Notes from our Wednesday wine club

This week's wine club focused on white wines that are available in Hunary for under five euros or 1350 forints. There are a surprisingly large number of wines to choose from, though most of the larger wineries were not represented because they did not carry wines within this price range. But everyone was able to find a bottle or two, most of which were very close to the price limit, but to our not-so-small surprise, we also found a wine for a third of the price that wasn't too shabby, as a matter of fact…

We tasted sixteen wines, most of which came from larger grocery stores, but there were a few that came direct from the winery. The first was a Spar product, Móri Ezerjó 2008 Pincemester Selection Price: 420.- Ft. It had sweet, oxidized aromas with heavy, dusty notes, fairly high acidity with a bit of residual sugar, bland taste and little bitterness at the end. As a spritzer, it wouldn’t be half bad. 76 point.
The next bottle was a Verpeléti Olaszrizling from Varsányi Pincészet, 2008. Nice, varietal aromas, citrus notes with a little creamy, honey-like fullness. Pretty good balance, good acidity nicely made, enjoyable. 80 points. Price: 450.- Ft.
Matias Olaszrizling, 2008, Pécs. Sulfur is bluntly apparent in the nose. Behind the sulfur, the varietal notes do peek out, but there is something unpleasant about this wine throughout the tasting, destroying any illusions. 71 points. Price: 1350.- Ft.
Feind Balatoni Olaszrizling, 2008. Dynamic nose, a little sweet, deep tones, clean, nice balance in the mouth too, great varietal character, good body and acid structure, fairly long finish. A typical olaszrizling, easy to drink, totally OK. 80 points. Price 1090.- Ft.
Hazler Olaszrizling, 2007, Bakóca. Nice, clean aromas, citrus notes with pineapple following closely behind, well-made, ripe, full-bodied, silky mouthfeel, great acid balance. Full palate, great with fish and poultry, even some spicier dishes. 83 points. Price approx. 1000.- Ft.
Radó Zöldveltelini, 2008, Pécs. Floral nose with honey, medicinal herbs, mint, tobacco, asparagus, cloves, compote, sweet aromas. Complex, exciting, a little simpler in the mouth, but nice and definitely an interesting wine. 82 pont. Ára: 980.- Ft.
Radó Chardonnay, 2008, Pécs. Varietal nose, medium intensity, the alcohol is a bit high and the taste a bit blunt, not very complex, bitter finish. The high alcohol is present throughout, perhaps served cooler, it would have presented itself better. 81 points. Price: 1380.- Ft.
Tornai Szürkebarát, 2008, Somló. Deep color, concentrated aromas, sweet chewing gum. Full-bodied, good acidity, mineral-salty, but not complex. Strong alcohol and acidity and very quick finish. 80 points. Price: 950.- Ft.
Sarokpince Szürkebarát, 2007, Györköny. Very simple and reserved, not too exciting, smooth in the mouth, creamy, lacking in acidity. A pretty simple wine. 78 points. Price: 650.- Ft.

BB. Sauvignon Blanc, 2008. A bit closed in the nose, I really can’t detect the varietal aromas I love in Sauvignon Blancs. But darn it the cat piss and earth tones are sure there! The acidity in this wine is very pushy, a bitter finish comes at the end of this not very complicated wine. 79 points. Price: we don’t know.
Hazler Sauvignon Blanc, 2007, Bakóca. Fuller aromas and much better structure. There are some barnyard notes in the nose, ripe and thick, strong acid spine. Unfortunately, it really doesn’t bring its variety. 78 points. Price: 1200.- Ft.
Frittman Irsai Oliver, 2008. Hardly any fruit in the nose, instead intense potpourri aromas flood the nose. After the first sip, the acidity takes over and doesn’t let go of its grip until the finsh. 77 points. Price: 1290.- Ft.
Matias Irsai Oliver, 2007. Perfume-like in the nose, good varietal character, it seems a little composed. It lost the great acidity it boasted a year ago and is now lack-luster in structure. 77 points. Price: 1350.- Ft.
Tornai Tramini, 2006, Somló. Intense aromas, with locust-tree, floral notes. Ripe and full in the mouth, but with a twinge of bitterness. Slightly bland with a quick finish. 79 points. Price: 950.- Ft.
Etyeki Kúria Etyeki Cuvée, 2003. At first whiff you can tell this is an old wine with aromas of cacao, but it is holding itself up surprisingly well. Interestingly enough, it still holds its acidity, but unfortunately, the has been thrown off. Despite this, the wine is still enjoyable and won’t disappoint. 79 points. Price: 1150.- Ft.
And finally, a dessert wine made it into this category, Bodvin Tokaji Cuvée, 2006. Almonds, walnuts, apricots in the nose, not very thick, solid acidity, slightly rancid aromas, forgetabble. 77 points. Price: 1290.- Ft.
Summa summarum, there’s hope, and yes, you can find good wine for this price. In fact, I’ll go one step further and say, most the wines we tasted were good. There was not one notably bad wine among the ones we tasted, but of course, there wasn’t one that was stunning either. But that wasn’t something we were expecting anyway. For me, this wine tasting carried a positive message and I know I’ll be more willing to take a chance on similar wines.

2009.11.07. – Sándor Faludi