Hungary

Question 1

Where is the Tokaj region?

Answer 1

In the northeastern corner of Hungary, at the confluence of the Tisza and Bodrog Rivers

Question 2

What was the Tokaj region formerly known as?

Answer 2

Tokaj-Hegyalja, or the Tokaj “foothills”

Question 3

The region was one of the first in modern Europe to undergo a vineyard classification, when?

Answer 3

1700 the Transylvanian Prince Rákóczy delimited 28 villages in the region

Question 4

Some sources alternatively date Tokaj’s classification to when?

Answer 4

1730, with a final legal recognition in 1772—definitive evidence of the 1700 classification remains elusive

Question 5

What are a fundamental component of the best Tokaj wines?

Answer 5

Aszú grapes

Question 6

What did “Aszú” originally signify?

Answer 6

desiccated grapes, it has evolved to indicate grapes of high sugar levels afflicted with botrytis cinerea

Question 7

When did Aszú first appear?

Answer 7

in works published as early as 1571

Question 8

Who definitively produced botrytis-affected aszú wine by the mid-17th century?

Answer 8

Szepsi Laczkó Máté

Question 9

The aszú wines of Tokaj predated the botrytised wines of where else?

Answer 9

Germany, and probably Sauternes as well

Question 10

What closed the door on quality for Tokaj in the 20th century?

Answer 10

the Iron Curtain

Question 11

Which estates are currently leading the way in quality?

Answer 11

the Royal Tokaji Company, Vega Sicilia’s Tokaj Oremus, Disznókõ, and Királyudvar

Question 12

Tokaj is both the name of the overall region and what else?

Answer 12

the commune at the convergence of the two rivers

Question 13

___ is an adjectival form used to indicate the wine

Answer 13

Tokaji

Question 14

What is the climate of Tokaj?

Answer 14

sheltered by the Carpathian Mountains, enjoys a warm continental climate with long, humid autumns: perfect encouragement for botrytis

Question 15

What are the soils of Tokaj?

Answer 15

predominantly volcanic loess and clay

Question 16

Many of the better Tokaj vineyards occupy what>

Answer 16

south-facing slopes

Question 17

Rákóczy’s original classification, which divided the vineyards of Tokaj and its neighboring villages into 1st, 2nd, and 3rd growths, remains relevant today through the efforts of who?

Answer 17

the Tokaj Renaissance, a producers’ association devoted to the protection of the concept

Question 18

How many vineyards are recognized as first growths?

Answer 18

74

Question 19

What vineyards share the superlative designation of Great First Growths?

Answer 19

Szarvas and Mézes Mály, near the communes of Tokaj and Tarcal, respectively

Question 20

What are the two principal grapes of the region?

Answer 20

Furmint and Hárslevelű

Question 21

What other grapes are authorized in Tojaj but generally used in small quantities?

Answer 21

Sárgamuskotály (Muscat Blanc à Petite Grains), Zéta (Oremus), Kabar and Kövérszőlő

Question 22

Why is Furmint key to the production of Tokaji Aszú?

Answer 22

it is particularly susceptible to botrytis and high in acidity

Question 23

Traditionally, the aszú grapes are handpicked individually and gathered in what?

Answer 23

containers called puttony—puttonyos is an adjective rather than the plural form—which hold roughly 25 kg

Question 24

A tiny fraction of syrupy, free-run juice is allowed to settle out of the aszú must—this will be vinified separately as ____.

Answer 24

Esszencia

Question 25

The aszú is then trampled into a paste, or dough, and a number of puttony containing aszú paste is mixed with what?

Answer 25

gönci barrels of must or base wine from non-aszú grapes

Question 26

The number of puttony added to a gönc determines what?

Answer 26

the final sweetness of the Tokaji Aszú wine, and it is labeled accordingly

Question 27

What is a gönc?

Answer 27

a Hungarian oak cask of approximately 136 L

Question 28

Aging requirements for Tokaj?

Answer 28

in cask for a min 2yrs, and an additional yr in bottle

Question 29

The sugar-rich Esszencia—the preferred Tokaji of the czars ferments at what pace?

