed openly at tourist-oriented venues. The Jordan Alcoholic Beverages Company has a near-monopoly on alcohol import and distribution.
At the same time, alcohol is entirely absent from the vast majority of Jordanian social space. Most local restaurants do not serve it. Most markets do not sell it. Drinking openly in public spaces is socially inappropriate regardless of legality. The contrast between the hotel bar serving wine and the street vendor selling juice 50 metres away represents a genuine bifurcation in Jordanian public life.
For visitors, the practical implications are: expect to find alcohol at hotels and tourist restaurants; do not expect to find it at local eateries; do not drink in public outside designated venues; understand that behaviour that would be unremarkable in a European city (drinking a beer while sitting on a public bench) is disrespectful in Jordan regardless of legality.
The Aqaba exception
Aqaba is Jordan’s special economic zone and operates under different rules in several respects, including alcohol. The city’s free zone status means that alcohol is available more widely and cheaply than in the rest of Jordan. Hotel pool bars in Aqaba serve freely; the duty-free price on wine and spirits at Aqaba’s shops is significantly lower than elsewhere.
This is relevant to wine specifically: if you want to purchase Jordanian wine to take home, buying in Aqaba is cheaper than buying in Amman, and the selection may be broader at duty-free shops near Aqaba’s port and airport.
Exploring Amman’s food and drink scene
For visitors who want to understand Amman’s food and drink landscape, including where Jordanian wine fits into it, the hidden gems walking tour provides useful context alongside the eating:
Amman city walking tour: local culture, hidden places & foodThe tour does not focus specifically on wine but covers the neighbourhood contexts in which wine culture exists in Amman — the Christian quarters, the restaurant districts, the cultural geography that makes the city’s drinking culture possible and comprehensible.
The viticulture tradition in the Levant
Wine drinking and wine production in the Levant have a history of more than 7,000 years. The region around the Jordan River, the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, and the highlands of what is now Israel, Palestine, and Jordan was one of the earliest sites of viticulture anywhere in the world. Wild grape cultivation was domesticated here; wine became integral to the Bronze Age and Iron Age civilisations of Canaan, Israel, and the Phoenician cities.
The Christian communities of the region maintained viticulture through the Islamic period, when alcohol was prohibited for Muslims but permitted for non-Muslim communities under dhimmi (protected minority) status. The Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Armenian Christian communities of the Levant continued producing and drinking wine through the Ottoman centuries and into the modern era.
Jordan’s current wine production is therefore not a new experiment but a continuation — much interrupted and reduced, but continuous — of an ancient tradition. The Christian communities of the Jordan highlands, particularly around the Karak governorate, have maintained wine grapes for generations. The modern wineries are building on this foundation with contemporary winemaking knowledge.
Lebanese wine: the regional comparison
Lebanese wine is the most developed and internationally known wine tradition in the Levant, and any discussion of Jordanian wine inevitably involves the comparison.
The Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon is a high-altitude (900–1,100m), semi-arid plateau with a climate that produces wines of genuine distinction. Château Musar — which continued producing wine throughout the Lebanese civil war (1975–1990) — is now distributed internationally and reviewed alongside serious European producers. Other Lebanese wineries (Ksara, Kefraya, Château Ksar, Domaine des Tourelles) have also achieved international recognition.
Jordanian wine is not yet at this level of international recognition, but the gap is smaller than the difference in profile suggests. Zumot’s Reserve Syrah and Cabernet have received serious positive attention from critics who tasted them blind. The terroir — similar elevation, similar climate, similar calcareous soils — has the same fundamental potential.
The difference is investment and time. Lebanon’s serious modern wine industry began in the 1970s; Jordan’s began approximately 20 years later and with less investment capital. The trajectory is promising.
Arak: the traditional spirit
Before wine became the dominant context for discussing alcohol in the Levant, arak was the traditional drink. Arak is an anise-flavoured spirit distilled from grape must and then redistilled with anise. It is typically 45–60% alcohol and consumed diluted: 1 part arak to 2 parts cold water, which turns it milky white (the “louche” effect that gives it the regional nickname “lion’s milk”).
Lebanese arak is the most widely available in Jordan — brands like Touma and Fakher are present at most off-licences. Some small-scale local production of arak exists in Jordan but is not commercially distributed at any scale.
The traditional way to drink arak is slowly, alongside a mezze spread, throughout a long lunch or dinner. The anise flavour is designed to complement the food rather than dominate it. Arak drunk quickly on an empty stomach is an entirely different experience.
Non-alcoholic drinks: the larger picture
For the majority of Jordanians who do not drink alcohol, the important drinks culture is elsewhere: fresh-squeezed juices (pomegranate, carrot, citrus) available from street vendors throughout Amman; iced lemonade with mint; various herbal teas; and most importantly, the coffee and tea traditions.
Arabic coffee (qahwa) — cardamom-scented, served in small handleless cups — is the drink of hospitality and ceremony. It appears in the context of Bedouin hospitality (see bedouin culture guide), at business meetings, and at family occasions.
Chai (sweet tea) is drunk constantly throughout the day across Jordan, often flavoured with mint or sage (maramiyya). The sage tea tradition is particularly strong in the south and east of the country. A glass of hot sage tea in the late afternoon in Petra or Wadi Rum is a distinctly Jordanian experience.
FAQ
Is it easy to buy wine in Jordan?
In Amman, yes — off-licences exist in specific neighbourhoods and are well-known to locals. In tourist areas like Petra and Wadi Rum, wine is available at hotel restaurants and some tour operator-affiliated camps. In small towns and conservative areas, it is unavailable.
Can you visit Jordanian wineries?
Zumot Winery north of Amman does receive visitors but does not operate as a formal winery tourism destination in the way that a Napa Valley tasting room does. It is advisable to call ahead rather than arriving without notice. Saint George’s is less accessible to visitors.
Is Jordanian wine exported?
Primarily within the Levant — to Lebanon (some), Gulf countries (limited, given local restrictions), and small quantities to Europe and the US. It is not commercially distributed internationally at significant scale. The best place to try it is in Jordan.
How does Jordanian wine compare to Lebanese wine?
Lebanese wine — particularly from the Bekaa Valley producers like Château Musar, Ksara, and Kefraya — is more established, more internationally recognised, and generally at a higher quality ceiling. However, the gap is not as large as the difference in international recognition suggests. A Zumot Reserve Syrah is a serious wine. Lebanese and Jordanian wines appear together on many Amman restaurant lists; trying both side by side is an interesting exercise.
Are there wine tours in Jordan?
Not in a formalised sense comparable to, say, Tuscany or the Bekaa Valley. The Jordanian wine industry has not developed wine tourism as a product. The nearest equivalent is arranging a visit to the Zumot facility through their website or by phone.