 |
| In terms of both quality and value, Furmint packs a serious punch |
Hungary is another sleeping giant in the wine world, unknown to most
people for now…but this will change soon, as the giant is beginning to
awaken. Insofar as people know Hungarian
wine at present, it is through Tokaji, one of the world’s superb dessert
wines. Tokaji relies on a grape known as
Furmint, a significant player in the amazing array of white grapes that most
drinkers never encounter. The latest
news from Hungary, however, may lead to greater recognition; in addition to
outstanding dessert wines, more and more winemakers are crafting exciting dry
wines from Furmint. At the urging of
some colleagues at the wine store where I work, I decided to do a little
investigation into these fascinating dry table wines. How lucky the Voyager is to work next to
people who are so generous with their wisdom!
 |
| Outstanding wine, outstanding value |
2013 Pajzos Tokaj Furmint
(Hungary):
Fairly pale greenish-gold, but with very nice clarity. Lovely nose: some vanilla (oak here? – if so,
it’s very well-judged, and fully integrated with the wine), along with green
apples overlain with spices from an Italian kitchen – even some oregano. A touch of honey underneath, with some pear
notes as it opened out. More crisp
apples on the palate. With air, the
flavor spectrum moved from green apple to Golden Delicious, and the wine
started to remind me just a bit of a good Grüner Veltliner – high praise indeed
from the Voyager, who is a huge fan of Grüner. Steely mineral elements also
came forward over the course of the evening.
Furmint may even remind some of an unoaked chardonnay, but it has a slightly
leaner structure and a spicier lilt. This is a flat-out wonderful wine – and an
incredible steal at $9.98. It would be a
good value even if you paid $15.00 for this bottle. Seek this out; if it’s not on the shelves of
the best wine store in your area, see if it’s handled by a distributor in your
state, and ask your retailer if s/he can order it. ****
(NOTE: after four days under inert gas, this wine revealed even more
pronounced honeyed aromas, backed by some lime, a trace of lemon and an interesting
quinine scent. At this point, one might
have mistaken it for a light-bodied Riesling Spätlese. Absolutely delicious.
 |
| Bigger for now; may be better with a year or two of bottle age |
2013 Royal Tokaji The
Oddity Furmint (Hungary): Medium yellow-gold color. At first, one could mistake the bouquet for a
good Chardonnay – hay and vanilla from evident oak. With air, a honeyed aroma came to the fore,
along with herbal scents – as with the Pajzos, there is even a hint of oregano
here. Herbal elements repeat on the
palate, with green apple as well. With
air, a quinine note on the mid-palate.
Heavier in body than the Pajzos; it feels richer, but perhaps not as
finely-etched? Query: will this develop
a bit more subtlety after a couple of years in the bottle? I wouldn’t bet against it. A good match with fried chicken, and even
better with salmon/avocado sushi. *** ½
for now, but the Voyager suspects that there is more to come.
Well, here’s another revelation in white wine as we head into the
spring. Both of these wines were quite
fine; the Pajzos carries the honors for now, at least for the Voyager, who – as
his readers will know – prefers wines of elegance. However, that being said, it wouldn’t
surprise me if, with time, The Oddity might develop into the finer wine. In any case, dry wines made from Furmint will
make their voice heard in the future.
There’s simply too much quality in this varietal for it to remain in the
shade.
No comments:
Post a Comment