13. Hungary/Eastern Europe/Middle East

Question 1

Describe Wine Law governing Tokaj

Answer 1

Tokaji Aszu - Sweet Wine Law

Traditional

• Min RS 60g/l and scale 3 – 6 puttonyos depending on RS above this min
• 4+ yrs ageing of which 2 in oak
• Sweetest (180g/l RS) labelled szu Escenzia

Wine Law since 2013

• Tokaj PDO
  
  • Tokaji PDO styles(defined by law)
    
    • Aszu must have min RS 120g/l = 5 putt
      
      • Ageing 3 yrs+ 18m oak
    • Szamorodni (“as it comes”) is labelled LH
    • Tokaji Eszencia = wine from free run juice of Aszu berries
• Aszu Escencia abolished

Question 2

Tokaj - climate and soils

Answer 2

Tokaj Climate

• Mod continental (summer warm, cold winter)
• Shelter from cold wind by mountains
• 48 – 49°N best slopes >> high lat - borderline for ripening >>ASPECT
  
  • s-f / sw-f/se-f (red risk of cold/frost damage
  • best sunlight hrs
• Mod/low rainfall 500 – 600mm pa -of which half in grow seas.
• Autumn warm dry – ideal for shrivelling
• Nobel Rot
  
  • Bodrog and Tisza rivers meet in Tokaj:
  • moist air > morning fog; warm sunny afternoon etc

Soil

• Volcanoes!
• SOFT Volcanic bedrock overlaid by complex soils
  
  • Nyirok –produces most powerful wine
  • Loess – sandy silt, high clay on Tokaj hill for lighter more delicate wine
• Soft volcanic bedrock > vines root very deeply >> find avail water

Feature

• Cellars for ageing, famous for cellar fungus Zasmidium cellare – helps to regulare humidity.

Question 3

Describe Vineyard Management in Tokaj

Answer 3

Vineyard Mgt

• Trad > single post 10000v/ha (sometimes still seen)
• Modern – Trellis+ replacement cane or Cordon + VSP and 4000-5000 v/ha
  
  • allows mech
• steeper slopes – req h-harv.
• botrytis aff grapes mb picked by hand “Aszu berries”
• labour curr not a problem

Vineyard Mgt

• Trad > single post 10000v/ha (sometimes still seen)
• Modern – Trellis+ replacement cane or Cordon + VSP and 4000-5000 v/ha
  
  • allows mech
• steeper slopes – req h-harv.
• botrytis aff grapes mb picked by hand “Aszu berries”
• labour curr not a problem

Hazard

• PMD, in wetter yeard BBR
• Canopy mgt – circulation

Pest

• Wild boar, birds

Yields – tiny –

• shrivelled berries 2-3hl/ha
• yields kept low for Q still, dry wine – 30 – 40 hl/ha
• Sunny, warm >> higher yields
• Cooler >> yield control to ensure ripeness

Question 4

Describe the 3 main varieties in Tokaj

Answer 4

Furmint

• approx 70%of plantings
• late ripe – needs long sunny frowing season to ripen
• Retains high acid when ripe
• Thick skin suits BBR and shrivelling on vine
• Aromas: lemon, apple, pear. Honey, nuts with age. Apricot and mango from BBR

Harslevelu

• approx 20% Used mostly for blending, cont white peach, orange blossom aromas

Sarga Muskotaly(Muscat Blanc a Petits Grains)

• 10% cont floral to blend

All can be made in dry to sweet styles.

In keeping with demand many are made in lighter fruitier styles, high Q LH and dry wines.

Question 5

Describe Sweet Winemaking & the sweet styles of wine

Answer 5

Aszu Wine (Aszu = noble rot)

• Too sugary + dense to crush and press so added before, during or after another wine’s fermentation
  
  • variety in base wine - any (Furmint/Harslevelu most pop)
  • min % alc in wine 12.1%, in reality 14%
• Option to mash Aszu to a paste through a pump – risk bitter tannin from seed
• Or whole bunch macerate less risk (with punch down)
  
  • Into non-alc wine – lightest final wine
  • Into part fermenting wine> > highest complexity & strong extraction (risk off flav if unripe/unclean fruit)
• Base wine botrytised >> rich creamy end wine
• Base wine lighter BBR > Aszu character more apparent in final wine
• Maceration is from 12 - 60 hours
  
  • if it runs cool > light ext. runs hot > deeper ext
  • then drain > press
    ​
• Ferment to desired % and RS
  
  • Ambient or cult for reliability (high sugar is difficult)
  • Both SS and barrel used for ferm
  • Higher alc > less RS
  • High RS > stable wine - interrupt ferm > chill or so2
• ​​​Min age 3 yrs, 18m in oak – some prefer longer
  
  • Hungarian oak (ferm & mat) 136l barrels, or larger 300-500l barrels with mix old and new oak.
• Aszu mb bottled in trad clear-glass 500ml Tokaji bottle

Question 6

Describe the different sweet styles

Answer 6

Aszu from Furmint

• Furmint late ripe, susc BBR > suits Aszu (sweet) wines
• as ripen accumm sugar, conc by shrivelling and late harv. -bal by hi acid in even sweetest
• botrytis flavours – apricot, mango
• Until 2013, sweetness ~ Puttonyos – (buckets of berries.)
  
  • later only 5 to 6 puttonyos
• Now, min RS for Aszu = 120g/l (5 puttonyos)
  
  • Wines with less RS are labelled Late Harvest or “Tokaji Edes Syamorodni”

Aszu

• Classik Tokaji is deep amber, high acidity, intense aromas, flavours orange peel, apricots, honey.
• Wines more concentrated & intense as they get sweeter
• can be labelled 5 puttonyos or 6 puttonyos (150g+/l RS) but not mandatory

Tokaji Eszencia (Essence, or Nectar)

• Extremely rare;,
• from free-run juice of Aszu berries
• Takes years to ferment to max abv 5%
• Min level RS = 450g/L
• Bal by very high acidity
• Retains freshness; ageworthy

Late Harvest

• Lower prop botrytised grapes than Aszu
• Lighter body, less concentrated
• Min RS is 45g/l most = 90 – 110g/l
• Oak optional - many stored in SS > fruit char
• Thus Late Harvest ready for release much earlier than Aszu – typ 12 – 16m after harvest.

Szamorodni “as it comes”

• Grapes harvested as “Szamoradni” – as it comes!
  
  • More/less nobel rot = dry or sweet wine
• sweet show noble rot characters.
  
  • Min RS 45g/l (most are 89 – 100g/l)
  • 6m in oak. (thus prod shift to this style~ more authentic than late harvest.
  • trend > no ullage > avoid oxidisation
  • Bottled same bottle as Aszu
  • Best equivalent quality to Aszu but fresher style.
• Dry Szamorodni > biologically aged
  
  • Aged under flor, 10 yrs, no top up. (flor thinner than that for Sherry)
  • Protected from excessive oxidation – develops nutty, green apple aromas.

Question 7

Describe Tokaj wine business

Answer 7

Business

• 5747 ha planted in Tokaji PDO, inc to prod hiQ dry wines (1/2 pot vy area has been planted
• Ave holding 1 -2 ha many growers contract to large prod to provide grapes (Aszu berries)
  
  • Grand Tokaj sources from 2000+ growers > prod 35% of region’s wine
• Ave prod 170000 hl/a
• Aszu 10%
• Dry wine 21%
• Bal = inexp non-bot wine for domestic /East eur mkt
• Exports = 40% of prod

Most to eastern europe, Small qty to CN, FR, UK USA