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Tokaj Wine Region, Hungary

There's historic wine, and then there's Tokaj. Made for more than one thousand years, Hungarian Tokaj was served at Versailles and became a favourite of Louis XV, King of France. The reason for its longterm success as one of the world's most beloved libations? This region has a unique microclimate that allows the wine to develop a distinctive taste. As a matter of fact, the world's first vineyard classification system was established here in 1730 by royal decree, followed by the 1757 designation of Tokaj as the world's first appellation.

Over the centuries, different ethnic groups settled in the area, bringing influences from places like Swabia, Poland, Romania, and Armenia. They were drawn partly by the unique environment that lent itself to wine production. In the shadow of an extinct volcano, Mount Tokaj, the producers cut their cellars out of slabs of volcanic rock about 500 years ago. The stone creates the ideal setting for the aging of this wine variety.

The region is made up of about 30 villages and towns, each with their own wineries. In the warmer months, grapes hang from the vines that stretch out across the slopes. Stopping at the local wineries, you can taste the different dry and sweet styles and learn about their production. Inside the cool volcanic rock cellars, wooden barrels exude the sense of history that makes Tokaj a must-visit destination. There are plenty of medieval castles, chateaux, nature trails and gourmet restaurants to explore right across the region.

Liquid Gold

The Tokaj Wine Region—one of Europe's oldest—is a swirl of diverse history, a wide range of architectural styles, a labyrinth of wine cellars, and a breathtaking flow of vineyards, farms, villages, and waterways. Consisting of 27 villages, the area is a cultural corridor situated in north-east Hungary, where generations and a mix of ethnicities and religions have contributed to a rich heritage.

The Tokaj Wine Region is legendary because one of the world’s best natural sweet wines, Tokaji Aszú, is made here. But travelers also make pilgrimages to the region for the popular Furmint and the Hárslevelű grape varieties. The unique geological position, climatic conditions, and biodiversity favours the production of complex, natural, and harmonious world-class varieties. And, the surrounding oak forests provide wonderful material for the coopers of the region to make barrels for aging this liquid gold.

Discover Your Own Hidden World

The region is most famous for its 3,000 wine cellars. Some of the structures are used for winemaking, some for aging wine, while others are used as social centers in the small towns and villages. You can find these ancient objects standing alone, or as part of a winery. They can be in the centre of the town under an old townhouse, or on the outskirts of town close to the vineyards. The charming Swabian village of Hercegkút, for instance, has a cellar system situated on four different levels and is more than three kilometres long.

The Tokaj Wine Region was recognised by UNESCO for its importance to the common cultural heritage of humanity. It was listed as a protected cultural landscape by the World Heritage Committee in 2002. A tour of the wineries guarantees guests the opportunity to visit cellars and discover hidden traditions while tasting the spirit of the region’s long history. The more you taste, the more you'll learn about this exceptional cultural heritage.

How to Get There

By car, it is about 2.5 hours from Budapest, and approximately an hour from Kosice or Debrecen. The town of Tokaj is the centre of the wine region, and is easily accessible by public transport. You are also able to hire a taxi or rent a bike to discover the wine region.

Trains travel to Tokaj from the Budapest Keleti-Railway Station and from Debrecen, where you can connect to international airports. If you would use Kosice’s airport you can take a train to Tokaj via Miskolc.

All airports provide car rental services and taxis. If you are open for a chat with locals, choose car-sharing services like Bla-Bla Car or its Hungarian version Oszkar.com.

How to Visit

There are many ways to explore the region. You can hike in the forests of the Zemplén Mountains, kayak along the Bodrog or Tisza rivers, or walk in the vineyards and learn about the local grape varieties, volcanic slopes, and discover the 14th-16th centuries cellars. For more information, please visit: www.visittokaj.com

When to Visit

The best time to visit Tokaj is from March to November. Harvest begins in September.

There are several great festivals in Tokaj throughout the year. The annual wine festival—with concerts and cultural events—occurs during the first half of June. During the first two weeks of August, Tokaj hosts a wonderful classical music festival (Zempléni Festival). The Harvest Festival is the first weekend in October. Visitors come from around the world to see the famous, beautiful, and traditional harvest march.

Sights and Attractions recommended by the locals

17 Of The Best Things To Do In Tokaj

Winery visits should be on the top of your agenda, but there are fun things to do in Tokaj even if you aren’t an oenophile.

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Use  this map  to find all places mentioned in the article below.

#1 - Go to a wine tasting

Tokaj is one of the unique wine regions of the world: with the help of a naturally occuring benign fungus and a meticulous manual harvest, extremely complex sweet wines are produced. This is your chance to absorb the vibes of the region: see vineyards, meet the winemakers, try wines. This list of wineries will help to get you started.

#2 - Spend a few hours in the city of Tokaj ( all locations )

The reason the wine region is named after the city of Tokaj is because of its strategic position by the Tisza river. Historically, the Tisza was an important transportation route and Tokaj a commecial center. Today, the town feels a little deserted and run-down, but the old city is worth spending a few hours in. Start where the Bodrog and Tisza rivers meet, an arresting view from the bridge over them (even better from the Finánc-dombi lookout point, after a three-minute uphill hike).

Then stroll the main street, named of course after Ferenc Rákóczi II, the local feudal landlord who organized a (failed) national revolution against the Habsburgs in the early 18th century. As a testament to Tokaj's once-diverse population, the city has five places of worship – a Roman Catholic, a Calvinist, a Greek and a Russian orthodox church, and a synagogue – all within a five-minute walk from one another. See more below on Tokaj's two wonderful museums.

You can fuel up on new-wave coffee at Kávé Manufaktúra; for food, try Labor or Winestone, both of them slick modern restaurants. Hétszőlő Winery, one of the great labels, has a retail store on the main square that's open on most days.

#3 - Visit the Wine and World Heritage Museum in the city of Tokaj ( location )

Opened in 2015, this modern interactive museum provides a helpful introduction to Tokaj's winemaking traditions. Featured themes include essential wine terms, soil types, grape varieties, barrel-making, food pairing ideas, Tokaj as a tool for political diplomacy. And so much more. (Good with children, too.)

#4 - Visit the Tokaj Museum in the city of Tokaj ( location )

This charmingly old-school exhibition takes place inside the house where a wealthy Greek wine merchant and his family lived in the 18th century. There are fun dioramas and models about Tokaj's wildlife and topology, but most enjoyable is the attic, filled to the brim with folk art pieces from eastern Hungary and Translyvania. Carpets, decorated pots, dowry chests, ornate flasks, textiles. Not to be missed.

#5 - Hike up to the Christ statue on the Tarcal hilltop ( location )

After a ten-minute uphill climb, sweeping views of the wine region await you with the expansive Hungarian Plain as the backdrop. There’s a quarry lake in the side of the hill, proving that not only wineries but also mining companies value the mineral-rich Tokaj soil (observe the cross-sectional view of volcanic layers). The trail sets off and terminates by Kikelet , the excellent winery of the French-Hungarian Stephanie Berecz, so you can crown the trip with a tasting.

#6 - Spend a few hours in Sárospatak ( all locations )

Today a sleepy town near the Slovakian border, Sárospatak was a thriving city under the dominion of the Rákóczi dynasty in the 16-17th centuries. It was dubbed the “Athens by the Bodrog River“ thanks to the renowned prep school – Sárospatak Reformed College – founded here in 1531 (it's still among the top in Hungary). The school has a lavish library and they normally provide short English-language tours for foreign visitors between 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day (until noon on Sundays).

Sárospatak's medieval castle is a palimpsest of history with Gothic, Renaissance, and Romantic elements. Inside, the permanent exhibit of the Rákóczi Museum is heavy on Hungarian history so may not be for everyone.

Save your appetite for Vár Vendéglő, an old-school Hungarian restaurant with excellent traditional fare. If you also have time to visit a true garage winery, drop in to Tamás Vincze (+3620 511 8942), a talented young winemaker.

#7 - Take in the architecture of Disznókő winery ( location ; open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; +3647 569 410)

AXA Millésimes, the French wine conglomerate and the owner of Disznókő in Tokaj, commissioned Dezső Ekler, a disciple of the legendary architect Imre Makovecz , to design Disznókő's new winery. The 1993 project turned out to be a resounding success. There's a timelessness to both the sculptural tractor storage and the four elegantly converging winery buildings. As part of a wine tasting you can tour the facilities of Disznókő, which also has a restaurant and wine store on the premises. (Advance booking at [email protected] )

#8 - See the medieval churches of the wine region ( all locations )

Medieval churches anchor many Tokaj villages, including Mád, Bodrogkeresztúr, Olaszliszka, and Bodrogolaszi. On Sunday mornings, services are still held in most of them, although the congregations are rapidly graying and dwindling.

#9 - Visit the synagogue in Mád ( location ; open every day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; +36 30 925 1808)

Starting in the 18th century, Mád was home to a thriving community of orthodox Jewish wine merchants. Few of them survived the Holocaust and those have since left Hungary, but the community's renovated Baroque-style synagogue is open to visitors. The former yeshiva building behind the synagogue is a visitor’s center today. A ten-minute walk from here, perched on the hillside at the end of town, is the Jewish cemetery, also open throughout the week.

#10 - Enjoy a meal in the wine region ( location )

The dining landscape in Tokaj has come a long way – an increasing number of truly excellent restaurants opened in the last few years. If unfussy traditional Hungarian fare is what you're after, head to Lebuj Fogadó or Vár Vendéglő. For a discerning meal, there's Bobajka Étterem and Dereszla Bisztró. Here, the full list of options.

#11 - Buy sweets at Pavilon Édességbolt in Szerencs ( location )

Szerencs has long been the capital of chocolate production in Hungary. While the main factory was acquired by Nestlé in 1991, a smaller Hungarian firm has carried on with the traditional products. From bonbons to marzipan to dark chocolate to candy to you name it. Their small retail store in Szerencs is fully stocked and joyously old-school.

#12 - Take in the architecture of Ferenc Bán's Tokaj house ( location ; observable from the road outside)

Architecture fans will get a kick out of the summer home of Ferenc Bán, a prominent Hungarian architect who hails from Tokaj. The slender steel frames of the white building, which was erected in 2000, were inspired by the industrial structure located across the street on the river's bank. The two amorphous objects dangling from the cantilevered ceiling are the playing rooms of the grandchildren. Tokaj's old Jewish cemetery flanks the building from one side.

#13 - Climb up to the Boldogkő Castle ( location ; open daily, HUF2,300 admission)

Ringed by scenic rows of apricot trees, this medieval fortress sits on a steep cliff and overlooks the rolling hills of the Zemplén Mountain and the charming village of Boldogkőváralja. A narrow wooden path juts out from the fortress and leads to a popular lookout point.

#14 - Visit the eye-catching wine cellars in Hercegkút ( location )

Rows and rows of underground wine cellars, only with their triangular stone entrances sticking out of the earth – the Tokaj village of Hercegkút offers two such eye-catching hillsides, the Kőporosi and the Gombos-hegyi. In the mid-18th century, the local landlord settled here German peasants who built these cellars to store wines and vegetables (as they still do today). Depending on when you go, a few might be open and selling wine, but you can always bring your own food and prepare an ad hoc picnic while enjoying the views.

#15 - See the tombstone of Rabbi Yeshaya Steiner in Bodrogkeresztúr ( all locations ; open all day; call +36 20 353 9111 if no one there to let you in)

Before WWII, the area near Tokaj was a hotbed of various Hasidic groups, led by charismatic rebbes with large followings. After the Holocaust, the few survivors fled abroad. Now, every year, thousands of ultra-orthodox Jews mainly from the U.S. descend on the town of Bodrogkeresztúr to commemorate the death anniversary of the legendary Rebbe Yeshaya Steiner, who died there in 1925. The rebbe's tombstone is covered in wish lists his followers have left to him over the years.

#16 - Visit the Holocaust memorial & grave of Tzvi Hersh Friedman in Olaszliszka ( all locations ; call +3630 925 1808 for access to the memorial and +3620 593 1283 to the cemetery)

Olaszliszka used to be an important center for Hasidic life in Hungary in the 19th century. In the town's cemetery rests Rebbe Tzvi Hersh Friedman, the founder of the so-called Liska dynasty. After the Holocaust, Olaszliszka ceased to have a Jewish community and the town's synagogue was dismantled. In 2015, using its one remaining wall and a new front, the town erected a memorial for the victims. The Liska Hasidic group lives on in Brooklyn today, and its members regularly visit the grave of their founding rebbe.