Answer 29

at a glacial pace, sometimes taking decades to reach 4-6% alcohol

Question 30

Richer than honey, Esszencia can retain upwards of __ grams per liter of RS

Answer 30

800

Question 31

Esszencia, or ____, is rarely available commercially, and it is everlasting nectar, unique in the entire world of wine

Answer 31

Natúresszencia

Question 32

Name the Aszú Levels and corresponding min RS

Answer 32

``` 3 Puttonyos 60 g/l 4 Puttonyos 90 g/l 5 Puttonyos 120 g/l 6 Puttonyos 150 g/l Aszúesszencia (7-9 Puttonyos) 180 g/l Natúresszencia 450 g/l (formerly 250 g/l) ```

Question 33

Several styles of Tokaji beyond Tokaji __ exist

Answer 33

Aszú

Question 34

What is Tokaji Szamorodni?

Answer 34

(“as it comes”), produced from a mixture of aszú and non-aszú grapes, often oxidative in style as it is matured in cask for a min of 2yrs—sometimes under a film-forming yeast similar to flor

Question 35

Szamorodni wines may be what?

Answer 35

édes (sweet) or száras (dry)

Question 36

Fordítás and Máslás wines are the product of what?

Answer 36

refermenting wine with the pressed paste or spent lees, respectively, of Tokaji Aszú

Question 37

Tokaji wines may also be produced as __ __ wines (in a wide range of styles) without the extended aging of Tokaji Aszú

Answer 37

late harvest

Question 38

Tokaji wines may also be produced as dry varietal wines made from what?

Answer 38

non-aszú grapes

Question 39

What is the Circle of Mád?

Answer 39

a small contingent of producers committed to elevating the stature of dry wines in Tokaj region

Question 40

The talented Hungarian winemaker István Szepsy is a founding member of the Circle of Mád and a key figure in what?

Answer 40

the establishment of Hugh Johnson’s Royal Tokaji Company and Királyudvar

Question 41

As of 2007, all other countries in the European Union are prohibited from using what term?

Answer 41

“Tokaj” or its derivatives (Tokay, Tocai) on labels, regardless of any actual similarity to the wine

Question 42

Alsatian producers lost the right to produce Pinot Gris as ___ and Italian producers rechristened ___ as simply Friulano.

Answer 42

Tokay d’Alsace, Tocai Friulano

Question 43

In 2000, two decades after the fall of communism, __ total wine appellations were identified in Hungary

Answer 43

22

Question 44

With the EU's recent reforms, regions qualifying for PDO status has increased to __, with __ additional PGI areas

Answer 44

30, 5

Question 45

Hungary's wine appellations are divided among what 3 major geographical zones of production?

Answer 45

1. North Hungary 2. western region of Transdanubia 3. southern Great Plain

Question 46

North Hungary includes what regions?

Answer 46

Tokaj and Eger

Question 47

What is the Eger region famous for?

Answer 47

Egri Bikavér—the “Bull’s Blood of Eger”

Question 48

What was Egri Bikavér historically dominated by?

Answer 48

Kadarka—an indigenous, low-tannin, light-bodied and not particularly sanguine grape

Question 49

Modern Egri Bikavér is a blend of what?

Answer 49

at least 3 varieties, incorporating Kékfrankos (Blaufränkisch), and other Hungarian and international grapes

Question 50

Only Eger and Szekszárd in Transdanubia are permitted to use what term on their labels?

Answer 50

“Bikavér”

Question 51

Other regions in Transdanubia include what?

Answer 51

Badacsony and Balatonfüred-Csopak on the shores of Lake Balaton

Question 52

What is Lake Balaton?

Answer 52

Europe’s largest lake

Question 53

What lies to to the northwest of Lake Balaton in Transdanubia?

Answer 53

Somló, on the slopes of the extinct volcano

Question 54

What dominated production in the 3 areas of Badacsony, Balatonfüred-Csopak and Somló?

Answer 54

White wines

Question 55

What white grapes are found in Badacsony, Balatonfüred-Csopak and Somló?

Answer 55

Furmint, Juhfark, Olaszrizling (Welschriesling), and a number of international varietals.

Question 56

Where are red wines common in Transdanubia?

Answer 56

in both the extreme south and north

Question 57

__ along the southern Croatian border is Hungary’s hottest region

Answer 57

Villány

Question 58

Describe the wines of Villány

Answer 58

good quality wines from Bordeaux varietals, Kékfrankos, and Kékoportó (Blauer Portugieser)

Question 59

On the northern border of Transdanubia, what is contiguous with Austria’s Burgenland?

Answer 59

Sopron

Question 60

What is cultivated in both Sopron in Hungary and Burgenland in Austria (across the border)?

Answer 60

Kékfrankos

Question 61

To the east of Transdanubia, the Great Plain contains what?

Answer 61

a majority of Hungary’s acreage under vine

Question 62

Describe the soil of the Great Plain

Answer 62

sandy soils (a welcome habitat after phylloxera struck in the 19th century)

Question 63

Most of the wines of the Great Plain are what?

Answer 63

everyday quality and are consumed locally

Question 64

What is Hungary’s largest region?

Answer 64

Kunság, is located in the Great Plain and produces a sizable amount of mass production white wine (and some reds) from indigenous grapes