04 April 2023
From 19-21 March, the wine world met again in Düsseldorf, Germany, the traditional venue for ProWein. Hungary’s wineries welcomed visitors at the nearly 340-metre-square national stand in Hall 12, as well as at other community and individual stands. Our cover photo shows the Wines of Hungary national stand.
This grandiose event, taking place in a total of 13 halls and covering an area of around 73,000 square metres, needs a serious “competition programme” to be successful, so this year’s Hungarian wines were presented by renowned Masters of Wine in presentations and tastings over the three days. Peter McCombie MW, pictured above, was joined by Caroline Gilby MW, Elizabeth Gabay MW, Pasi Ketolainen MW and Rose Murray Brown MW in giving fully booked masterclasses.
Presentations by Hungarian wine academics also strengthened the professional programme, which boasted 11 masterclasses: Gabriella Mészáros, András Horkay and Kristian Kielmayer, pictured above, also expertly guided visitors through the wines of Hungary.
Only one thing is more appealing than a masterclass led by a Master of Wine, and that is when two Masters of Wines present one together. The international ProWein Forum always offers the most acclaimed programmes, so it was a great honour for Hungary to be included in its line-up again this year. Not only were there no empty seats at the masterclass on the world’s first demarcated wine region, Tokaj, but there were also many people at the back of the room holding glasses, listening to the presentation by Carline Gilby MW and Elizabeth Gabay MW, and tasting along.
László Angerman, A.S.I. Gold Diploma holder, Hungarian sommelier champion, and his team welcomed ProWein visitors to the Wines of Hungary tasting area during the three days of the fair.
Each year, the ProWein Goes City series of events gives producers and their potential buyers and existing clients the opportunity to meet during the evenings of the fair. The Villány Wine District chose an imposing location with a roof terrace as its showcase venue to welcome visitors on the first evening of the fair.
And at the end of the second day, the traditional get-together party livened things up at the Hungarian stand.
Another traditional feature was the live music at the Hungarian stand, performed by the Gabi Torzsa Acoustic Duo, which was a great success with international visitors.
Besides the “classic” masterclasses, each day was rounded off with a short Tokaj Pop-Up Tasting, in which the speakers presented different wine styles from the Tokaj Wine Region. The final Eszencia tasting, served on the glass spoons pictured here, was certainly a special treat for participants.
An essential element of the masterclasses were the delicious snacks created by chef Márton Tatai to pair with the wines.
Pál Rókusfalvy, the Government Commissioner for National Wine Marketing, met experts from all over the world at the Hungarian stand. In addition to Poland’s Wojciech Bónkowski MW, who was recently awarded his Master of Wine title (see photo above), Debra Meiburg MW from Hong Kong and Konstantin Baum MW, one of the most important opinion leaders in the German market, visited the Wines of Hungary stand.
With 6,000 exhibitors from 60 countries, the wine fair attracted almost 50,000 visitors over the three days. As the organisers put it, “Once again, we have done our best to be not just good, but better.” And the same goes for the professionals organising the Hungarian stand and the exhibiting Hungarian wineries…
See you next year!
