What is Hungarian Wine?
This past summer, we had the great pleasure of discovering these unique wines first hand. Following an amazing Wine Group Tour we arranged on a Viking River Cruise on The Danube ending in magnificent Budapest, 8 of us continued on for a private wine tour into the Eger and Tokaji Regions of Hungary's wine area. It was early June and the countryside was green and bursting with blossom. We visited the village of Eger, Mad and stayed at the Grof Degenfeld Castle Hotel, a beautiful property surrounded by their own vineyards. They treated us to a fabulous local wine and culinary dinner experience which, according to some of the experienced wine connaisseurs in our group was one of the best they ever had! We enjoyed winery visits and tastings throughout the area sampling all styles of Furmint from dry and crisp to more mellow and slightly sweet. The famous Tokaji Aszu Wine (Wine of Kings, King of Wines) was a highlight.
Aszu is made from botrytized grapes, but more than half of the wine it produces is dry. Six grape varieties are permitted to grow in Tokaj. The superstars are the indigenous varieties Furmint and Hárslevelű, with Furmint being the high profile grape that tends to steal the show. Other varieties grown in smaller quantities are Sárga Muskotály, Kövérszölö, Zéta (a crossing of Furmint and Bouvier), and Kabar (a crossing of Hárslevelű and Bouvier). All of these varieties can be used in aszú.
Furmint is the key grape variety associated with Hungary's most famous vinous export: Tokaji. The variety's biting acidity gives wines legendary longevity and, when blended with Harslevelu and Sarga Muskotaly (Muscat Blanc a Petits Grains), Furmint can produce some of the most complex and longest-living wines in the world. It is characterised by early flowering and late ripening. It has moderately large, evenly lobed leaves and medium-sized, loose, long clusters with relatively thick-skinned berries.
It has become one of the most important varieties over the last few years. If there were one variety that should be put in the spotlight, which is also praised and written about internationally, it would certainly be Furmint. It is a high-quality variety that can be used to make extremely diverse styles of wine. It has already proved itself as a dry white wine and sparkling base wine, and certainly needs no introduction concerning its role in botrytised noble sweet wines.
In Hungary lately, there has not only been more discussion about the variety, but it can also be found in increasing numbers of wine regions, albeit in tiny amounts. Nowadays, it is cultivated on a total of 3,950 hectares, most widespread in the Tokaj wine region, where it accounts for 65% of plantings. Harselevelu accounts for about 20% grown in the Eger and Tokai regions.
It produces relatively full-bodied wines with high acidity. Its neutral character also means that its dry wines are able to reflect terroir extremely well, especially in the abovementioned areas, while in the case of sweet wines, botrytis provides the foundation for extremely complex Aszú wines in the Tokaj wine region. Its aromas are characterised by quince, peach and apricot. A touch of residual sugar is sometimes left in dry wines to offset the high acidity. It can also be blended with other varieties, such as Hárslevelű or even, where permitted, Olaszrizling. When complemented by the sweet spicy notes of oak ageing, it is an extremely complex variety that has proven its place among there noble varieties.
In late October, when the grapes have botrytis, the Aszu berries are picked by hand one by one, by experienced pickers in a process that’s repeated several more times. An average picker can pick only six to eight kilograms of aszú berries per day. After the harvest, the aszú grapes are macerated in base wine or fermenting must (which was made from the first harvest) for between 12 and 60 hours. Next, this grape mixture that was macerated in the base wine (sometimes called the aszú dough) is pressed and the resulting juice is fermented. The wine is then stored in oak barrels, which are typically made from oak from the nearby Zemplén forest, and aged for several years in the underground stone cellar systems that’s unique to the Tokaj region.
The sweetness of Tokaj aszú has traditionally been measured in puttonys. A puttony is a 25-liter wooden tub, which was used for harvesting the aszú grapes. The most prized types of Tokaji aszú were made as either a five puttonyos version or a six puttonyos version, which means that the equivalent of five or six tubs of botrytized grapes had been added to each cask of must or base wine.
This labourious method of production creates a magnificent product, but can be very expensive as a result. The sweetness is beautifully balanced by the acidity of the grapes, and delivers an unctuos, clear golden liquid with fresh and dried orange, quince, pear and apricot notes. Exquisite!
We have some great selections available in early March from Grand Tokaji. Please drop in and try some. The pricing is extraordinary, ranging from $14.99 to $42.99 for the Tokaji 5 Puttonyos Aszu 2019.