Historic DNA discovery: Turkish Kolorko identified as Hungary’s Furmint

The world-famous grape geneticist, Dr José Vouillamoz, has just revealed his findings about Turkish Kolorko grape at Wine Paris. Turkish Kolorko and Hungarian Furmint are the same varieties.

Press release
A major ampelographic discovery has revealed that the Turkish grape variety Kolorko is genetically identical to Furmint, the iconic white grape of Hungary’s Tokaj region.
The identification was made through DNA profiling by Swiss grape geneticist Dr José Vouillamoz, following the analysis of Kolorko samples provided by Seyit Karagözoğlu of Paşaeli Winery. The result was independently confirmed through repeated testing, leaving no doubt about the genetic identity of the two varieties.

How could Furmint travel to Turkey?

Kolorko is cultivated in the Thrace region of Turkey, between Şarköy and Tekirdağ, under strong maritime influence from the Sea of Marmara. According to Seyit Karagözoğlu and István Szepsy Jr., one of the most famous producers of Furmint in Tokaj, the most plausible historical explanation for this shared identity dates back to the early 18th century. After his defeat in 1708 against the Habsburgs, Prince Francis II Rákóczi, leader of the Hungarian independence movement, lived in exile in Poland, France and finally in the Ottoman Empire where he settled in Tekirdağ (then Rodosto), accompanied by many Hungarian nobles. Although no written record confirms the transport of vine cuttings, this historical context provides a compelling framework for the introduction of Furmint into Ottoman Thrace.

Same grape, different stories

Over recent decades, Kolorko nearly disappeared from Turkish vineyards. Thanks to Paşaeli Winery’s conservation efforts over the past 20 years, the variety has now been rescued from extinction, and a varietal wine has been made since 2009. “This discovery shows how deeply wine is connected to European history,” says Dr Vouillamoz. “Kolorko and Furmint are the same grape variety, yet their wines tell different stories, shaped by climate, culture and time.” István Szepsy Jr., who is very excited by this discovery, says: “The identification of Kolorko as Furmint represents a rare and powerful example of how modern genetics can reconnect forgotten chapters of viticultural history, linking Hungary and Turkey through a shared grape heritage spanning more than three centuries.”
It will be very interesting to organise comparative tastings of Kolorko vs. Furmint in the future.

An earlier article from the Turkey based The Quirky Cork with a review of Paşaeli  Kolorko
https://thequirkycork.com/pasaeli-wines/