Hungarian rose: Sauska and Font

Here are two well-known rose wines that are widely available on the Hungarian market. The Font is on the cheap side, it’s about 4 EUR (sold by Lidl) and the Sauska is on the expensive side of Hungarian rose at 8 EUR.

They are quite different in colour and taste. The Font is darker which is quite common in the country, you won’t see many local wines with the Provance-like pale color of the Sauska.

The Font is the perfect example of what you mostly get if you buy a Hungarian rose. It smells like bubble gum and nothing else. So industrial, so artificial. That’s my big problem with the genre. But it’s a lot better on the palate, quite thin and CO2 is a bit overdosed here, yet the balance is very good, I can’t deny that it drinks so well. If the aromatics don’t detract you, this is a nice quaffer for the price. 80 points.

I already tasted the Sauska earlier this year and it was notably better. This bottle is not from a supermarket but from a wine shop, so I would not expect storage issues. But it’s very reductive, giving off scents of a spa, not fruits. It’s quite elegant, hits only 12% which is a bonus. But the reduction hides the aromas, it’s not a wine I enjoy, it’s rather just OKish. 82 points.