#17 - Go for a hike or a run up to the Szent Tamás vineyard ( location )

Located a 25-minute walk from Mád's center, Szent Tamás is a scenic vineyard marked by a mound of volcanic rocks. Once up here, take a breather to regain your strength and enjoy the vistas. If you're visiting around harvest time, when the grapes are ripe, feel free to pick a few as you go – no one is going to call the cops on you.

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Welcome to the picturesque region of Tokaj, where time-honored traditions blend seamlessly with a modern-day allure, creating an enchanting destination that promises an exceptional experience for every traveler.

The Tokaj Wine Region is home to some of Hungary's most beloved varieties of wine. The region is spread over a romantic landscape

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Tokaj wine region, hungary.

The Tokaj Wine Region is home to some of Hungary's most beloved varieties of wine. The region is spread over a romantic landscape of cellar labyrinths, vines and slopes, nestled at the foothills of the Zemplén Mountains. Its winemaking history dates back over a thousand years. The most famous variety, Aszú – was described by Louis XV of France as ‘Vinum Regum, Rex Vinorum' - the Wine of Kings, King of Wines.

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The magic of tokaj: wine and cultural experience, world heritage cellars of hercegkút, tokaji museum and the world heritage wine museum, what is world heritage.

World Heritage refers to sites or areas of outstanding cultural, natural, or historical significance that are considered to be of universal value to humanity. These exceptional places are recognized and protected by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as World Heritage Sites.

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The Tokaj Wine Region is home to some of Hungary's most beloved varieties of wine. The region is spread over a romantic landscape of cellar labyrinths, vines and slopes, nestled at the foothills of the Zemplén Mountains.

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Decanter travel guide: Tokaj, Hungary

• Decanter travel guides
• Magazine: August 2018 Issue

With its rural villages, atmospheric cellars and sweet golden wines, this northeastern corner of Hungary is a hidden gem, waiting to be explored. Caroline Gilby MW shares her highlights...

Decanter Tokaj travel guide – Need to know:

• When to go : You can still get there for the 2018 Furmint festival on 2 and 3 September
• Fly to : Budapest and take a train or hire a car. It’s a 2.5-hour drive.
• Top tip : Take a taxi out to wineries. There is zero tolerance for drinking and driving.

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My perfect day in tokaj, where to sleep, eat and shop in tokaj.

Vineyard area 5,747ha Number of growers 3,900 Number of wineries 190 Six permitted grape varieties  Furmint (69%), Hárslevelu (18%), Sárga Muskotály aka Yellow Muscat (9%), Zeta, Kövérszolo, Kabar (all together 4%) Wine styles  aszú (10%), dry (21%), wines with natural residual sugar (69%)

Tokaj is simply stunning; a region of hundreds of extinct volcanoes, wooded hilltops and vineyards. It covers 27 villages and the hillsides are full of tunnels that are carved into the volcanic rock, which provide perfect ageing conditions for its golden wine treasures.

It’s little wonder that in 2002 UNESCO listed the Tokaj wine region as a World Heritage Cultural Historic Landscape, one of only a handful of wine regions to achieve this status.

Tokaj (the place – Tokaji with an ‘i’ is the wine) lies in Hungary’s far northeast, so close to the border that a small part of the region is actually in Slovakia.

Wine and tourism are closely intertwined here and just about every winery is open to visitors, though usually you’ll need to make an appointment, as most are small, family-run concerns.

Unique landscape

Twelve million years ago this area was under the Pannonian Sea, at which time undersea seismic activity created the porous volcanic rock that now underpins the region and allows vine roots to grow deep. The region also lies at the confluence of two rivers: the Tisza and the Bodrog. The humid air leads to dense foggy mornings in the autumn, which creates the perfect environment for botrytis cinerea in its noble rot form to infect the grapes. The sloping vineyards enjoy sunny and breezy afternoons, which then shrivel the grapes too.

The resulting aszú grapes (aszú was first mentioned as early as 1571) are so dry that juice can’t be squeezed from them, so Tokaj has a special winemaking method. These shrivelled grapes are mashed into a paste, which is soaked in fermenting juice to make the luscious golden Tokaji aszú wines. These are the wines that made Tokaji world-famous, enjoyed in royal courts all over Europe. Tokaj has possibly the oldest vineyard classification in the world, produced in 1707-1708, long before Bordeaux or Burgundy. Then in 1737, a royal decree defined the Tokaj region and which villages were permitted to use the name – arguably the first controlled appellation.

Cellar discoveries

Hundreds of small cellars are a fascinating feature of this region, dug several metres into the coolness of the volcanic tuff bedrock – the perfect environment for ageing Tokaji. Most are lined with the velvety, cushioned growths of a fungus called Zasmidium cellare. This mould only grows in wine cellars and is believed to help purify the air and regulate the humidity. See it for yourself in the multi-level 17th-century cellars at Dereszla  and contrast this with a visit to its brand-new winery and terrace wine bar in the heart of the vineyards at Henye.

Another option is Patricius , voted Hungary’s most beautiful winery in 2013. Explore the cellars, taste excellent aszú and late-harvest wines, and enjoy the stunning vineyards with their collection of almost-forgotten historic grapes. Vega Sicilia owns Tokaj-Oremus in Tolcsva, which makes the stunning Mandolás dry white, as well as wonderful sweet and aszú wines in its historic winery and deep underground cellars. Here you can even taste the legendary eszencia – the rich syrup that trickles from aszú grapes and is reputed to have miraculous medicinal properties.

For a complete contrast, visit the small Balassa winery , where owner István Balassa will take visitors into the vineyards and share his incredible knowledge of the landscape and soils of the region.

Wineries to visit

Tokaj is Furmint heartland – a wonderful grape that can truly reflect its terroir. Recently the development of single-vineyard or dulo wines has been a strong trend. István Szepsy has been a pioneer in so many aspects of Tokaji winemaking and lately he has focused on the fine details of the soils in his 400 vine parcels. Try his wines at Percze or Gusteau restaurants in Mád.

The talented Zoltán Demeter makes a stunning range of vineyard-selection dry wines, as well as elegant sparkling, fine f˝obor sweet wine and great aszú in an 18th-century house in Tokaj, where he plays classical music to his young wines. He and his wife will happily show you their wines if they are at the winery.

Other small wineries worth a visit include Dobogó , Gizella , the biodynamic Bott Pince and Tokaj-Nobilis . Meanwhile Frenchman Samuel Tinon has made his home in Olaszliszka and is king of the now rare, flor-aged dry style of szamorodni (made from whole bunches, mostly in sweet styles). Remember to book ahead to visit.

Wine is at the heart of tourism, but there are also lovely walks through the wooded hilltops of the region and breathtaking panoramic views, including the brisk hike to the region’s highest point, the Tokaj hill itself. Boat trips, mountain biking or horse riding can also be arranged nearby. The majestic, beautifully restored Rákóczi Castle at Sárospatak is well worth a visit. The 18th-century synagogue in the village of Mád, which forms part of a Jewish pilgrimage route through the region, should also be on your list.

When to visit

Best times to visit include late April when the annual Tokaj wine auction takes place, with the Tokaj Spring programme of visits and special tastings. Late May sees St Urban’s Day when a number of wineries open their doors, while in June there’s a wine festival in Tokaj town and Mád holds a Furmint Festival in September.

There are frequent flights to Budapest and it’s a straightforward 2.5-hour drive on good roads to Tokaj. A direct train leaves Budapest- Keleti railway station for Tokaj every two hours; journey time is two hours, 40 minutes. If you drive, leave the car at the hotel when you arrive and take a taxi – there is zero tolerance on drinking and driving.

This is a new travel guide, published in Decanter magazine’s August 2018 issue , and it replaces the original guide, published on these pages in 2014. 

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Grand Tokaj

In recent years, the winery has undergone significant transformation. This development affected the whole of the company, from company management through the reconstruction of vineyards owned by the company to the partial renewal of the barrel stock, and this led to the modern wine processing technology used by Tokaj Kereskedőház today. The developments of recent years and the modern processing technology applied is worthy of the reputation of Tokaji wine and the Tokaj wine region, and is in line with our efforts to preserve the traditions of Tokaj-Hegyalja as well as ensure the outstanding quality of our wines. In the past five years, compared to previous years, even decades, Tokaj Kereskedőház has undergone a complete transformation. Tokaj Kereskedőház is no longer “the trading house it used to be”. The only state-owned winery of Tokaj-Hegyalja today uses state-of-the-art wine processing technology to make its wines, which are exported to more than 30 foreign markets.

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Aszú gets its own glass on the eve of international aszú day.

A new glass, designed and tested to show Tokaji Aszú at its best, has been ceremonially unveiled today in Andrássy Kúria Hotel’s conference room in Tarcal. The approximately ninety invitees to ...

Bust of Paracelsus uneiled in Tokaj Memorial Park

Paracelsus (born Philip von Hohenheim) was an early-16th-century physician, chemist and pharmacist who, inspired by the legend of golden vine canes growing in Tokaj, travelled to Hungary in 1524 ...

Furmint glass officially shown to public

Riedel\'s Furmint glass has been unveiled at Gusteau Restaurant in the course of a dinner with wines, prepared by the chefs of Hungary\'s four Michelin-starred restaurants, during the Tokaji Ősz ...

Memorial park in the capital of the wine region

Tokaj Foundation is establishing a memorial park in the eponymous settlement of the wine region. The aim of the initiative is to bring into being a place where the posterity should commemorate the ...

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Unesco social media, tokaj wine region historic cultural landscape.

• Description

The cultural landscape of Tokaj graphically demonstrates the long tradition of wine production in this region of low hills and river valleys. The intricate pattern of vineyards, farms, villages and small towns, with their historic networks of deep wine cellars, illustrates every facet of the production of the famous Tokaj wines, the quality and management of which have been strictly regulated for nearly three centuries.

Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0

Paysage culturel historique de la région viticole de Tokaj

Le paysage culturel de Tokaj témoigne de façon vivante de la longue tradition de production viticole dans cette région de collines, rivières et vallées. Ce réseau complexe de vignobles, fermes, villages et petites villes avec son labyrinthe historique de caves à vin, illustre toutes les facettes de la production des fameux vins de Tokaj, dont la qualité et la gestion sont strictement contrôlées depuis presque trois siècles.

المشهد الثقافي التاريخي لمنطقة توكاج المختصّة بزراعة الكرمة

يدلّ المشهد الثقافي لمدينة توكاج بصورة حية على التقليد القديم لإنتاج زراعة الكرمة في هذه المنطقة الغنية بالتلال والأنهار والوديان. وتجسّد هذه الشبكة المعقّدة من الأراضي المزروعة كرمةً والمزارع والقرى والمُدن الصغيرة الغنية بالتيه التاريخي لكهوف النبيذ، كل أوجُه إنتاج نبيذ توكاج الفاخر والمشهور الذي تخضع نوعيته وإدارته لمراقبة شديدة منذ أكثر من ثلاثة قرون.

source: UNESCO/CPE Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0

托卡伊葡萄酒产地历史文化景观

托卡伊葡萄酒产地历史文化景观生动地表现了该地区低山河谷地带历史悠久的葡萄酒酿造传统。葡萄园体系繁杂庞大，包括葡萄园、农场、村庄、小城镇，还有历史遗留下来的网络般的地下酒窖，显示了著名的托卡伊葡萄酒的每个酿造过程，近三个世纪以来其质量和生产都受到严格的管理和控制。

Paisaje cultural histórico de la región vitivinícola de Tokay

El paisaje cultural de Tokay es un vivo testimonio de la larga tradición vitivinícola de esta región de colinas, ríos y valles. Está configurado por un complejo conjunto de viñedos, casas de labranza, pueblos y aldeas que poseen una red ancestral de bodegas, y es un vivo ejemplo de las distintas facetas de la producción del famoso vino de Tokay, cuya calidad es objeto de un control estricto desde hace tres siglos.

トカイワイン産地の歴史的文化的景観

source: NFUAJ

Historisch cultuurlandschap van de Tokaj wijnstreek

Het historisch cultuurlandschap van de Tokaj wijnstreek toont de lange traditie van wijnproductie in deze regio van lage heuvels en rivierdalen. Het ingewikkelde patroon van wijngaarden, boerderijen, dorpen en kleine steden – met hun historische netwerken van diepe wijnkelders – illustreert elk facet van de productie van de beroemde Tokaj wijnen. De kwaliteit van deze wijnen wordt al bijna drie eeuwen strikt gereguleerd. In de labyrintische wijnkelders die uit meerdere verdiepingen bestaan, wordt wijn opgeslagen en gerijpt in vaten van zomereik. Het bekendste wijnkeldernetwerk is dat in de wijk Satoraljaujhely dat 27 kelders op verschillende niveaus verbindt.

