Produced and bottled by Hungary’s Tokaj Classic Winery Ltd.
In the historic village of Mád, inspired by a visit with Istvan Szepsy, András Bruhács and a small group of classical musicians refurbished an old estate and acquired vineyards formerly owned by the Hungarian nobility. The vineyards are in the historical prime locations of Királyhegy (King’s Mountain) 3.5ha, and Betsek 3.5ha, and Juharos 1ha of Muscat.
Working with extremely low yields, the average age of the vines are around 35 years old. The Tokaj-Hegyalja (‘foothills’) region is noted for its unique climate and its soils, the ground is of volcanic origin (zeolite) with a porous tuffa mixture containing a high percentage of minerals and clay. The microclimate is predominantly south-facing slopes with proximity to the rivers Tisza and Bodrog, this is important for the proliferation of Botyrtis.
Imre Galambosi, former mayor of Mad, is the winemaker. He eschews modern methods for selection of quality bunches and grapes but relies on traditional vinification and barrel ageing to achieve wines that are age worthy across decades. This wine is a blend of 50% Furmint, 30% Lindenleaf and 20% Muscat.
The Tokaji Aszú, 5 Puttonyos displays a wonderfully rich intensity with notes of candied orange peel, apricot and honeycomb on the palate. This is a perfect accompaniment to apricot tart or pan-fried foie gras.
153 g/l residual sugar, 11.8 g/l acidity and 45.8 g/l extract.
