Hungarian Wine Articles

Nagy Somló PDO: A Guide to the Wine Region

Somló is one of Hungary’s emblematic historical wine regions. Its unique, mineral-rich terroir, indigenous varieties and numerous small producers make it one of Hungary’s most exciting white-wine regi…

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Badacsony PDO: A Guide to the Wine Region

Badacsony is one of Hungary’s iconic regions. Along with Tokaj and Somló, it was famed for its characterful, full-bodied, minerally, white wines from volcanic soil. The wines are unique, concentrated,…

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Lake Balaton PGI: A Guide to the Wine Region

Lake Balaton, the largest lake in Central Europe, is landlocked Hungary’s sea. It is not only a favorite destination for vacationers, but a robust wine region comprises six districts with Protected De…

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Ezerjó: The Hungarian Wine of a Thousand Blessings

The countryside to the north of Székesfehérvár and Lake Velence hides a small wine region little known outside Hungary. What’s more, this undiscovered region conceals a white variety that few will hav…

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Sparkling Hungary, Where the Pezsgő Flows

At the beginning of the 20th century Hungary was second only to France in sparkling wine production … Happily, the last few decades have seen great advances in Hungarian sparkling wine, and many win…

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Kéknyelű: A Hungarian Grape Returning from the Brink

Production remains limited, but once you’ve tasted Kéknyelű, you’ll understand why it was such a popular and expensive wine in its heyday. Kéknyelű’s high acidity, relative neutrality and serious extr…

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Hárslevelű –A Wine Doomed To Eternally Play A Supporting Role?

Hárslevelű has been around for centuries and is planted across much of Hungary—notably in Tokaj and the tiny region of Somló. Despite its many good qualities, it seems destined to play a supporting ro…

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Austrians in Hungary

Hungarian and Austrian history has been so intertwined, for better or for worse, over four centuries. So it’s inevitable that some grape varieties have also crossed today’s borders, and have comfortab…

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Understanding Tokaj

This guide will help you understand some of the essential Tokaji concepts, decode the important vocabulary you will find on a bottle of wine from Tokaj, and just generally put the nuances of the regio…

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Királyleányka and Leányka—Hungary’s Maiden Grapes

Hungary boasts two related white varieties which are often confused, and have unclear origins. Királyléanyka, which translates as ’princess’ and Leányka, which means ’maiden’ or ’girl’.

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Furmint – Hungary’s Flagship White

Wine aficionados have long known of the delights of Furmint, especially in the form of the delectably sweet Tokaji Aszú, and increasingly over the last decade or two in its latest dry incarnations.

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Portugieser – A Fresh and Fruity Hungarian Red

In Hungary, Portugieser has made its home in Villány, but is also found in the Kunság and Eger. It’s an early-ripening variety with thin skins. Its soft tannins and pronounced fruit aromas mean it doe…

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Hungary’s Two Bull’s Bloods

Bikavér is probably still Hungary’s best-known red wine, despite the indignities it suffered during the second part of the 20th century. But most wine drinkers, even Hungarian ones, have no idea what …

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Unpronounceably Aromatic Hungarian Wines – Cserszegi Fűszeres and Irsai Olivér

Two 20th century Hungarian white crossings have proved remarkably popular in the last few decades—Irsai Olivér and its offspring, Cserszegi Fűszeres, dubbed the unpronounceable grape by one British Ma…

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Egri Csillag – The Starry-Eyed Partner to the Majestic Bull’s Blood from Eger

Eger has long been known for its blends, principally red Bikavér (aka Bull’s Blood). Since 2010, the region also has a white blend, Egri Csillag. Both are named after historic events in the region.

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Understanding Hungarian Oak

It’s no longer a secret that Hungary is a great wine producing country. But it is not as widely known that Hungary is also a big producer of high-quality oak barrels. Hungarian oak has been used for m…

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Tokaji Essencia – Sunshine on a Spoon

Imagine a supernaturally concentrated Aszú with flavors of ripe peach, orange, white flowers, passion fruit, ginger, quince, apricot, and spicy marmalade. It’s thick and syrupy with razor-sharp acidit…

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Szamorodni – The Wine Hiding in The Wings in Tokaj

It’s strange to think that wines that can be compared to lusciously sweet Sauternes or nutty, saline sherries should not be the flagship wines of a region. Yet, that is the case in Tokaj. Szamorodni i…

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Understanding Hungarian Wine Classification

In the EU wine is classified into categories based on its origin. Learn how this all translates in Hungary, and what you should look for when deciphering a Hungarian wine label.

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Cabernet Franc – The Unsung Hero

Winemakers in the south of Hungary, however, are taking Cabernet Franc very seriously. In fact, the region of Villány is now betting on the variety as their regional flagship.

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Tokaji Aszú: The Story of The World’s Oldest Sweet Wine

A bottle of Tokaji aszú holds deep history, fascinating myths, much hard work, centuries of passion, and plenty of sheer luck.

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The Humbling Experience of a Tokaji Aszú Harvest

In Tokaj the grapes are harvested several times, to make wines of varying levels of sweetness. If the noble rot has developed there will be an aszú harvest in which the berries are selected by hand, o…

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Kékfrankos: A Much-Loved Grape of Many Names

Kékfrankos is planted in most Hungarian wine regions, and goes by many different names. When well made, the variety—with its crunchy red and black cherry fruit and spicy kick—is generally a crowd-plea…

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Juhfark: A Pharmacy in a Wine Glass

Juhfark is a little-known Hungarian grape variety that is attributed with extraordinary abilities.

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Kadarka – Hungary’s Answer to Pinot Noir?

Vibrant and elegant or rustic and insipid? Little-known Kadarka certainly divides opinions when tasted for the first time, with those who love it praising its crunchy, bright red fruit and refreshing …

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The Mátra Wine Region: These Hills Are Alive With Volcanic Vineyards, Boutique Cellars, and History

Hungary’s second largest winemaking region is blessed with an ancient winemaking heritage, volcanic soil, successful large wineries, and now a band of boutique wineries hoping to bring the region into…

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Olaszrizling—a Riesling in name only

Olaszrizling, Hungary’s most widely planted white grape variety, is an archetypical Central European variety which is capable of for more than it’s usually given credit for.

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Land of Fire and Salt: Hungary’s Volcanic Wine Regions

Imagine a landscape with numerous giant volcanoes spewing out lava and ash and a receding, bubbling inland sea. This was Hungary ten or fifteen million years ago.

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Furmint Forever

There’s no other grape that can make such complex sweet wines, consistently delicious easy-drinking dry wines, and full-bodied single vineyard terroir-driven wines.

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The 1956 Tokaj Aszú: A Wine With A Long Finish

The 1956 vintage was a good one in Tokaj. But 1956 didn’t go down in the history books for the great quality of botrytis in Tokaj, rather because of the revolution that began on October 23rd.

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