Source: unesco.nl

Outstanding Universal Value

Brief synthesis  

Located at the foothills of the Zemplén Mountains (in North-East Hungary), along the Bodrog river and at the confluence of the Bodrog and the Tisza Rivers, the Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2002. The World Heritage property and its buffer zone together cover the administrative area of 27 settlements (13,245 ha and 74,879 ha, so 88,124 ha in total). The entire landscape, its organisation and its character are specially shaped in interaction with the millennial and still living tradition of wine production. Documented history of the wine region since 1561 attests that grape cultivation as well as the making of the ‘aszú’ wine has been permanent for centuries in the area surrounded by the three Sátor-hegy (the Tokaj-hill, the Sátor – hill of Abaújszántó, and the Sátor-hill of Sátoraljaújhely). The legal base of delimitation of the wine region is among the first in the world and dates back to 1737 when the decree of Emperor Charles VI (Charles III, King of Hungary) established the area as a closed wine region.

The unique combination of topographic, environmental and climatic conditions of the Tokaj Wine Region, with its volcanic slopes, wetlands creating a special microclimate that favours the apparition of the “noble rote” (Botrytis cinerea), as well as the surrounding oak-woods have long been recognized as outstandingly favourable for grape cultivation and specialized wine production. All these features have enabled the development of vineyards, farms, villages, small towns and historic networks of wine cellars carved by hand into mostly volcanic rocks, which are the most characteristic structures in Tokaj: that of King Kalman in Tarcal is known to have been in existence as early as 1110. There are two basic types of cellar in Tokaj: the vaulted and the excavated. The socio-cultural, ethnic and religious diversity of the inhabitants, together with the special fame of the Tokaji Aszú Wine has contributed to the rich and diverse cultural heritage of the region.

Criterion (iii): The Tokaj wine region represents a distinct viticultural tradition that has existed for at least a thousand years and which has survived intact up to the present.

Criterion (v): The entire landscape of the Tokaj wine region, including both vineyards and long established settlements, vividly illustrates the specialized form of traditional land use that it represents.

The attributes of the Outstanding Universal Value of the property are sufficiently intact. These include environmental conditions (geology, morphology, hydrology and climate) favourable for specialized vine- growing, historic vineyards /terroirs, long established settlements and their network, rich cultural heritage reflecting ethnic diversity, diverse types of cellars and a great diversity of other buildings contributing to the character of the landscape and related to vine-growing and wine production (e.g. terraces, built stone walls and hedges, reservoirs). The property embraces most of the attributes necessary to express the Outstanding Universal Value. However, the relationship between the property and its buffer zone needs further review as well as the external boundaries of the buffer zone. Within the context of changing economic demands, the continuity of traditional land use is sustained. In the long term, disappearance of wetlands and the expansion of built-in areas as well as climate change should be considered as potential threats.

Authenticity

Concerning the built structures, frequent military incursions and fires have resulted over the centuries in the destruction and rebuilding or reconstruction of a substantial proportion of the historic buildings. However, scrupulous respect for international standards in conservation and restoration, in conformity with the Venice Charter, have ensured that over the past half-century, the level of authenticity in the surviving historic buildings fully conforms with the requirements of the Operational Guidelines. The historic settlements have also conserved their basic urban layouts as well as their interconnection, both with each other and with the landscape. Wine has been produced in the Tokaj region and vineyards have been worked here for more than 1000 years. The resulting landscape, with its towns and villages serving the productions of the famous Tokaji Aszú wines, has not changed in its overall appearance throughout that period.

Protection and management requirements

Since 15 February 2012, the entire World Heritage property with its buffer zone is legally protected as a ‘historic landscape’ under the Act on the Protection of Cultural Heritage, thus significant interventions affecting the property and its buffer zone must follow the expert advice of the Government’s County District Construction and Heritage Protection Agency. The purpose of this territorial protection is to preserve the historic buildings and the natural environment, to sustain traditional land use, as well as to ensure the sustainable management of the Outstanding Universal Value of the property. 61% of this historic landscape belongs to the Natura 2000 network, hence enjoys EU-level protection as a natural site of community importance. A great number of historic monuments within the property and its buffer zone are also individually protected. Furthermore, there are several nationally protected natural areas fully or partly within the property and its buffer zone.

The historically diverse ownership of the property (ranging from private individuals owning small vineyards to local authorities, Churches, the State and private companies possessing large estates) is part of the attributes of the property and is at the same time a serious challenge for management. Based on the national World Heritage Act of 2011, a new management plan will enter intoforce as a governmental decree and will be reviewed at least every seven years.

A Regional Architectural and Planning Jury, composed of territorially competent State Chief Architect and members appointed by him/her, will assist in the realization of high quality developments adapted to the values of the property. Based on the World Heritage Act, the appointment of a management body by the Minister responsible for culture is under way. The new management plan and the management body will provide transparent governance arrangements with clear responsibilities, where the different interests can manifest themselves and where the institutional framework and methods for the cooperation of the different stakeholders are available.

Based on the World Heritage Act, the state of conservation of the property, as well as threats and preservation measures, will be regularly monitored and reported to the National Assembly. The overall aim of the management is to maintain and enhance the environmental, social as well as economic conditions for viticulture, wine production and related sectors that have always been the economic engines of the region. The living cultural landscape must remain an asset for the benefit of the sustainable development of local communities.

Once the Management Plan is approved and finalised, the revision of the boundaries of the property and its buffer zone shall be considered, in order to enhance the integrity and the appropriate protection of the property. The revision of the boundaries must bear in mind the challenges posed by the transformation of wetlands, the expansion of built-in areas and global environmental challenges such as climate change. Special attention should be paid to the impact of mines, quarries and other mineral exploitation industries. It is important to carry out a comprehensive conditions review and impact assessment on the effect of mines on the Outstanding Universal Value of the property. A careful and strategic approach has to be followed concerning traffic management, road constructions and improvements. Transboundary extension of the buffer zone is to be considered with reference to World Heritage Committee decisions and based on the excellent cooperation of the Hungarian and Slovak authorities of cultural heritage.

• Tokaj Wine Region Official Website (in Hungarian only)

The Nomination files produced by the States Parties are published by the World Heritage Centre at its website and/or in working documents in order to ensure transparency, access to information and to facilitate the preparations of comparative analysis by other nominating States Parties.

The sole responsibility for the content of each Nomination file lies with the State Party concerned. The publication of the Nomination file does not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever of the World Heritage Committee or of the Secretariat of UNESCO concerning the history or legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its boundaries.

State of Conservation (SOC)

• The initiative
• Requirements
• How to Apply?
• Areas of Evaluation

Nestled in the northeastern reaches of Hungary, the historic town of Tokaj beckons with its rich cultural heritage and the golden allure of Tokaj wine. Framed by the Zemplén Mountain and cradled at the confluence of the Bodrog and Tisza rivers, Tokaj holds a unique place in the viticultural landscape. This UNESCO World Heritage site, designated in 2002, is not merely a town but a living testament to the common cultural heritage of humanity, celebrated through its ancient winemaking traditions.  

As visitors traverse the Tokaj-Hegyalja wine-producing district, they encounter a mosaic of villages, each with its own wineries, contributing to Hungary’s most important wine region. Beyond wine, Tokaj unfolds as a multifaceted destination, where historic cellars, museums, and scenic viewpoints beckon explorers. This summary delves into the charms of Tokaj, revealing its cultural gems, architectural treasures, and commitment to sustainable tourism.  

  The municipality envisions transforming its locale into a globally recognized wine region, a thriving community, and a sustainable destination by 2030. The commitment extends across diverse fronts, from promoting wine and gastronomic traditions to fostering cultural, religious, and architectural experiences.  

Tokaj’s World Heritage Wine Museum, housed in a historic building, encapsulates the essence of Tokaj’s winemaking legacy, offering an immersive experience of European wine regions.  

  As Tokaj raises a toast to its 950th year, its multi-faceted approach ensures a harmonious blend of tradition, progress, and responsible stewardship, positioning it as a model for sustainable and culturally rich destinations.  

Cultural Tapestry and Historic Cellars

Tokaj’s allure lies not just in its wine but in its rich cultural tapestry. The Tokaji Museum and World Heritage Wine Museum unveil the history and culture of the wine region, housed in historic buildings that resonate with the echoes of centuries past.

Rakoczi Pince es Udvarhaz , a transformed historic wine cellar, invites guests to relish in Tokaj’s spirit while Erdős Pince’s Borkatakomba offers an underground wine-tasting experience carved into volcanic rock.

Preserving Legacy and Commitment to Cultural Heritage

In Tokaj the commitment to preserving its rich cultural and built heritage stands as a guiding principle. As an integral part of the World Heritage core area, Tokaj recognizes the paramount importance of safeguarding its cultural treasures and architectural legacy.

 In alignment with the meticulous directives outlined in the World Heritage Management Plan and the Tokaj Wine Region Development Concept, the village meticulously steers every development toward a harmonious blend of progress and heritage conservation.  

The village ensures that each architectural alteration and urban development concept adheres to a carefully crafted vision. This vision not only prioritizes the preservation of Tokaj’s unique cultural identity but also embraces the principles of environmental sustainability and cultural continuity.  

  A standout initiative in this endeavor is the Tokaj-Hegyalja for Children brochure, that serves as a bridge between generations, imparting the traditions and stories of Tokaj to the younger populace. By doing so, Tokaj not only safeguards its heritage but actively involves the youth in the journey of cultural preservation, fostering a sense of pride and responsibility among the next generation.  

Cultural Renaissance: Transforming Tokaj into a Dynamic Hub

Tokaj’s center and the vibrant Festival Katlan have undergone a metamorphosis, emerging as lively hubs for both locals and visitors alike converg ing e to celebrate the arts in all their forms. This cultural renaissance extends to the Tokaj Writers’ Camp, a literary extravaganza held annually, making it the largest writers’ camp in East-Central Europe.

 These developments not only infuse energy into the Village but also celebrate its artistic and intellectual dimensions, fostering a dynamic atmosphere that transcends borders creating a dynamic ambiance that radiates beyond the village’s confines.  

The villages and terroirs of Tokaj

Sarah Marsh MW continues her tour of Hungary's most celebrated wine region.

By Sarah Marsh MW

In the second part of her report from Tokaj, Sarah Marsh MW gets to grips with some of the most promising terroirs for making dry wines.

Tokaj: Drying up or drying out?

Tokaj and Tarcal

The village of Tokaj lies on the southern end of the region beside the confluence of the Bodrog and Tisza Rivers which create the humid conditions necessary for botrytis. Dry wines come from vineyards above the fog zone. The designated areas for vineyards encircle the tops of volcanos in Tokaj offering multiple aspects. Not only do Tokaj and Tarcal villages have the lion’s share of classy single vineyards, snaffling 31of the top 50 (largely in Tarcal), they also have a standalone soil which produces a distinctive style of wine. 

Here the top soil is loess , a fine mineral-rich sediment ground from rock by glacial movement. Windblown from the Hungarian plain, this lies 20m (66ft) deep on the far Tarcal side of the hill. Compared with wine from the majority of villages, where the vines are rooted into volcanic rock, Tokaj and Tarcal wines have a more delicate structure. They are lighter bodied and have slightly lower acidity making them friendly and quite accessible in youth. 

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Tokaj-Hétszőlő, a medium-sized estate of 55ha (136 acres) under the same ownership as Cos d’Estournel , produces a good example of the Tokaj style from His Garai, a second-class 15ha (37 acres) monopole. Furmint 2021 is finely textured and refined.

Around the other side of the hill, from the deep loess vineyard of Lónyai in Tarcal village, the producer Basilicus produces a straight, precisely edged, high-wired, and elegant Furmint in 2019  (a very good vintage, not as intense as 2021, but nor as high in alcohol and acidity) with an attractively dry finish, while Kikelet, which has six single vineyards in Tarcal, make  Hárslevelű in Lónyai from a higher windswept section of the vineyard. The 2021 is tightly furled and quivers with tension. These wines neatly express the typicity of the terroir in the two two villages with loess soil.  

