Hírek
2010. január 22. péntek
Decanter.com: Hungarian reds by Caroline Gilby MW
For the whole article click here!
There's more than Tokaji and cheap white in Hungary � the warm, southern region of Villány is leading the way with reds, says Caroline Gilby MW
It's two decades since Hungary's wine industry was reborn after the fall of the Iron Curtain. During that time it has switched from a cheap bulk producer for thirsty Soviet markets to an industry led by innovative producers, the best of whom who can finally hold their heads up alongside peers at the top of their game worldwide.
In contrast to Hungary's collective past, today's industry is led by passionate individuals who have come into wine from many different directions and relish their freedom to improve. Outside Hungary's borders, the country is largely known, even today, for its sweet Tokajis or its good-value Italian lookalike Pinot Grigios. But it's been in red wine that the transformation has been most dramatic.
Red winemaking in Hungary has always been more challenging than white, but fierce Magyar pride, along with better viticulture, reduced yields and matching grape varieties to soils, allied to improved winemaking, has transformed reds from thin, green specimens often marked by heavy-handed winemaking to serious, weighty and complex wines.
This new approach has seen producers such as Austrian Franz Weninger, who owns the country's first biodynamic vineyard, putting Sopron on the wine map. Eger, too, has seen a crop of focused, passionate people such as the late Tibor Gál, Imre Kalo, Gróf Buttler and St Andrea reviving the fortunes of Bikavér (Bull's Blood). In the south, Szekszárd is gaining increasing recognition for reds grown on its iron-rich terra rossa soil, especially from
Takler, Heimann, Duszi and Sebestyén.
But it's still Villány near the Croatian border that holds the red crown. The hills here protect Hungary's warmest region from cold northerly winds. The best sites are south-facing and on stony, volcanic soils, ensuring good ripeness levels that are hard to achieve elsewhere.And just as interesting as their wines are the stories behind some of the region's best producers. Here's my top four�
Vylyan
Mónika Debreczeni is one of the few women in Hungary in charge of a major winery. 'I took over in 2004 after the death of my husband. The children were 11 and 9 at the time. I shifted to automatic pilot mode � the possibility of not taking over did not come to mind at all.'
Debreczeni had studied economics but after meeting her husband, Pál, became involved with 'planning the winery and vineyards at our dining room table'. Pál had bought land in 1989 at a time when everyone else was selling, and with his wife's help planted the first vines in 1992. By 2004, when he died, the winery had 125 hectares.
'The vineyard is like our third child; and you don't abandon children just like that,' Debreczeni says, adding that the tragedy has brought her and her children closer together; last summer her daughters worked at the winery.
Vylyan was named Winery of the Year in 2008 by both its peers in Hungary and by Danish magazine Vinbladet; it was also a Decanter World Wine Awards Regional Trophy winner in 2006 for its 2004 Pinot Noir. 'I like wines with personality. Our task is to bring out gently what lies in the grapes,' says Debreczeni.
Debreczeni remains frustrated at the lack of international recognition for Hungary: 'My dream is that one day the names of Hungarian wines and regions will be pronounced with the same ease as names from France, Italy and Chile.'
