Oremus Aszu 3 puttonyos 2018

The Oremus vineyard lies in the historic Tokaj area, in north-eastern Hungary, in the Tokaj-Hegyalja region. A UNESCO World Heritage site, this wine landscape is marked by volcanic hills, varied soils of clay, loess and volcanic rock, and the influence of the Bodrog and Tisza rivers. The autumn mists encourage the development of Botrytis cinerea, or noble rot, essential for making great Aszú wines. The estate farms its plots on carefully exposed slopes, where slow ripening preserves freshness and concentration.

The aszú berries, harvested by hand and selected one by one, macerate for 12 to 24 hours in fermenting must. After pressing, fermentation takes place in new 136-litre Hungarian oak barrels. The wine is then aged for two years in barrel, followed by an additional year in bottle.

This wine reveals notes of candied apricot, orange zest and quince, accompanied by hints of acacia honey, white flowers and black tea. Touches of vanilla, ginger and sweet spices complete this complex bouquet, while a fine mineral tone adds precision. On the palate, the texture is unctuous and concentrated, balanced by a lively acidity that draws out the flavours without heaviness. The long, fresh finish extends the candied fruit, honey and spices.

It was the Romans who planted the first vines, at a time when the country was part of a region called Pannonia. At the dawn of the 18th century, Hungary, then united with Austria, exported its most famous wine throughout Europe: Tokaj (made from the Furmint grape). As everywhere in Europe, viticulture was devastated by phylloxera in the 19th century. During the communist era, vineyards were run as cooperatives, which guaranteed winegrowers a stable income. Quite a few small growers could not keep pace with this expanding economy, and so the Hungarian vineyard was restructured, losing 30% of its area in the process. Today many family estates have made their name, some of them producing wines of incredible quality. As everywhere in Europe, viticulture is in decline under the European restructuring plan for the wine industry. Hungary, which lies on the same latitude as Burgundy, has a continental climate with hot summers and cold winters. Rainfall is sufficient for non-irrigated viticulture, and the soils are varied and of high quality depending on the region. With around a hundred native and international grape varieties, the country enjoys good varietal diversity. Furmint and hárslevelű from the Tokaj region, vinified dry and the source of the great sweet wines of Tokaj, are undoubtedly the best-known varieties today. The most widely planted grape is olaszrizling for whites and kékfrankos for reds. International varieties, mainly the Bordeaux grapes, flourish especially in the south of the country, where they produce wines of great class.