Mád village

But my attention was riveted by the village of Mád, which lies adjacent to Tarcal to the north. Here the vineyards have the volcanic bedrock and clay topsoil typical of the region. Rhyolite is mixed in different proportions with andesite, zeolite, and perlite; and in some places quartz and in others tufa. This volcanic cocktail produces wines more firmly structured than Tokaj and Tarcal. Among all the wines I tried from different villages, Mad’s seemed denser and more compact, and particularly on the East side of the village, fuller and richer. Over the past decade the potential of Mad’s vineyards has attracted some of the most skilful winemakers. It’s a hotbed of young talent and great terroir. 

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So after three days of tastings and visits, covering all styles with Mád wines among them, I broke away to stay in Mád for a couple of days. Mád’s wine community tends to be a bit ahead of the curve. Even before demarcation, viticulture and laborers’ earnings were regulated. Just recently, and with effect from the 2023 vintage, the Mád Circle for the Protection of Origin has drawn up a code, independent of the regional authority, with tighter regulations for viticultural practices and origin including such things as maximum yields, age of vine, and density of planting. As for single vineyards, Mád’s regulations demand 100 percent single-varietal Furmint or Hárslevelű which must be matured for six months in barrel. Those who comply may use the Mád Origin Control trademarks of MOC and MDOC on their labels. 

But for the moment I came across only one producer making a Mád village wine. Dénes Szarka was a sommelier before opening a small guesthouse in 2005. He started by making wines for his guests and in 2020 opened a bistro (well worth a visit). He’s a smallish producer making 8,000 bottles (70 percent dry) from 3ha (7.5 acres) across five single vineyards in Mád. His 2021 Mád village wine, a blend of three vineyards, shows the breadth, rich texture, and firm cold cut of acidity typical of Mád’s wines.

It’s strange and rather a missed opportunity that few producers make use of their village-level appellation. Many have estate wines, often blended from vineyards within one village, which are labelled as regional wine. Tarcal has a sort of co-operative village wine (Mád used to, but no longer) to which producers contribute grapes for a village blend, but the objective is to promote tourism at wine events and festivals within their village.

As I tend to view things from a Burgundian perceptive , it seems to me that if producers want to strengthen the identity of their village with serious consumers, especially in those in the export market, a village appellation wine is an essential stepping stone along the terroir pathway, from an introductory and well priced regional wine to an expensive single vineyard wine.

It’s easy to get caught up in the history and economics of the region, useful for context, but now let’s dig into those single vineyards (dülos) of Mád.

Szent Tamás (St-Thomas) vineyard

As I stood on the rocky crest of a 260m (850ft) hill in the first-class vineyard of Szent Tamás (St-Thomas) and turned to look around me, the vines draped over slopes of many aspects. 

Szent Tamás lies on the east side of Mád village rising immediately from the outer fringe of houses. The clay soil is noticeably red, two meters deep at the foot and progressively thinner and stony to the top. Beneath this is a bedrock of rhyolite, quartz, and pumice. Szent Tamás, a large vineyard of 75ha (185 acres), was first mentioned in 1611. 

As I was able try wine from different producers, a general profile emerged. Szent Tamás is firmly structured, but svelte. I find Szent Tamás has lithe muscularity. Firm acidity is enveloped within the wine. Layered, well defined, and contained, they stretch firmly and elegantly onto the finish. In 2021 they are powerful with an unsprung, reserved feel. Whatever the vintage they have the easy harmony, balance, and quiet confidence of wines of a top level terroir. Complex wine, Szent Tamás is Mád’s thoroughbred. 

“I was afraid to make it; its reputation is so high,” remarked Kata Zsirai, Hungary’s Young Winemaker of the Year in 2018. She acquired a south-facing snippet of Szent Tamás in a recent land swap with Sauska, a large outfit in Mad at the forefront of quality sparkling-wine production. Zsirai Szent Tamás 2019 has toned muscularity.

Even in the hot 2022 vintage, Szent Tamás at Szepzy’s winery (tasted from barrel) was contained, intense, and layered with a cold cut of acidity and a quietly powerful finish.

This terroir makes wine to age. István Szepsy finds Szent Tamás goes through a flat period after five years, but comes back. Szepsy Szent Tamás 2020 showed good intensity and balance from this rather difficult cold and rainy vintage. Szepsy has dwarf and gnarled goblet vines on the cooler east-facing slope. Planted in 1957, this parcel was all but abandoned, until István Szepsy Senior revived it. 

During the communist regime, parcels of bush vines on difficult-to-work slopes were of no interest to the state. Large Russian tractors could only operate on the flat between wide-spaced rows. Growers were permitted to keep and cultivate one hectare of vines, the fruit from which went to the state wineries. Thus some vineyards, such as this small parcel of Szent Tamás survived.     

István Balassa, mentioned earlier, has an impressive overview of terroir from working with 1,000ha (2,500 acres) of vineyards for the former state winery Grand Tokaj. He also makes his own wines from a plethora of parcels, largely in Mád. “There is a high calcium carbonate content in Szent Tamás and in my opinion it is the most elegant terroir in Mád with rounded peach and length, but it needs two to four years in bottle to develop.” Bassala’s wines are on the richer side, “I like to wait for full ripeness,” he says. 

Some producers have vines in a southerly subsection called Makovicza, which István Bassusa tells me has the highest potential in Szent Tamás for dry wine. I tasted a couple of Makovicza which showed tension, power and intensity. Pelle Pince make a Hárslevelű from this parcel and I wrote nothing about aromatics only of the structure, vigorous energy and length. Terroir stands out. It goes to show there should be subdivisions of vineyards to reflect the potential of the terroir.

I also liked Royal Tokaj’s elegant and intense Szent Tamás 2019 coming largely from the west-facing flank overlooking the village. Royal Tokaji are a big player in Mád with 57ha (140 acres) of their total 108ha (267 acres) in the village, largely in Szent Tamás, Betsek, Úrágya, and Nyúlászó. As has been well documented, this company was established in 1990 when 62 growers came together with overseas investors, overseen by Hugh Johnson, to restore the reputation and lost glory of Tokaj.

Betsek/Becsek vineyard

From my vantage point, turning to face roughly east, I overlooked the Mád basin. In this natural bowl lies the first-class 110ha (272 acres) vineyard of Betsek, first mentioned in 1600. Partially enshrouded in mist it was easy to appreciate the conditions here could be conducive for botrytis later in the year. While in the bare vineyards of late March, the soil was noticeably whiter (in the clear afternoon) than the red soil of Szent Tamás. There is a high level of tufa in Betsek’s rhyolite soil.

Betsek dry wines are fullish, certainly broad, notably generous, and possibly looser knit than Szent Tamás. Less lithe, more burly. They are richly textured and can appear quite creamy in comparison with wine made from other vineyards by the same producer.  They are fruit forward and often spicy, although the latter is probably as much from the aromatic contribution of Hárslevelű, which is more popular than Furmint for making dry wine in Betsek. Szepsy says he doesn’t much like Betsek for dry wine as the alcohol can be too high. Hárslevelű reaches phenolic ripeness earlier than Furmint, so maybe others agree. Hárslevelű emphasizes Betsek’s open and expansive palate, attractively encased in aromatic white peach. Seen through Furmint, it’s a bit more firmly structured. 

The freshness of Betsek wine is most noticeable on the finish where it is accompanied by a distinctive salty and piquant mineral tang. Bott Betsek Hárslevelű 2021 made by Judit Bodó has an attractive soft-flake saltiness on the finish.

At Holdvölgy, a Mád winery, but also the name of a Mád vineyard, I tasted six vintages of Harslevelu from Betsek.  The 2012 is rather sumptuous, broad and glossy partly from some smart Seguin Moreau oak. With bottle age Betsek (2013 and 2009) slims down and focuses on its saline finish. Holdvölgy, which produces seven single-vineyard wines, confusingly doesn’t use the vineyard names on their labels. Betsek is called “Expression.”

All those making wine from Betsek spoke of the tufa . Balossa remarks, “The majority of parcels, within the 82ha [203 acres], are white rhyolite tufa and this is what gives the wines their velvet texture. There are also about 12ha [30 acres] of quartz which produces something more powerful and about 4ha [10 acres] of andesite which makes a more balletic style.” He mentioned the high concentration of clay minerals, which he says are responsible for the mineral bitterness on the finish of Betsek wines. 

Even in Mád many slopes are uncultivated. Squinting, I could see the ghostly outlines of terraces abandoned to shrub. In the aftermath of phylloxera, during which 95 percent of vines in Tokaj were lost to the louse, the majority of terraced vineyards on steep slopes, many of which were cultivated 500 years ago, were simply not replanted. In its heyday Hungary was the fourth-largest wine producer in Europe after France, Italy, and Spain.  

Király and Öreg Király vineyards

Betsek is skirted by other vineyards. Out of my sight line, on the far side of the hill of ghostly terraces, is Király or King’s vineyard, which was first mentioned in 1280. Recently it was officially divided into two sections. An upper part of 14.4ha (36 acres) called Öreg Király or Old King, which first made an appearance in 1664, was totally abandoned until Karoly Barta, someone with no previous experience in the wine trade, came along in and rescued it. Barta own half the vines plants in Öreg Király and Demetervin the other. Öreg scales the slope to 360m (1,180ft) of Király-hegy the highest hill in the Mad basin with much of the steep south-facing vineyard above the fog zone, although not entirely unaffected by botrytis as I tasted Öreg Király Aszú from Barta. 

I tasted several vintages of Barta’s rich and concentrated dry wines from Öreg Király which display flashy energy and tension. The lower Király section of 40ha (100 acres) is essentially flat, divided from Betsek by a dirt track. Erzsebet estate make a softer broader wine from Király matured in French oak , which seems quite like Betsek.

Many ferment their higher-end dry wine in oak barrels with a small percentage of new. Holdvölgy age ‘Expression’ in French oak, as they feel French oak combines subtlety with Becsek’s salty finish, but most prefer 300-liter Hungarian barrels made with oak from the neighboring Zemplen mountains. This can be quite spicy and strong. Maybe that’s the whippet-thin oak itself or possibly cooperage skills playing catch up after communism. Szepsy are usual in using 100 percent new oak barrels (Hungarian), but their wines were not overly oaky. Perhaps the malolactic in barrel helps to integrate the oak.

The majority of producers strongly prefer not to make malolactic fermentation . They seem strangely concerned about lactic notes. It may be cultural since it’s not usual to have MLF in sweet wine, not least as the bacteria is deterred by sulphur. In dry Furmint wines it’s unlikely to happen naturally because of its low pH. On the issue of malolactic, Szepsy stands apart, as they do for many many things, including quality. István Szepsy comments “Not doing a malolactic fermentation is the biggest issue preventing the ageing of Furmint in bottle.” Since 2015 all his wines go through full malolactic. However, in contrast to most producers he doesn’t use any bâtonnage, arguing that the lees from Furmint have bitterness which he prefers to leave undisturbed. 

Most producers do like to use bâtonnage. Balassa stirs every week, but nobody does a prolonged ageing. Whether in oak, stainless steel, terracotta , or ceramic élevage tends to be a few months over winter with bottling in late spring. At the end of March the serious 2022s were still in barrel. Six months of barrel age is now required to use the Mád single-vineyard  MDOC trademark. 

Nyúlászó vineyard

Adjacent to Szent Tamás, on a south-southwest-facing slope, lies Nyúlászó which means “a good place to hunt hares.” Among the four vineyards on which I have focused on this side of Mád village, Nyúlászó seems to have the roundest shape, but less intensity and depth than Szent Tamás and Betsek. Nyúlászó has some of the sweetness and richness of texture common to the vineyards on this side, but is not as velvet textured as Betsek can be. 

Despite its warm aspect, those I tasted were not at all heavy. On the contrary, my impression is of more delicate and gentle wines with floral notes and sweet minerality on the finish. Holdvölgy make a dry muscat from Nyúlászó (called Intuition no. 2). The 2020 is not heavily scented and speaks more of the terroir than the grape variety. Although attractive, and rated a first-class vineyard for Aszú, I feel this vineyard is a cut beneath the others for dry wine. 

The vineyard of Juharos (from Juhar, the shepherds who grazed their sheep here) lies at 260m (640ft) at the northern end of the village beside Dénes Szarka’s guesthouse. Situated on top of the hill, Szarka describes it as a cold, windy parcel (rated third class, promoted to second) with yellow clay composed from rhyolite and quartz rock. Szarka has 1ha (2.4 acres) which was planted in 1956 with one of the communist clones which has small berries, loose bunches, and thick skins. T85 was the better of the two communist clones, while T92 has larger bunches for higher production. The two account for 80-90 percent of planting. There are higher-quality clones available for planting now.

