Assessing the wine scene in Hungary's Tokaj

Wines & Vines, April, 1994 by Carole Taines

In late August of 1993, I was invited to visit Tokaj, Hungary, as a viticultural and winemaking consultant. I went as a representative of Volunteers for Overseas Cooperative Assistance (VOCA), which is a private non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C. VOCA was founded in 1970 to provide organizational and technical assistance to cooperatives and private farmers, particularly in emerging democracies. Volunteers work in developing countries in such places as Africa, Asia and Latin America. Since the fall of Communism volunteers have been sent to Eastern and Central Europe, and the independent states of the Soviet Union, as well.

The presidents of seven village cooperatives in the Tokaj region had requested two consultants, one with technical expertise and one with business organizational skills. I shared the assignment with the former C.E.O. of a Midwest grain cooperative, who acted as the business consultant. The cooperatives represented the villages of Tarcal, Tokaj, Tallya, Mad, Hercegkut, Olaszliszka and Erdobenye. They wanted help to form an umbrella organization to promote their wines, expand their domestic market and develop a market in the West. These cooperatives comprise 1,022 members and about 1,800 acres. The individual vineyards range from 0.5 to 6.5 acres. Their 1992 total production, if bottled, would be about 280,000 cases.

Tokaj, which is 180 miles northeast of Budapest on the border with Slovakia, was already in vines when Magyars conquered Hungary in the ninth century. Vineyards had been established there by the Romans as early as the third century. Tokaj's location at 45.5 to 48.5 North latitude puts it on northern limit for viticulture. The average temperature during the growing season is 51F! But as is often the case in viticulture, where ripening is least able to be counted on, some of the world's greatest wines are made.

Although most of Hungary is under 200 meters in elevation, the Tokaj hill (Tokaj Hegyalja) is 400-500 meters high. The vineyards are planted on the south and southeasterly slopes. Tokaj is protected on north, west and east by the Carpathian Mountains, and exposed to warm southerly air from the Great Plains. The humidity is high from the evaporation of the local Bodrog and Tisza rivers. Heaviest rainfall months are June through August, with lighter rain in October. The main soil types are: "Nyirok", a clay loam with high iron content, mixed with rocks of volcanic origin; loess, which is silt loam deposited by wind, and "brown forest soil", the fertile soil characteristic of the flats. It's a matter of dispute among the villages which soil, Nyirok or loess, produces better quality wine. All agree that brown forest soil is the lowest quality.

The fortuitous combination of alternating overcast/cool/moist, with clear/warm/dry weather, and the well-drained soils makes Tokaj ideal for the development of Botrvtis cinerea, the"noble rot". In 1650, the first aszu was made, the sweet, thick and rich wine for which Tokaj is famous. Aszu is a botrytised wine, similar in some respects to Sauternes. It is known as the "wine of kings and the king of wines. "The story goes that harvest was delayed because of an impending invasion by the Turks. By the time the grapes were picked, the noble rot had done its magic and the rest is history. Tokaj wine has figured prominently in wars and treaties, and royalty throughout Europe have coveted it.

In 1798, a viticulturist named Antal Szirmay created the original Tokaj delineation. All vineyards in the 30 or so villages comprising Zemplen County were rated first, second or third class. This classification continues to be relevant today, despite the fact that the vineyards had to be replanted after phylloxera destroyed them in 1875, because it was made based on soil type and individual microclimate best suited to the development of superior aszu wines.

In 1908, national legislation officially cleared the boundaries of the Tokaj appellation. (Two of the original 30 villages ended up in Slovakia as a result of border changes after World War I). Also in 1908, the official Tokaj varieties were established: Furmint, which now makes up approximately 70% of the planted acreage, Harslevelu ("Linden Leaf") which makes up about 25%, and Muscat Lunel (Yellow Muscat), about 5%. In 1959, four more villages were added by Slovak legislation, three of which had been mentioned in 1798.

Some sources say that Furmint was introduced by Italians who settled in Tokaj in the 1200s, although the growers of Tokaj maintain that Furmint is a Hungarian variety. The Yellow Muscat is no doubt related to the White Muscat, which according to Pierre Galet originated in Greece, and was brought to France, and perhaps Hungary, by the Romans. Harslevelu appears to be an indigenous variety; I have been unable to find it in Galet, and the shape of its leaves and clusters is completely unlike anything I've ever seen.

All Hungarian property was nationalized when the Communists came to power after World War II. The state winery (Borkombinat), which had controlled all wine production during the years of the Communist regime, began to fall apart in 1989. The Soviet Union, which had collapsed, ceased to purchase its customary 70-80% of production, and the Kombinat fell quickly into debt. The current value of this debt is reported to exceed 2 billion forints (100 forints equal approximately 1 U.S. dollar). Because of this debt and excess wine stocks, the Kombinat reduced its grape and juice purchases from the Tokaj village cellars in 1990, and by the 1992 harvest, all business dealings between the Kombinat and the village cellars had come to a halt. This left 18,000 growers with the 1992 vintage on their hands, and no way to stabilize, filter, bottle, label or market their wine.