17 July 2024 / Kalmár Borbála
If you head out into the world from time to time, with enough openness, it is easy to make new friendships, mostly based on wine. After all, even the most reserved person may easily open up over a glass of good wine and be one of the first to ask who is from where. Two things usually come to mind when foreigners think of Hungary: one is the capital – there are hardly any “travellers” who haven’t ticked Budapest off their bucket list or who doesn’t want to visit us here. The second – although not necessarily in that order – is Tokaj, or rather “Tokaji”, as foreigners who love Hungarian wine have recalled the inscription on the bottles.
The Tokaj wine region, with Kopasz Hill in the background
It seems that Tokaj wines – and within this category, of course, Tokaj Aszú – are truly world famous. Today, Aszú has its own glass, specifically designed to enhance the aromas of the wine; and we have now learned that, although it has a high sugar content, it is not simply a dessert wine. Wines from botrytised grapes are not only produced in Tokaj, but at wine competitions, it is Tokaj Aszú that always scores the highest points.
The road to victory
László Szilágyi took over the keys to the family cellar and vineyards from his grandmother in 2005. Since then, he’s expanded its size nicely and we can enjoy his elegant, finely textured wines from the winery named after his grandmother, Gizella. The winemaker considers Decanter the most prestigious wine competition in the world, something borne out by the fact that no other competition has seen so many samples entered and assessed by so many judges: this year, 18,143 samples were sent to London by winemakers and wine merchants. Having carefully analysed previous results, Laci nominated his 2019 Gizella Aszú, confident that Tokaj sweet wine is perhaps the category that best sets Hungary apart – although some producers have already achieved this miracle with dry wines too.
László Szilágyi - Picture: Gizella Pince Facebook
Best dry wine results from previous Decanter World Wine Awards
In 2022, Zelna won a platinum medal with their 2021 Olaszrizling, while in 2021, St Andrea Vineyards and Winery’s Egri Bikavér Superior 2017 from the Nagy Eged vineyards was among the world’s top 50 wines. In 2018, Figula’s 2016 Köves Olaszrizling and in 2017 and 2016 their St Tamás Furmint (2013 and 2012 vintages respectively) was awarded platinum for best dry wine.
It seems that Laci made the right choice, as the Aszú he entered made it through to the final tasting round: the judges tasted those wines scoring a minimum of 97 points and receiving platinum medals to select the best 50. The 2019 Gizella is part of this illustrious company.
The wine has only just been released, with a total of 1,000 bottles produced. Laci tries to be fair when serving orders from foreign wine merchants: he allocates the wines so that everyone gets some. In the meantime, the first private orders have started to arrive too: customers will receive the award-winning wine in a gift box.
Gizella 2019 Aszú, tasting notes from this year’s Decanter
Not just a swallow
Decanter’s prestige is also reflected by the fact that there are always a significant number of Hungarian entries – and fortunately, every year sees many Hungarian successes. In the case of this wine competition, it has already become a byword that a silver is worth its weight in gold – because of its strict scoring and high thresholds, Decanter awards silver or bronze to certain wines that could comfortably end up in a higher category at other equally prestigious wine competitions. This was the case again this year, when a silver medal-winning wine won a gold medal at another London wine competition, the International Wine Challenge (IWC).
In addition to the Gizella Aszú, the 97-point winery included two wines from László Szilágyi’s schoolmate István Balassa, who won platinum with his 2019 Villő Aszú and 2021 Szamorodni, and Pajzos Tokaj which won the medal with its 2017 Eszencia. The fourth and final Hungarian platinum also went to Tokaj: Sauska Tokaj’s 2021 Furmint from the Medve vineyard is on the dry wine success list described in the box above.
Dry wine success from Tokaj – Sauska Medve Furmint is awarded platinum
They made our day
When it comes to Olaszrizling, Figula Köves is considered a benchmark – this year the 2022 vintage of this wine from Csopak was awarded 95 points and of course a gold medal. The Kancellár Estate is still a relatively young winery, so their success is particularly commendable: the Somló winery’s Hárslevelű (2019) and Furmint (2019) wines won gold medals and their name also features among the gold medals. Two of Kreinbacher’s sparkling wines, the Classic Brut and Prestige Brut, also scooped up gold.
Seven wines from five Tokaj producers were awarded gold: the Szarka Winery Cuvée (2017), Pajzos Tokaj Aszú (2017), Oremus 6 Puttonyos Aszú (2017), Maison aux Pois Édes Szamorodni (2021) and Aszú (2019) as well as the Disznókő Hattyús Sweet Szamorodni (2018) and Hattyús Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos (2019). This time, the reds were represented by the Schieber Winery’s Trilógia Bikavér (2021), which, together with the Kancellár wines, was included among the best value for money wines. The full list of Hungarian medal-winning wines can be found here.
James Suckling’s crew has tasted Hungarian wines again
The successes do not end here. No sooner had we analysed the Decanter results then the next news arrived, with internationally renowned wine critic Andrii Stetsiuk, part of James Suckling’s team, awarding 100 points to the Disznókő 2013 Tokaji Eszencia. He did not skimp on his praise in his description: “Tasting it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” he wrote, among other things. 2013 was one of the best years for Aszú of recent decades, 2012 was a little less successful, but the 2012 vintage of Disznókő Tokaji Eszencia still scored 97 points with the critic, which was tasted at a vertical Disznókő tasting going back 30 years.
Traditionally, Eszencia is served not in a glass but in a spoon, and Disznókő has a crystal spoon of its own design
It’s also worth keeping your eyes open for the August print issue of Decanter Magazine, which once again features Hungarian wines. This time, a 16-page supplement will present Hungary’s volcanic wine regions and outstanding grape varieties and will also include a tourist guide entitled “Volcanic Hungary”. Of course, there will also be wine recommendations, as the Decanter team has compiled a list of the “Top 20 Hungarian Volcanic Wines in the UK” based on their tasting notes.
Contributors to the wine section of the supplement include: Master Sommelier John Szabó, who has not only been studying wines from Hungary but also from other volcanic wine regions from around the world for over two decades; Caroline Gilby, Master of Wine, who was recently reminiscing about her three decades of friendship with Hungary; and Sue Tolson DipWSET and Master of Wine student, who is now a Hungarian citizen and an expert on Hungarian wines.
The supplement is sponsored by the Hungarian Wine Marketing Agency.
