Babarczi Winery has won a silver medal, while Sabar Wine House has received a silver and a bronze medal at Helsinki International Beverage Competition. So what? – you might ask, three medals is not a big number. However, this strange wine competition awarded altogether 11 wines! Now these 3 Hungarian medals look shinier, don’t they?

Laconic answers, peculiar concept

Helsinki International Beverage Competition (HIBC) is different from the other wine competitions in many aspects:

• – It is more affordable: to enter your wine costs only 85 euros including VAT.
• – HIBC is not only a wine contest: spirits, beers and ciders are also included.
• – Though bling tasting is the most important part (90%), the appearance of the bottle also counts (10%). They award products which not only tastes great, but are also attractive for the Nordic market.

+ 1: We love their style of humour. Look at the FAQ section, you will find pearls like this:
– Does everyone get an award?
– No.
Being short requires courage…
And as we wrote in the lead, altogether only 11 wines won medals, 2 gold, 5 silver and 4 bronze medals are listed. The number of entries is not given, certainly we contacted the organizers, and as soon as we get the answer, we will update our article.

More about Helsinki International Beverage Competition

Babarczi Merlot 2018 – a silver winner

For Babarczi family winery (Pannonhalma wine region) this medal is very precious, not only because there were so few medal winners, but also because they are relatively new in the red wine scene of Hungary. In fact this is only the second vintage of their Merlot wine on the market.
“Deep ruby in colour , a bouquet of full fruit balanced by sweet spices slowly unfurls: ripe plums and mulberries, hints of blueberries followed by cloves, vanilla, cinnamon and cedar layered with cocoa beans and dark chocolate. A mellow ripe grape with smooth tannins and notes of plum jam, chocolate and delicate wood with a lingering gentle woody finish. A young but big wine with serious aging potential, the perfect match for duck, goose and even venison dishes.”

More about Babarczi Winery

Sabar Cabernet Franc 2018 – another silver winner

While the above mentioned Babarczis are new in red wine making, the same is true for Sabar Wine Wouse, what is more, Sabar’s wine region, Badacsony is a 95% white wine making region, red wines are incredibly rare here. The Cabernet Francs are totally different from those of the southern Villány, they are more similar to those of the French Loire Valley.
The fruit for Sabar Cabernet Franc comes from Sabar hill, and it matured in oak for 9 months, then “it came to the world“. “Firm character and allspice, charm and violet, elegance with smoke and fruitiness with blackberry.”
Sabar has also won a bronze for a brand new wine from a brand new vineyard: Sabar Rhine Riesling Hercegföld 2019.
More about Sabar Wine House