I tasted four vintages of Furmint from Juharos. The profile was silky with a cut of acidity and cool mineral grip to finish. They had ginger and anise notes, and were higher toned and more herbal in colder vintages. Hárslevelű from Juharos had a similar profile.

It would be very interesting to taste other single-vineyard wines from Juharos, but many classified vineyards are partially planted and produced by just one or two producers or not at all. Kővágó, an historically famous vineyard in Mád, has been severely quarried, and awaits someone to rescue much of what remains. Szarka remarks “some of the highest potential sites have yet to be developed.” 

West side of Mád 

Now it’s time to look across the village to the other side of the valley where the vineyards overlooking the village face east-southeast. These were classified second class as they rarely get botrytis. Following the curve of the hill (the top of an old volcano) the exposure moves to south- and west-facing.

As a general observation, I found the wines on the west side of the village side straighter, trimmer, slimmer-textured, and more savory than the east side, which by comparison is more richly textured, rounder, or broader, with a sweeter sensation.  

Úrágya Vineyard

Most famous of the west-side vineyards is Úrágya from which it was possible to taste examples from several producers. Úrágya, or “God’s bed” refers to the sun which sets behind the hill. The 70ha (173 acres) vineyard curves from facing south east to southwest. I found the wines straight, crisp, with well-defined edges. They are salty, bitter/pithy, or more floral, with cool sappy minerality. But there is more variation than in Betsek and Szent Tamás. Some are lighter, pretty, and more floral while Szepsy’s Úrágya 63 (which coincidentally refers to the parcel number and their oldest vines) is the richest and fullest of those I tried. Nevertheless it focuses into a cold and savory finish. Szepsy’s first vintage Uragya 2003, from younger vines, is slim with intriguing butter-mint aromas and flavors with a salty tang to finish.  

Royal Tokaj’s Úrágya 2021 from Furmint in a west-facing parcel is a lively, layered wine with plenty of tension. The fresh acidity knocks the 14% alcohol into touch. While Fukeley’s Úrágya 2021 made with Hárslevelű, showed more of the spicy character of Hárslevelű than those from vineyards on the east side, perhaps because the style is lighter and slimmer on this side.

Urban Vineyard

A vineyard rated just second in the historical classification for Azsú, Urban makes a cracking dry wine from Szepsy. The Urban 73 is wine of serious austerity, which makes the savory Úrágya look succulent by comparison. The profile is straight, well-defined, mouth-puckeringly savory with green garden herbs on the aroma and no lack of tension.  

Szepsy explains “the key is the clay minerals, which are like a powder. Hydro-thermic activity has disintegrated the rocks, changing their structure to become looser and less compact. This clay mineral powder has an important water-holding capacity and is found in concentrated pockets throughout the vineyards.” 

These pockets were initially discovered by digging 20m (66ft) shafts in the vineyards, but are now found through gamma-ray scanning. The pockets of clay powder correspond to those parcels within vineyards most reliable for producing Azsú. Szepsy emphasizes the importance of the water retained in the powder used by the vine during the lengthly process of berry shrivelling. Apparently Betsek has many such parcels, although there are also concentrated pockets in vineyards rarely affected by botrytis and Urban is among them. 

So it seems a combination of microclimate, the all important fog, in conjunction with the clay minerals is required to create the ideal conditions for botrytis and its successful development to produce Azsú berries. But what does this mean for a normal harvest of fresh berries? 

Szepsy suggests the clay powder is responsible for the strong minerality of certain wines including Urban. (Vines cannot extract minerality from the soil or rock , but they can absorb minerals in solution, feasibly from a moisture-retentive mineral-rich clay powder, which may well give a sensation of minerality.) To reinforce his point, Szepsy took a rock and smashed it with another to expose the white seam of material, which it seems may hold the key to the sappy-saline character of Tokaj’s volcanic wines.

While I was admiring the old vines, Szepsy described the effort required to restore this abandoned vineyard, which was planted in 1938. From these old vines he has made a selection of material which is planted in a new section of the vineyard just up slope. Impressively steep, it’s no mean feat to create a vineyard on this slope. But Maison aux Pois are doing just that on a 2ha (5 acres) parcel. Szepsy estimates the cost of preparing the land, most significantly creating the terraces, and planting the vines at circa €2 million per hectare. At present, Maison aux Pois buy fruit from the only other grower in Urban, but it’s exciting to think that there will be more wine from this vineyard in coming years. Moreover, it’s promising for the village, and encouraging for the Tokaj wine trade in general, that substantial investment is poured into vineyards destined to make premium dry wine. No one would invest that much cash without the wherewithal to market it effectively, which is good news for everyone.   

Középhegy vineyard 

Continuing around the hill in a westerly direction from Uragya lies the vineyard of Középhegy.  Although there seem to be quite a lot of new planting on this side of the village, I tasted only one example Középhegy, and Holdvölgy above it, so most wine must disappear into blends. 

In Középhegy, buffeted by a cold wind, I tasted Zsirai Középhegy Furmint 2019 with Kata Zsirai. She says it’s her coolest vineyard, despite the more southerly exposure. When I first tasted this wine in London, I’d been impressed by its compact and taut structure. And it’s rated third class. Kozephegy is both concentrated and austere; an aloof wine which will take time to unfold. It makes a sharp contrast with Zsirai’s Betsek (one of the few Furmint I tasted from this vineyard), which is more welcoming, creamier and fuller.

Tállya village 

Many producers from neighbouring villages will have a smidgen of land in Mád. Mád’s popularity has benefited Tállya village as investors look for cheaper land to develop. The style of the wines from Tállya, with its andesite soil, is similar to Mád, but a touch less rich. It’s a little cooler and the style is a bit narrower and briskly crisp, so more like the vineyards on the western side of Mád village than the east. 

Szűcs Pincészet Furmint 2019, from from the higher altitude vineyard of Hasznos (250m [820ft]) in Tállya, is a good example. It is straight, savory, and salty. A brisk wine with miso on the finish. It is aged in stainless steel and has just 0.9 g/l residual sugar which does nothing to hide the zippy style of Tállya wines. 

Any assessment of terroir is made though the lens of winemaking. I’ve mentioned malo, bâtonnage, and barrel-ageing preferences in Tokaj, but the most striking aspect is residual sugar. With very few exceptions dry wines are rounded off with some residual sugar. 6-8g/l is typical to balance the high acidity of Furmint and 4 or 5g/l for Hárslevelű. 

Residual sugar is detectable above 2 g/l. A wine qualifies as dry in Hungary when residual sugar is below 4 g/l, but can be as much as 9 g/l, where the difference between total acidity in tartaric acid (g/l) and residual sugar are not greater than 2 grams. So a wine with 9 g/l residual sugar would be considered dry if it has an acidity of 7 g/l.

Tasting a few examples with punchy acidity and residual sugar below 2 g/l from Royal Tokaji, Szepsy, and Basilicus, I don’t see the need.

Sufficient sweetness, or rather an impression of it, is provided by the “sweetness” of oak and/or the textural creaminess of bâtonnage. However, in a culture of sweet wine, steely dry seems to create anxiety.

Is it cultural? Winemaker Judit Bodó argues Furmint doesn’t ferment all its sugar and she does not want to add yeast. However most producers admit they look to sugar for balance. Problem is, undisclosed residual sugar is confusing for the consumer. I gave a glass of dry Tokaji to my son to taste. “It’s sweet,” was his surprised comment (3.4 g/l) “but I like it.” In some markets, including the UK, an off-dry style may have connotations of cheap wine. Consumers may stumble which would be a shame for I am impressed with the overall quality of Tokaj’s dry wine. But dry means dry.   

And so as I stood in Szent Tamás’s vineyard on the last morning enjoying some welcome sunshine, I found myself hoping that more producers would dare to go dry, truly dry that is, to allow the purest expression of terroir from the vineyards which cloaked the slopes around me.  

Sarah Marsh MW

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Hidden in Hungary, Treasures on the Vine

By Evan Rail

• July 22, 2010

THE mold covered every surface of the cellar, coating the walls and ceilings in layers of loose black gauze. On one shelf, sheets of mold had grown so thick that it was nearly impossible to tell what was underneath, making the ancient wine bottles seem like ash-colored homunculi, an army of toy soldiers made from fungus.

Walking farther into the cellar, I ducked under a low ceiling and felt dangling fingers of mold touch my head.

“The mold is fed by the wine that evaporates,” said my guide, Zsuzsanna Szobonya, leading me into a hexagonal tasting room where even the arabesque chandelier overhead was adorned with more black fluff. “Try this,” she said.

Standing in the dim light, I sniffed, then tasted. Though the cellar air was damp and musty, the scent from the glass was richly aromatic and floral. The wine, a Tokaji aszu, was full of citrus blossoms and fruit in the nose. In the mouth, crisp flavors of apricot and orange burst forth, followed by an invigoratingly sharp finish that begged for another quick sip.

Lucky mold, I thought.

“Can you imagine?” Ms. Szobonya asked, taking a sip. “So light and fresh, and yet it’s about 20 percent sugar.”

Though not all wines from the region are quite so saccharine, the legendary aszu sweet wines were a large part of what had brought me to this corner of northeastern Hungary. Known by the name of the region’s main winemaking town, Tokaj, the moist and moldy area at the confluence of two mysterious, slow-moving rivers is the oldest classified wine region in Europe — older than Bordeaux in France, older than Porto in Portugal, older than Chianti in Italy. In fact, many of the stone wine cellars here date to the mid-16th century.

And now, 20 years after the changes that brought democracy, market capitalism and wide-open borders to the former Eastern bloc, Tokaj is emerging as one of the most interesting wine regions in Europe, not just for its sweet aszus and distinctive dry whites, but also for its unusual blend of history and cultures — Jewish, Russian, Hungarian and Greek — and for the low-key experience of a less-traveled wine trail where the curious and enterprising can easily rub shoulders with working winemakers, often right in their homes and vineyards.

“You can taste the wines right where they’re made,” said Carolyn Banfalvi, the author of “Food Wine Budapest,” who also provides culinary tours of the Tokaj region. “There’s a real range of wines in Tokaj. There are the sweet wines that everybody thinks about first, but there’s also the excellent dry wines, which are becoming more and more well known.”

That renown seems to have spread faster and farther than the wines themselves, which remain a relative rarity outside their homeland, making a trip to Tokaj a near necessity for travelers who want to taste the full range. So, armed with several tips from Ms. Banfalvi, I made a wine-tasting road trip to the region this spring, driving there in just over seven hours from my home in Prague.

Dusk was falling as I arrived, creating a mysterious twilight zone out of the rolling Carpathian foothills: with tractors often occupying the road and small farmhouses surrounded by vines and impressive oaks, the setting was a far cry from the overtouristed wine trails of Beaune or the Napa Valley. In fact, the wide horizons and tree-lined country roads felt closer to the place where I grew up in rural central California.

What we don’t have a lot of in the long San Joaquin Valley, however, are luxury hotels run by European aristocrats, like the Grof Degenfeld Castle Hotel, a chateaulike property owned by a German-Hungarian family of counts and earls located in Tarcal, a traditional winemaking village on the western side of Kopasz-hegy, also known as Mount Tokaj.

After checking into a surprisingly large room and admiring the view over the well-tended grounds and vineyards, I went downstairs to the Degenfeld wine cellar, where the hotel manager, Pal Visztenvelt, had a selection of the estate’s own bottles waiting for me as part of the wine-tasting package I’d booked.

Though the stately “castle” looks a lot like a chateau, he explained, it was built as a winemaking school in 1873, just 10 years after the Hungarian émigré Agoston Haraszthy founded the Buena Vista Viticultural Society in Northern California, helping to create the wine industry there. Now in the hands of the Degenfeld family, the former school operates as a combination hotel and winery, producing wine from its own vineyards. High-season occupancy at the hotel, he said, can be fairly busy, but the off-season — from October to May — is generally empty, because of the weather.

“In November this isn’t a very nice place,” he said. “We have so much fog you can’t see anything.”

