105 wines from 10 countries tasted by Tamlyn Currin

As we reported earlier, Tamlyn Currin, the brilliant wine expert at JancisRobinson.com, took part in a cross-border tasting event of Furmint, Olaszrizling (Welschriesling) and Kékfrankos (Blaufränkisch) wines, held in the Slovenian village of Kog. Today, let us introduce two of the highest scored Hungarian Kékfrankos wines made by Heimann and Heumann.

The event was organized by the Kog 25 Pannonia association, which consists of local winemakers and an Irish couple who are wine merchants and cultivate a small area of land in Slovenia. The blind tasting included a workshop dedicated to each variety.

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Thanks for not overoaking!

The finest examples of this variety are still produced in Austria, but Tamlyn Currin pointed out that Hungarian Kékfrankos wines are also shining brightly thanks to the fact that winemakers no longer insist on heavy oak ageing. Altogether 35 Kékfrankos (or Blaufränkisch, Lemberger, Frankovka etc.) were tasted. The highest score was 18 points, achieved by an Austrian and a Slovenian wine. Seven wines received 17.5 points: one Croatian, five Austrian, and half-Hungarian (and half Austrian), Franz Weninger’s 2021 Balf Kéfrankos. Among the 8 wines with 17 points, there are more Hungarian wines, one Vida, one Heumann, one Heimann & Fiai wine, and Frigyes Bott (Slovakia), also considered Hungarian, receiving this score.

Heimann or Heumann?
If you think that these surnames sound German, you are right. Heimann family is of Swabian origin living in Szekszárd, while Erhard Heumann is a German gentleman living in Villány with his Swiss wife.

Heimann & Fiai Szívem Kékfrankos 2020, Szekszárd (17/20 pts)

Tamlyn Currin’s wine review:
Cherry sherbet and raspberries. Very fine tannins. Unusual. Lots of white pepper. Zigzag energy, crackling with energy. Super-grippy tannins but they’re not drying. Fine and high-wired, long and very fragrant.
Drink: 2024 – 2030
More about Heimann & Fiai wines

Heumann Reserve Kékfrankos 2020, Villány (17/20 pts)

Tamlyn Currin’s wine review:
Bitter chocolate and a tangle of wild herbs. Fennel and caraway, black fruit. Tannins underscoring the fruit, and then strikethrough. Just like that. The fruit steps back in shock and then, resilient, comes back forward trailing bitter spices. Complex and stubborn. Very savoury. Peppery from mid palate to the end. Sculpted.
Drink: 2025 – 2032
More about Heumann wines