Grál Borpince (borpince means winery in Hungarian) is a relatively new, promising producer from the Tolnai wine region, which borders it’s more famous neighbor Szekszárd from the north. They have just a few hectares of grapes and the aim is artisanal wine production. The wines are often very good, but I was less happy with these two vintages of the Kadarka. Continue reading
Proper Morgon, dark and structured for a Beaujolais. Ripe, but cool climate is evident. Black cherries and a bit of that playful hibiscus and bubble gum action, just to complete typicity. Alcohol is lowish yet it’s almost full-bodied, structured and tannic – a nice example of the classic French red wine style, it’s so Old World. I wish for a bit more intensity, more aromas on the palate, though. Continue reading
What a surprise! I admit I know nothing about the winemaking history of Luxembourg. I was just not prepared for this, it’s so damn good that’s hard to believe. Continue reading
An attempt to create a serious wine from Kadarka. The price is matching that intent too, at 20,000 Forints (approx. 65 Euros) this must be the most expensive Kadarka wine ever made. You might raise an eyebrow when reading about the approach, though: late harvesting of grapes, including Botrytised bunches too. No surprise then that the result has an alcohol level of 16%. Continue reading
How to describe Kadarka? For us Hungarians, it’s a bit like what Cinsault is to South Africans – a pale red wine with serious history, seeing a revival in recent years. We don’t know why it was so widely planted and popular, growing it is just as challenging as making solid wine from it. I have tasted a few dozens recently, and they were generally massively disappointing. The Tüske was a highlight among them, being free of flaws and a quite good representation of grape. Continue reading
Fantastic little wine. Do a search, and the words ‘quaffable’, ‘light’ and ‘simple’ will come up frequently – I just disagree. Yes, it’s so drinkable, but it has complexity and structure. More importantly, it’s savory, it’s exciting, draws you in. One of the few South African reds that fully convinced me ever, perhaps it’s my favorite.
This must be one of the finest budget friendly Hungarian Kékfrankos (a.k.a. Blaufrankisch) wines ever made. Continue reading
An estate surrounded by some controversy perhaps. Because of high alcohol wines. And because Parker loved them back then. But they are one of my all-time favorite Australian producers: the wines made here are different. They have a distinct, traditionalist feel to them I tend to find only in France and Italy.
If you read that Moulin-a-Vent makes the darkest and most structured wines of all the Beaujolais Crus, here’s a wine to prove the point. This is completely different from Gamay made elsewhere.
An Australian classic with a French accent: Shiraz made with equipment brought from St. Emilion. Well, mainly – the winery homepage tells us that for this particular wine, around one third is vinified the local way. Continue reading