With just a few noticeably elegant Continental couples booked in for wine tastings and vineyard tours during my midweek visit in mid-April, the airy, salonlike public areas of the hotel contributed to the languorous feeling that seemed endemic to the region. The damp was apparent, as well. Set at the meeting of the Tisza and the Bodrog Rivers, the Tokaj region’s microclimate is a haven for fungus: both the black mold, Cladosporium cellare, which thrives in its wine cellars, and Botrytis cinerea, the so-called “noble rot” that attacks grapes in the vineyard, and one of the secrets to Tokaji aszu and some of the area’s other sweet wines.

The majority of the region’s vineyards are planted with furmint, Mr. Visztenvelt said, a varietal especially conducive to the fungus. When botrytis attacks, the grapes dry up, becoming nearly solid. This concentrates the sugars, creating a characteristic flavor. Although the result was delicious, I couldn’t help wondering who first got the idea to produce wine from moldy grapes.

“One story is that it was because of the Turks,” Mr. Visztenvelt said, referring to the era when the Ottoman Empire occupied a large portion of what is today Hungary. “The Turkish border was in the neighborhood, and they used to make raids across the border during which the winemakers had to hide. Afterwards, they came back and they tried to make wine out of the grapes that had rotted while they were gone.”

That sounded as plausible as just about any other explanation. Whatever the cause, it clearly didn’t happen recently: the Hungarian government’s application for Unesco World Heritage status for the region, which it earned in 2002, notes that most of the area’s wine cellars were built between the mid-1500s and the late 17th century.

Though all the samples were excellent, I was most struck by Degenfeld’s 2008 Fortissimo, a sweet, late-harvest wine made from 80 percent yellow muscat, with the remainder coming from two other types of grapes: harslevelu and dried but not botrytis-infected furmint grapes. It had a nose of syrupy, overripe fruit, with lush spoonfuls of melon, apricot and cinnamon-spice in the mouth, followed by a honeyed finish with just a touch of dry minerality.

“The goal was to produce a wine at the same level and with a similar taste every year,” Mr. Visztenvelt said. “With an aszu, that would be impossible.”

For a wine that was supposedly easy to produce, it had a meditative complexity, and I soon found myself asking for another glass, which I carried outside. As the sun was setting, I walked through the parklike chateau grounds and considered my options for the next few days. Given enough time, I hoped to visit the nearby village of Mad, partly to see the well-regarded Royal Tokaji Wine Company there, partly to see the town’s restored Baroque synagogue from 1795 — a focal point for the area’s once vibrant Jewish community and another draw for cultural travelers. In warmer weather, I could hike or bike the many trails on Mount Tokaj or even rent a canoe and spend time on the river. But the dark clouds scudding in from the west made me think that I should get to know the area with an indoor approach: by drinking as well as I could.

The next morning the front desk arranged for a driver to take me to the village of Tolcsva, a 30-minute journey to the northeast made just slightly longer by a slow drizzle. Through the rain I watched vineyards and isolated hilltop farmhouses roll by before we came to the town and stopped in front of Oremus, one of the area’s largest and most famous wineries.

That fame was earned in large part because of its dry white furmint, now called Mandolas after the vineyard where the grapes are grown, which once received a not-too-shabby 89 points from Wine Enthusiast. It was there that I met Ms. Szobonya, who, after giving me a tour of the spotless, laboratory-like winery, led me to the cellar’s hexagonal mold-encrusted tasting room. There, we tried the winery’s three-, five- and six- puttonyos aszu wines. Modern aszu wines are rated on a scale of three to six “puttonyos,” or “baskets,” an old measurement originally designating the amount of botrytised grapes in each barrel, now used to denote the amount of remaining sugar in the finished wine (six being the sweetest). We also tried two vintages of Mandolas from 2006 and 2004.

Tasting the wines in the near-dark, I thought the 2006 was stony and crisply dry, while the vintage from just two years earlier had more peach fruitiness in the mouth and far less minerality.

After a two-hour tasting, it was time to follow up the morning’s liquids with lunch. But after tasting fine wines, where would I find a meal of the same quality?

About a block away, as it turned out, at Os Kajan, a restaurant that also functions as an art gallery and, with just one guest room, a hotel.

Despite the place’s all-trades angle, the food was surprisingly good, merging local ingredients with French techniques courtesy of the Hungarian- and English-speaking French owner, Pascal Leeman, who seemed to have a knack for discovering and presenting the region’s culinary ingredients at their best. As a member of the local mycological society, he explained, he had himself gathered the local truffles for his restaurant’s fragrant ravioli, served just al dente with a large accompanying salad of fresh mâche and boiled quail eggs. The house specialty, sautéed Hungarian foie gras, arrived in a sweetly acidic sauce of honey and aszu wine, whose tartness formed a nice counterbalance to the rich goose liver. Aszu wine even showed up in a dessert, taking the role of the alcohol in what would have otherwise been a baba au rhum.

Floored by the cuisine, I resolved to find a way to stay in Os Kajan’s guest room, if not move in permanently.

The town of Tokaj itself can also feel remarkably homey, provided your home is somewhat monomaniacally focused on wine. That afternoon, I wandered its narrow streets and lanes, stopping into small bottle shops and wine stores, bars and tasting cellars. With just over 5,000 residents, it has an intimate, neighborly feel, though it was hard to find anything not related to the grape. Cherry trees were blossoming next to the town’s tall stone walls, while Mount Tokaj loomed to the west, creating a nestled, well-protected air that felt quite unlike anywhere else I knew in Central Europe.

It seemed as if the town had suddenly moved to the Mediterranean, though with even more neo-Classical architecture: restored masterpieces with tall Doric columns supported sturdy triangles; other, wonderfully decrepit buildings displayed ornate arches and facades that evoked Athens by way of Austria. It was Hungary, to be sure, but it somehow reminded me most of Vilia, my grandmother’s hometown in Greece.

THIS turned out to be not too far off. As the town’s small but colorful museum recounted, Greek merchants came to dominate the wine trade in Tokaj starting in the early 17th century. They were followed by groups of Jewish and Russian wine merchants who were subsequently supplanted by Communist-era state cooperatives, which were ultimately replaced by the international collectives that control much of the production today. The two major players are Oremus, which is part of the Vega-Sicilia concern from Spain, and AXA Millésimes, a large French wine company, which owns the Disznoko winery. After seeing several larger wineries, I was especially curious about the smaller vintners in the region, so the next day I arranged to meet Judit Bodo, the owner of Bott Pince, a small winery in the town of Tokaj with a cultish following among connoisseurs in Budapest. One of Ms. Banfalvi’s tips was to schedule meetings with winemakers well in advance, as the undercommercialized nature of the region means that very few wineries have visitors’ centers with regular hours.

This can present challenges for the impetuous: if you don’t plan, you might show up at a winery only to discover no one is there. But as I learned at Bott Pince, the payoff is often a more intimate, less touristic experience. As Ms. Bodo set a pair of Riedel wineglasses down on a cask, it became apparent we would be tasting her wines directly atop the 16 oak barrels that contained the entirety of Bott Pince’s current production, a vintage that had been especially limited because of the caprices of Mother Nature.

“Every year we get three barrels of wine from our Teleki vineyard,” Ms. Bodo said. “But in 2009 the birds and the pheasants, they ate everything, and we got just one barrel.”

With just one room and a very small amount of cellar space, Bott Pince gave the impression of a mom-and-pop operation. Most of the bottles I saw didn’t yet have labels.

“I take them home, 100 bottles at a time,” Ms. Bodo said, “and we put the labels on in the kitchen.”

Born in a Hungarian-speaking part of Slovakia, Ms. Bodo recounted how she had arrived in Tokaj after first working for a winery in Austria. A bookish brunette, she could have come from just about anywhere in Europe, speaking a crystalline, slightly academic English inflected with words from various other languages, as when she began talking about her favorite varietal, harslevelu: “Sometimes the furmint is too harsh,” she said, “too ‘gerade’ in German, too ‘straight,’ and harslevelu has more play. It’s more layered, it has more nose, it has more nuance.”

Tasting her winery’s dry furmint-harslevelu cuvée, I thought I got a sense of the difference: while Bott Pince’s 100 percent furmint wine had been stony and sharp, the blend brought out more cantaloupe and sweet melon with less acidity, finishing with just a touch of linden blossom.

The sell-it-now, small-scale nature of her business has meant that Ms. Bodo currently has no archival wine to speak of: she recalled that at a recent wine dinner in Budapest, fans of her wine had brought bottles from their own cellars in order to taste and compare earlier vintages. Until this year, Bott Pince had never put out an aszu wine, though she noted that its first, a very sweet six-puttonyos version, was just about ready for release.

Pouring a small glass of aszu, she noted that the wine should age for many years, recounting that the very first aszu she tasted was more than 50 years old at the time.

I sniffed at the wine, then tasted. Despite a light color — Ms. Bodo assured me that it would get darker in time — it had complex layers of flavor, starting out with the taste of candied oranges before revealing notes of pineapple and brown sugar. With such wonderful flavors in the wine, it seemed a pity that the production was so limited: just 480 bottles would be available, she said.

After another sip, I noticed that the mold on the cellar walls was also small-scale; unlike the fluffy strata of fungi at Oremus, Bott Pince’s more modern cellar had but a few flecks of black. But it also appeared to be growing, with bigger clumps visible on the stone arches, and I imagined that there would probably be a lot more of the fungus by the time her wine was also 50 years old.

“It’ll happen naturally,” Ms. Bodo said, pouring another glass. “It’s nice to see what nature can do. That’s why we’re here.”

GETTING THERE

The town of Tokaj is about a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Budapest. You can get there in almost the same amount of time on a direct train from the Keleti Palyaudvar station in Budapest (around 8,000 forints second class and 10,000 first class, or $37 and $60 at 217 forints to the dollar), though getting around the region is difficult without a car. A good bet is to fly into Budapest and rent a car there.

In Tarcal, the Grof Degenfeld Castle Hotel is stylish and upscale but not snobby, a rare combination in Central Europe. A special offer includes two nights in the hotel, two dinners in the hotel restaurant, a wine tasting and tour of the cellars, as well as wine tastings at two nearby wineries, from 34,400 Hungarian forints a person based on double occupancy (Terezi kert 9; 36-47-580-400; hotelgrofdegenfeld.hu).

In the town of Tokaj, the modest but pleasant Torkolat Panzio (panzio means pension) offers informal, family-style rooms a short walk from the main square and many of the town’s historic cellars (Vasvari Pal utca 26; 36-47-352-827; torkolatpanzio.hu); doubles from 10,500 forints.

In the town of Mad, home to the Royal Tokaji Wine Company, an old bank building has been converted into a modern hotel now called Madi Kuria (Ferenc utca 48; 36-47-548-40; .madikuria.hu); doubles from 18,500 forints.

The best restaurant in the Tokaj region is widely held to be Os Kajan, a French-owned bistro in Tolcsva with simple, honest cuisine focused on regional ingredients, including local truffles and foie gras (Kossuth utca 14; 36-47-384-195; oskajan.hu); about 6,000 forints a person, not including wine.

In the town of Tokaj, the Fakapu wine bar and restaurant serves an extremely good Tokaj-style halaszle, a paprika-inflected fish stew, as well as cabbage rolls and other hearty meals in a romantic, candlelit atmosphere (Rakoczi utca 27; 36-20-972-6307); about 3,000 forints a person.

EVAN RAIL, a frequent contributor to the Travel section, is the author of “Good Beer Guide: Prague and the Czech Republic.”

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6 Must-Visit Wineries in Tokaj, Hungary

Planning to visit the wineries in the Tokaj wine region of Hungary? We know just how difficult it is to put together a wine tasting trip to this area. Although it’s one of the most well-known wine regions in Hungary , there isn’t a lot of information available for those wishing to visit.

We spent a lot of time putting together our own trip, vetting the wineries we chose to visit, and finding transportation. We’re happy to pass this information along to you, so you can plan a one-day winery itinerary that we know you’ll thoroughly enjoy.

Tokaj is a World Heritage Sites and famous for its sweet white dessert wine, Tokaji Aszú. The area has also started making more dry white wines to fill the void for wine lovers who aren’t so keen on sweet wines.

While you can taste Tokaj wines in Budapest , the best way to experience the Tokaj wine region for yourself is to check out a few of the must-visit wineries in Tokaj.

There are actually quite a few wineries in Tokaj that you can visit in both the towns of Tokaj and Tarcal and in between. The problem with the planning is only that the websites aren’t as up to date with helpful information as we’d like. Don’t let that stop you. A quick email to most of the wineries in the area can secure you a tasting appointment.

