“…eclectic but increasingly exciting”

Sarah Marsh British Master of Wine spent several days in Hungary and tasted many sparkling wines, not only in Hungary, but back in England as well. It was Zsuzsa Toronyi of Wines of Hungary UK / Wine Communication, who worked hard to arrange the expert’s visit and tastings to the sparkling companies, and her efforts were rewarding.
The article on worldoffinewine.com is comprehensive, it has a historical introduction including the legal obstacles in the past, and features not only the key, leading companies, but many small producers as well. She even devoted some sentences to the explanation of our term “pezsgő”.

Tokaj first and foremost

“Across Hungary corks are popping, but Tokaj’s sparkling wines are those that most appeal to me. They are the most consistent, but more significantly they have the strongest sense of place. Many places in the world make attractive bottle fermented wines, but Tokaji Pezsgő is driven by nervy Furmint which becomes savory and austere on volcanic soil. This winning combination produces wines with distinctive regional identity” – this is how Sarah Marsh MW ends her article. She introduces Sauska in detail, as the leading Tokaj sparkling producer, but mentions small batches as well: “Another small artisanal wine I enjoyed in Tokaj is the taut, steely, and linear Kata Zsirai Brut Nature NV.” Marsh also emphasises the uniqueness of Tokaj sparklings made of the other main grape, Hárslevelű.  “You can taste the softer, honeyed style from Béres Winey, where they specialize in Hárslevelu. However, in the hands of sparkling master Zoltán Demeter, Hárslevelű is delicate and fragrant, breezy and saline.”

Balaton – The sparkling lake

March describes Garamvári Vineyard in South Balaton in detail, and she was impressed by difference of the two Furmint sparkling wines of Garamvári (they have a small vineyard in Tokaj as well): “I was keen to compare the two bottle-fermented 2019 Furmints which were produced identically including the dosage. Lellei Furmint (from Balatonboglár) has a gentle palate with light herbal notes and a creamy finish. The Tokaji Furmint was more austere, energetic, straighter, and more focused.”
The wine writer indroduces the sparkling king of Somló, Kreinbacher, and lists seveal smaller producers as well, like Éliás: “There was even a Brut Nature Kéknyelű 2021 from Éliás Winery, which is engagingly sapid and more aromatic than autolytic.”

The rest of the country

Etyek, the wine region near Budapest gets its well-deserved focus: Marsh explaines the new PDO of the region, Etyeki Pezsgő with its regulation. And she mentions other wine regions and producers, like Jackfall from Villány and Schieber from Szekszárd, wine regions in the south of the country.

Read the whole article here

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