Peek into the World of Hungarian Wines

The world of wines is quite interesting enough. Every once in a while, a new region catches the imagination of wine drinkers and shoots to popularity. Although the classic West European winemaking behemoths of France and Italy (also known as the Old World) continues to rule the roost, the last two decades saw the emergence of America, Argentina, Australia and even India (colloquially called the New World) emerge with some stellar masterpieces. But the newest baby that’s shot to popularity are the wines of Eastern Europe. Although winemaking goes back hundreds of years in Eastern Europe, the aggressive assault of Phyllo era of the 1800s, two world wars and forty years of communist collectivization led to the history and charm of Eastern European wines being lost somewhere. The recent emergence from behind the Iron curtain of the Soviet Era has led them to be labelled as New “Old World” wines. Many of the famous recipes include the Saperavi Qvevry from Georgia, the Plavina from the Adriatic coast of Croatia and the most famous of the lot, the Egri Bikaver and Tokaj from Hungary.

The legend of Hungarian Wines

The story of Hungarian wine making is quite old indeed. It dates back to the 13th century when the Christian monks first started brewing wine. But the popularity of Hungarian wine actually soared during the 17th century when the first Tokaji Aszu was created. As with many other good things, this too was an accident. The wars with the Ottoman Empire in the early 1600s had robbed the villages of Oremus of young able bodied men to do the plucking and the grapes began to rot on the vines itself. A Calvinist preacher named Laczkó Máté Spezsy saw the opportunity and created a sweet wine from these grapes. As he was working on the vineyards of Zsuzsanna Lorantffy, wife of Prince Georgi Rackozi I, the Tokaji Aszu soon became a favourite of the Hungarian court. So complex was the taste of wine and as sweet wines used to rule the roost at the time, it soon became the official drink of royals all over Europe thus giving it the term “Vinum Regum, Rex Vinorum”  (Wine of Kings, King of Wines)

The land of Sweet Wines, Tokaj

No story of Hungarian wines can start except from the province of Tokaj (pronounce To-Kah). The first thing that hits you the moment you enter Tokaj is the rows upon rows on vineyards that line both the sides of the roads. Located about 100 kms from the capital city of Budapest, the trip to Tokaj takes about an hour and a half along the roads of Bukk mountains. All along the way, the sloping hills are dotted with quaint little wooden houses. Most of these multi coloured houses are home to local wine growers as they grow the grapes in the valleys below.

The best place to experience the magic of Tokaji (pronounced To-Kai) is at the Castle of Gróf Dagenfeld and the Barta Winery in the sleepy village of Mad. The former is a medieval age castle that has been remade into a boutique hotel. Although the rooms transport you back to the grandiosity of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, it is the cellars that impress the most. It is within these cellars that the magic of Tokaji unravels. Many of these cellars are built into the mountains and are coated with the Zasmidium fungus which helps regulate the temperature and humidity of these cellars. Head over to the Barta Winery where the owner Karoly Barta regales with the story of how Tokaji became a drink of the royals along with enumerating the different types of Tokaji. The wines of Tokaj are quite a few: the dry version, Szamordini, the famous Aszú and the sweet as nectar Escenzia. What makes the Aszú (pronounced A-zoo) so fascinating is unlike other wines where the juice is extracted from the grapes before being fermented, the Furmint (Foor-mint) and Harslevelu grapes are allowed to dry before a paste is made from these which are later fermented into the wines. The wines to try out include the Furmint ’16, Aszu ’13 and the Eszencia ’17.

When the Hungarians drank Bull’s Blood

On the way back to the capital, another of Hungary’s major wine regions comes into view. The city of Eger located in Northern Hungary is again linked intricately to its wine. The war I had talked about earlier was one of the most instrumental times for the Hungarian wine industry. The Ottoman forces accosted the town of Eger while the Hungarian soldiers braved it out in Eger’s Fort. This war led to the formation of Hungary’s second favourite, the Egri Bikaver. The legend goes that the Ottoman soldiers tired of fighting the Hungarians in a long drawn out war, attributed their bravery and resilience to the local wine which came to be known as Bull’s Blood (Egri Bikaver in the local language).

The Eger Castle still stands proud today almost four centuries later and tells us about one of the most interesting periods in the history of Eastern Europe. The medieval age castle has now been converted into a museum which houses artefacts from an era gone by. There are quite a few paintings from the Renaissance era along with a Ruin Garden which showcases remnants of a Gothic Cathedral. Let’s get onto the wine now. The Kedves Winery is one of the largest producers of Eger’s flagship wine and along with the St. Andrea’s Eatery provides a place where you can experience the best of Hungarian wine and food. The Egri Bikaver is a blend, pretty similar to what you would find in Bordeauz. Although a plethora of grapes are used for preparing it, the Kekfrankios has become one of the prominent ones. The Aldas ’16 is one wine that must be tried out at this winery. The wine in itself is a dry one with fruity overtones and prominent flavours of red berries along with a bouquet of moderately smooth tannins that impress upon the palate. The wine combines pretty easily with some of the classic Hungarian dishes including a Beef Curry with Nokedli or even a rare done Duck Meat.

Hungary’s wine is inextricably linked to its history and beautiful countryside and there can no discovery of one without the other.