Table of Contents

About the Tokaj Wine Region

Tokaj, the oldest of Hungary’s wine regions and a Unesco World Heritage Site, is located in the Northeastern part of Hungary. It’s rated one of the best wines in the world thanks to its Tokaji Aszú , a sweet white wine made from grapes that have been infected with botrytis bunch rot.

The two rivers in this region, the Bodrog and the Tisza, create a micro-climate that is great for growing Furmint grapes. These grapes are used to make both dry and sweet wines. With high levels of moisture and plenty of sunshine, this region has just the right climate for noble rot.

On a good year, the noble rot affects enough grapes to make plentiful Aszú wines. Each bunch – sometimes even each individual grape – is harvest as it becomes ready, making this a very tedious labor of love.

Aszú wines can be made with a mix of noble rot and standard grape must. They are required to have at least 18 months of oak aging. The sweetness level is determined by the amount of sugar content in the wine. In the past there were 5 levels (called Puttonyons), from 3-6 and AszuEszencia. However, levels 3 and 4 have been discontinued .

A level 5 Puttonyons has a minimum of 120 grams to sugar per liter, going up to 180+ grams in the sweetest wine, the Eszencia.

Tokaj Wine Tasting Itinerary

Here’s the good news! We’ve done a lot of the work for you and we offer up this list of the wineries where we found some really great Tokaj wine!

This is no where near a comprehensive list, but if you’re doing your own planning, it’s a great place to start. Remember that you must book a wine tasting tour at least 2 days in advance (more is better). Most wineries have English speakers to help you with the wine tasting.

A wine tour and tasting at a winery ranges in price from 1.500-8,000 Ft ($4-30) and include a tasting of 2-6 generous pours of wine. You can choose the wines you want included for the most part – so they include dry and sweet, or just sweet.

One-Day Itinerary

You can easily visit four-five wineries in a day, plus lunch, if you want to. This is the itinerary that we followed and it worked out perfectly – timing wise.

• 11am – Dereszla Pince Bodrogkisfalud village
• 12:30 – Lunch at LaBor Bistro
• 1:30pm – Hímesudvar
• 3pm – Erzsebet Pince
• 4:30 – Szedmak
• 6pm – Grof Degenfeld Winery

Two-Day Itinerary

However, you can much more reasonably split this into two days of tasting. In that case, I would suggest this itinerary:

• 1:00 – Lunch at LaBor Bistro
• 2:30pm – Hímesudvar
• 4pm – Erzsebet Pince
• 11:30 – Szedmak
• 3pm – Holdvölgy Experience

NOTE ABOUT DRIVING: Hungary has a zero-tolerance drink driving law. That means you can’t even sip and spit. To make sure you’re traveling responsibly between wineries, choose a designated driver, or better yet – hire a driver. 

We hired a driver through the Tokaj Tourismus website. Here’s their  website for more information. They can set up the whole day for you, even making the appointments. We gave them our schedule (above) and they took care of the rest for us.

It ended up being around $150 for the two of us for a full day tour, including the wine tastings. (E-mail:  [email protected] ). Highly recommend going this route. The driver was great and helpful. And best of all, we didn’t have to worry about having a designated driver.

Keep reading below the itinerary for more information on how to get to the Tokaj wine region and where to stay while you’re there.

6 Must-Visit Wineries in Tokaj

Dereszla pince.

For the quality of the wine alone, you must visit Dereszla Winery. The winery’s home is a 600-year-old historic cellar that was rebuilt in 2007 to house the wine. A visit to the winery can include a tour of underground cellar that is more than 1 kilometer long, with five levels that extend underneath the  vineyards. After the tour, you can choose to try 3, 4, 6 or 8 wines that can be chosen for you, or arranged according to your tastes.

We immediately fell in love with the Tokaji Dry that is made up of four of the main grape varietals of Tokaj: Furmint’s, Muskotály’s, Kabar, and Hárslevelű. We also love their Dorombor line – the labels are adorable. Finally, their Aszú is absolutely worth the trip alone.

If you’re looking for other experiences, they also offer a wine tasting master class or you can join in the harvest with them!

The Dereszla group also owns the Henye winery and wine bar and 5-room boutique hotel , which  is a great place to stay while in the Tokaj area.

Website : http://www.dereszla.com/

Location : Bodrogkeresztúr, Felső u. 2

Phone : +36 30 456 4717

We always make a point to visit small, family-owned wineries during a tour. Himesudvar is one of those. The winery has been run by the family for over 30 years. They have 3 hectares and produce around 10,000 bottles per year. The building where they operate was built in the 16th century as a hunting lodge for the King of Hungary.

The winery is open from 10am-6pm daily and you can stop in without an appointment to have a glass of wine. For their mini or classic wine tasting, you do need an appointment. During a visit to Himesudvar, you can take a peek into the underground cellar, and try the wines, either inside or outside on their lovely lawn. The mini tasting includes 5 wines and takes 1 hour, while the classic includes 6 wines and takes about 1.5 hours.  The winery is walking distance from the town center.

Website :  https://www.himesudvar.hu/english.html Address : Tokaj, Bem út 2. Phone : +36 47 352 416

Erzsebet Pince

Located in a historic cellar that was dug in the 1600s and used to store wine for nobles, this winery was founded by Erzsébet Prácser, one of the first female winemakers in Tokaj. The Prácser family possesses a vast amount of wine knowledge, with both a Master of Wine and Master Sommelier, so you can be sure you’re trying some of the finest wines in Tokaj when you visit here.

The winery produces around 12,000 bottles a year that includes about 10 different wines, from dry to sweet. The dry Furmint is one of my favorites from Tokaj. It’s a great representation of what the volcanic soil and Hungarian oak add to the wine. Also be sure to try the Zafír dűlő, a blend  of Furmint and Hárslevelű from their Zafir Premier Cru vineyard.

During a visit, you’ll get a chance to see the cellars and taste the wines in the cellar tasting room. They have an option to try 6 wines, from dry to sweet, or to try the full portfolio. 

Email for an appointment: [email protected]

Website : https://www.erzsebetpince.hu/hu/latogasson-el-hozzank Address : Tokaj, Bem József u. 16 Phone : +36 20 802 0137

You definitely don’t want to miss a chance to visit Szedmak Winery. First of all – how cute is that building? Secondly, the hospitality is one of the best in the region. They truly make you feel welcome from the second you arrive. I also have to note that this was the only winery we went to in Tokaj that had a winery dog – so extra points for that.

Szekmak is also a family-run winery, and it’s a very small operation – a husband and wife team. While it’s surely been a difficult labor of love building their winery business, they make it look effortless. You can feel their love for what they do in the glass and in the experience.

A visit to the winery can include a trip down into the cellar that was dug down under the house. It feels a bit like descending into another world. The grape varietals they focus on are Furmint, Hárslevelű, Yellow Muscat, Kabar, Zeta, Zengo, and Aszu. Depending on your preferences, you can choose from 3-7 tastings of the wines you’re interested in.

We wanted to leave with a few cases, but luggage restrictions made us choose our favorite bottle, which was the Hárslevelű. Definitely try the Aszu as well while you’re there.

Contact for an appointment: [email protected]

Website :  https://szedmak.hu/en/ Address : Tarcal, Keresztúri u. 55 Phone : +36 30 943 7395

Holdvölgy Experience

We weren’t able to visit this winery, but they offer a very unique experience that we wanted to share with you.

Holdvölgy is a unique winery complex in Mád with a historic cellar system that’s almost 2 km in length, with 109 branches, on 3 levels. You’ll be able to have a very unique wine tasting in this cellar labyrinth.

Holdvölgy’s story started as a heart-felt gesture: a birthday gift of a vineyard parcel that has since developed into one of the highest quality wineries in the Tokaj region. They ensure quality through a deep understanding of the varying terroirs, as well as through a careful parcel selection, from their 28 hectars estate, owning some of the best vineyards of the entire historic Tokaj wine region.

Visitors of the estate can participate in an adventurous wine tasting tour comprising a treasure hunt. With a map in hand searching for wine bottles hidden among the barrels all around the cellar.

Book the Holdvölgy Experience here.

Website: http://pince.holdvolgy.com/ Address: 3909 MÁD, ÁRPÁD U. 13. Phone: +36 70 391 46 43

Grof Degenfeld Winery

We recommend staying overnight at the Castle Grof Degenfeld Hotel , which is why we saved this winery for last. They offer a regular tasting and tour at 7pm, though you should always make a reservation to hold your spot. If you’re staying at the hotel, you can take an hour to relax before heading down to the wine tasting. If you aren’t staying, you can make a wine tasting appointment separately.

The winery is owned by the Count Degenfeld family and is much larger than the other wineries we visited on this tour. They have 35 hectares or vineyards, which have been certified organic since 2009. They cultivate all six varietals that are officially approved for use in Tokaj wines: Furmint, Hárslevelű, Yellow Muscat, Kövérszőlő, Zéta and Kabar.

During a tour, you’ll see the wine making facility and cellar, then finish with a 5- or 7-wine tasting in the cellar. We highly recommend following your tasting with a reservation at their gastronomic restaurant.

Contact for an appointment: [email protected]

Website :  https://www.grofdegenfeld.com/en/winery Address : Tarcal, Terézia kert 9 Phone : +36 47 580 405

Lunch at La Bor Restaurant

We love a good wine lunch. It’s a great chance to sit down and try some of the wines we’re learning about on our tour and pair them with food. La Bor Bistro is located right in the center of the lovely little town of Tokaj. You can park your car across the street for free and even sit out on the patio (if the weather cooperates). 

La Bor works with seasonal, local ingredients so the menu changes frequently. The dishes are a Hungarian fusion – often with an Italian flair. The staff will be happy to help you find a great local wine to pair with what you’re eating.

Website :  https://laborbistro.hu/ Address : Tokaj, Bethlen Gábor út 1 Phone : +36 70 883 8888

» SIDE NOTE: I f you’re looking for more traditional Hungarian dishes, try Bacchus Restaurant, which is also located in the main square, near La Bor.

» SIDE NOTE #2: La Bor also has a few hotel rooms available – a great choice if you want to stay in Tokaj.

How to Get To Tokaj

Tokaj is located in the north eastern part of Hungary, about 2.5 hours east of Budapest. It’s best to fly into Budapest, as it is a major international airport with a lot of connections. From there, it’s easy to get to Tokaj via car. The roads are great. It’s easy driving. Roads are very well maintained and sign-posted and there’s not a ton of traffic or small narrow roads. Of course, you’ll have to designate a driver who won’t be drinking.

You can also reach Tokaj by train from Budapest Keleti-Railway Station. There’s just one transfer and it takes about 3:30. 

Where to Stay in Tokaj

The region isn’t terribly large. You can get from Tarcal to Tokaj (the two main cities) in about 10 minutes driving. For this reason, we don’t think it’s necessary to stay right in Tokaj. The countryside is much more attractive and there are great options to be right among the vines.

→ Our top recommendation is Grof Degenfeld Castle Hotel . It’s surrounded by vineyards. The building is quite impressive, as are the rooms, but it’s not overly expensive. They call themselves a gastronomic hotel – and that includes a great restaurant, bar, winery, and plenty of experiences and activities.

→  If you’d rather stay in the town of Tokaj, so you can walk to the wine cellars instead of having to drive, then we recommend staying in a room at LaBor Kvartély . The rooms are small but very nice, and kept to a high-standard. Breakfast is included.

Tokaj is definitely a wine region worth visiting. Between trying the exciting dry Furmint wines and indulging on the sweet Aszu wines, you’ll feel completely spoiled. The wineries are all very welcoming and fun to visit. Have you been there? What are your favorite winery in the Tokaj wine region?

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Laura Lynch, creator and writer of Savored Journeys, is an avid world traveler, certified wine expert, and international food specialist. She has written about travel and food for over 20 years and has visited over 75 countries. Her work has been published in numerous guidebooks, websites, and magazines.

6 thoughts on “ 6 Must-Visit Wineries in Tokaj, Hungary ”

We’ve drunk the wine but visited the vineyards, on the list!

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Thanks for sharing, Laura!

It’s not a region I had on my list (I am not so much a sweet wine drinker) but it sounds quite fun exploring the area.

Yes, it’s a great region to visit, even if you don’t like sweet wine, as they now produce quite a bit of dry white wine as well.

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"Hungary's Wine Wonderland"

Tokaj tourism.

Located in northeastern Hungary, Tokaj is a renowned wine region famous for producing the world’s oldest known quality wines. It is also known for its stunning views of the nearby Carpathian Mountains and its large collection of historical monuments.

