Cremisan, Salesian monastery in Beit Jala, West Bank, Palestine

Cremisan is a Salesian monastery built in 1883 on the ruins of a 7th-century Byzantine monastery, on a hill 850 meters above sea level about five kilometers from Bethlehem. Its main building has stone floors, thick walls and high arched ceilings, and is decorated with pictures of Pope John Paul II and Don Bosco. The complex includes a winery, an olive press, a small nature museum, a vocational school for boys and a theological seminary.

The Salesians founded the monastery in 1883 on the ruins of a 7th-century Byzantine monastery, and the winery has operated since 1885. In 2006 Israel planned a separation barrier that would have split the monastery from the neighbouring convent; after a nine-year legal battle, Israel's Supreme Court ruled in April 2015 that the two should stay connected on the Palestinian side.

The monastery's name likely comes from the Arabic and Hebrew word for vineyard, karm, as grapevines and olive groves surround it. The Salesians run a winery, an olive press, a small nature museum, a vocational school for boys and a theological seminary for priests. The wine, brandy, sparkling wine and vinegar made here help fund the Salesian vocational school in Bethlehem, which has over 200 students.

Access can be affected by the separation barrier, so it is worth checking current conditions before you go. Visitors coming from Bethlehem or Beit Jala should look into the best route in advance.

Cremisan Cellars has operated since the monastery's 19th-century founding, with modern equipment added in 1977. Only about 2% of its roughly 700,000 litres a year comes from the monastery's own vines; the rest is bought mainly from Beit Jala, Beit Shemesh and the Hebron area. The monks also run an olive press and a small nature museum.