The main reason to visit Tokaj is to sample the renowned sweet wines the area is famous for. The region is divided into six districts, each with its own unique type of grape and specific wine styles. Visitors can take part in wine tasting tours or tours of the local vineyards. The area is also known for producing some of the finest Hungarian foods such as Tokaji Aszú, a sweet dessert wine. Aside from wine, the area is full of interesting sights and activities. The Tokaj Cultural and Visitor Centre provides a comprehensive overview of the area’s history and culture. The Tokaj Wine Museum is also a great place to learn about the history of wine production in the region. There are also several churches, castles, and fortresses in the area. In addition to wine and sightseeing, visitors can take part in a range of outdoor activities. Hiking is a popular activity in the area, with plenty of trails for all skill levels. The nearby Bodrog River is also popular for fishing and kayaking. When visiting Tokaj, it is important to be mindful of the local customs and traditions. It is also important to dress appropriately, as the region has a very conservative dress code. Additionally, visitors should be aware that the region is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, so it is important to respect the environment and not disturb the local wildlife.

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Tokaj Wine Region

Explore the best wineries in tokaj.

Just getting started on your wine journey, or jumping back in? Taste through a selection of a great local wines.

Displaying 1-3 of 22 wineries

Historically significant wines in the alley of wine merchants

The most wonderful Hungarian wines in the most perfect setting

Demetervin, with almost half the vineyards traditionally manual

Travel Guide to Tokaj Wine Region

Tokaj wine region, located at the foothills of Zemplon Mountain in northeast Hungary, is considered to be the most important wine region in the country. The region is home to noble wine, Tokaj Aszú, which has been described as "King of Wines, and Wine of Kings" by Louis XIV. The history of wine production in Tokaj goes back as early as the 12th century and it is one of the first wine regions with a vineyard classification system that was established here in 1730. A long history of winemaking, indigenous grape varieties, unique wines, and the cultural landscapes protected by UNESCO make Tokaj one the most desirable places to visit in Hungary.

Find out about Wine tasting and Tours in Tokaj to enjoy if you visit the region.

Follow the travel guide to Tokaj wine region to discover more about:

The most famous Hungarian wine region

"King of Wines, and Wine of Kings" - Tokaj Aszú

Wineries to visit in Tokaj

Cultural and natural places to discover

Flavors of Tokaj gastronomy

Tokaj – One of The Most Influential Wine Regions in Hungary

Tokaj wine region is often referred to as the most significant and important wine region in Hungary. The region is located in the northeastern parts of the country close to the Zemplen Mountains. The ancient volcanic soils of Tokaj and the location near the confluence of two rivers create ideal conditions for the development of Botrytis cinerea - a noble rot. The mold on grapes increases sugar and flavor concentration on a higher level and helps winemakers to produce some of the most unique topaz-colored sweet and structured wine, Tokaj Aszú.

Little Bit of History

Tokaj has a long history of winemaking and viticulture. In 1703, the Patriot Prince Rákóczi of Transylvania used the area to garner support from King Louis XIV against the Habsburg overlords. The King praised Tokaj for producing the ‘wine of kings and the king of wines’ during his reign in the 17 th century. Along with King Louis XIV, Catherine the Great of Russia also loved Tokaj so much that she had a permanent detachment of her guard stationed in the region to guard royal shipments. During the 19 th century, Queen Victoria of England was given a birthday gift each year of a dozen bottles of Tokaj wine by the Austro – Hungarian Emperor.

Terroir and Classification System of Tokaj

Along with the Zemplen Mountains, the vineyards of Tokaj are protected by the Carpathian Mountains, providing them with a relatively warm continental climate. The soils in Tokaj are a mixture of volcanic loess and clay. Vineyards of Tokaj extend over 27 villages and 5,967 hectares. The best vines are found on the southern slopes, where they are sheltered from the northern winds. The first vineyard classification of Tokaj was introduced by the Rákóczi family in the mid-17th century which was dividing vineyards into 1st, 2nd, and 3rd class (or cru) quality ratings. Each of the 27 villages of the Tokaj PDO creates unique conditions and identity for the wines produced.

Grape Varieties

There are six grape varieties officially approved for the production of Tokaj wines.

White: Furmint, Hárslevelű, Sárgamuskotály(Yellow Muscat), Kabar, Kövérszőlő, Zéta.

The Wine of Kings and The King of Wines

The most famous wine from Tokaj is the Tokaji Aszú . This is a classic sweet wine that is notable for its marriage of sweetness, acidity, and apricot fruit flavors. The key ingredient in the production of Tokaji Aszu is Furmint which is a grape that has a high level of acidity. Aszu grapes are all hand-picked individually and gathered into containers that are called puttony, each holding about 25 kg of grapes. Following this, the Aszu grapes are trampled into a paste and mixed with a base wine made of non Aszu grapes. The wine is left to age for 2 years with 18 months in a barrel. It must contain 120 g/l or sugar and have an alcohol content of at least 9%.

Szamorodni wine is also produced from a mixture of Aszu and non- Aszu grapes that are either ripe or very ripe. The dry style of this wine is known as Szaraz and the sweet style is Edes. Edes style is aged in a barrel and is matured for two or three years in oak.

The most luxious wine of Tokaj is the Tokay Eszencia . This wine is also known as Legfobb Fob which means supreme wine. The wine is rich in sugar which makes it extremely sweet with flavors that are velvety with hints of peach and honey.

Wineries to Visit in Tokaj Wine Region

Kvaszinger Winery

The Kvaszinger Winery and estate is a family-run winery that has been in the Kvaszinger family since 1929. The estate is situated on 4 hectares of land and offers visitors a variety of experiences including wine tasting on the beautiful Bodrog River. The winery has a terrace that opens onto the bend of the river where the wines can be tasted in one of the most beautiful settings in Tokaj.

Simko Pince

Simko Pince is a family boutique winery in Sarospatak in the Tokaj wine region. The winery offers various wine tasting packages and tours for a minimum of 8 visitors, allowing guests to taste their own selection of wines. For those looking to extend their stay, the winery offers accommodation in a quaint and comfortable guest house on the estate.

Read more about Wineries in Tokaj to visit.

The Places to Visit in Tokaj

Rákóczi castle - the castle of hungarian freedom.

For visitors who would like to experience how Hungarian noblemen lived in the 18 th century, the Rakoczi Castle in Sarospatak is the perfect place to visit. This incredible castle was the center of a number of wars that Hungarian soldiers fought for their independence and today it is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Tokaj. The castle is made up of a central building with a bright red tower and although it has been reconstructed many times over the years, it maintains its medieval style. Inside the castle visitors can view exhibits showing how lords lived, how cannons were built, how the cuisine of the time was prepared, and learn more about the wine-making techniques that were used during this time. Every third weekend of July, the castle hosts a reenactment of the battle of the castle in the summer festival of Sarospatak. The castle is open to visitors every day except for Mondays and tickets can be purchased at the castle grounds.

Doll Museum at Olaszlizka and Surrounding Vineyards

The village of Olaszlizka has been inhabited since the 13 th century and is located halfway between Tokaj and Sátoraljaújhely. One of the highlights in Olaszlizka is the wonderful Doll Museum that has an incredible collection of dolls through the ages. Many of these dolls are dressed in traditional Hungarian costumes and tell a story of the past of the Tokaj region. After visiting the Doll Museum, visitors should be sure to spend time in the surrounding vineyards of Olaszlizka visiting the many local wineries and tasting the excellent local wines on offer. Wine tours are offered by horse and carriage to make the experience even more unique! Olaszlizka provides an experience unlike any other village in Tokaj and should be added to any itinerary to the region.

World Heritage Wine Museum - Learn about Tokaj and Its Famous Wines

The World Heritage Wine museum in Tokaj is located in a beautiful 18 th century restored and renovated building. The museum was opened in November 2015 as the Museum of European World Heritage Vineyards. Inside the museum, the main focus of the displays and exhibitions is on the history and production of Tokaj wines. There is plenty of information allowing guests to learn more about the wine, related work and the traditions of the region. When touring the museum, guests are accompanied by a virtual guide and each showroom hosts interactive exhibits. The museum is open to visitors every day except for Mondays and tickets are available for purchase at the door.

Venture off the beaten track to the Tarcal mine

The old Tarcal mine is located at the foot of the Great Bald Mountain and is a beautiful area with crystal clear spring waters. The clear azure water of the mine takes the breath away of all who visit. To access the mine visitors should start walking in the small town of Tarcal for approximately a kilometer until they reach the statue of the Blessed Christ. From here views of the mine can already be seen as well as the former Tisza riverbeds and fishponds. The Tarcal mine is the perfect place to relax, hike and take in the beautiful natural environment of Tokaj.

Wonderful Outdoors in Tokaj Wine Region   

The Tokaj wine region has unparalleled natural beauty. The natural scenes across the region range from high rising mountains to low valley slopes planed with rows of breathtaking vines. The natural landscape provides the perfect location for rest, relaxation, and rejuvenation while visiting Hungary.

Megyer-hegy Tarn - Hike the Zemplen Mountains

There are many hiking spots across the Zemplen Mountains, but Megyer-hegy Tarn is by far the most popular. The tarn is a lake that is situated on the 324-meter high volcanic Megyer-hegy. It was previously a millstone mine that is still visible to this day. The Megyer-hegy Tarn was declared a nature reserve in 1997. The millstone mill at the site operated from the 15 th century to 1907. Due to the collection of rainwater, a pit was carved into the tuff which formed a pond surrounded by towering rock walls. Around the lake, there are plenty of signs of the mineworkers who lived here centuries ago such as small stone flats and half-finished millstones. The best way to enjoy the Megyer-hegy Tarn is to hike up the 324-meter-high hill. In 2011, the Megyer-hegy Tarn was named the most beautiful natural site in Hungary and should not be missed by all who visit the Tokaj region.

Kopasz – Hegy - The Bald Mountain  

Kopasz – Hegy is a mountain in Tokaj that is also known as the Bald Mountain. The mountain is located on the Plain and the Zemplen Mountains at the point at which volcanic and sedimentary rocks collide and stand out. Along with hiking, the most popular activity at Kopasz – Hegy is skiing and snowboarding. For skiers and snowboarders there are 0.7 km of slopes and 1 lift that transport guests. The area that is allocated for winter sports sits at between 380 and 485 meters high. The ski resort is open daily for day visitors and can be easily accessed from the town of Tarcal which is 5 km away.

Bodrog River - The mighty river of Tokaj

The Bodrog River is located in Tokaj in northeastern Hungary. The river is a tributary of the Tisza River. It was formed by the confluence of the Onava and Latorica Rivers. The entire length of the Bodrog River is 67 km, which provides plenty of opportunities for visitors to enjoy it along its course. Many of the wineries of the Tokaj region are located along the river which they use for irrigation purposes. When visiting these wineries, a range of river activities can be enjoyed such as boating, water sports, hiking, and cycling on its banks. For water lovers, the Bodrog River is the perfect place to enjoy the beauty of Tokaj.

The Fantastic Flavours of Tokaj        

The wonderful dishes of Tokaj are based mainly on localy sourced meats, seasonal vegetables, bread, fruits, cheeses and other dairy products. Most of the dishes are cooked using or with the intention of pairing them with the wonderful local wines. This creates a Hungarian food and wine experience that is a wonder for the taste buds.

Palacsinta - Delicous Hungarian Pancakes

Hungarian crepes are very thin pancakes that are rolled up and sprinkled with powdered sugar. Locally these crepes are known as Palacsinta and are filled with various ingredients such as apricot, strawberry or blueberry jam. Other popular fillings are vanilla or chocolate pudding, apple sauce, cinnamon, ground walnuts or even cocoa powder. Crepes are a delicious and quick to eat treat. They are best eaten warm and can be enjoyed at any time of the day when the craving hits.

Tokaj Wine Cream Soup - The Taste of Christmas in Tokaj 

Tokaj wine cream soup is an extremely popular dish that is normally enjoyed during Christmas in the cold winter months. The soup is made with a mixture of white wine, sugar, cinnamon sticks, cloves and egg yolks. The wine, water, sugar, cinnamon and some cloves are all boiled together in a pot. While this is boiling, the egg yolks are beaten with some more wine until they become perfectly creamy. The hot wine mixture is then added to the egg yolks while continuously stirring so that the egg yolks do not curdle. The soup is then strained and served immediately with some delicious homemade bread and another glass of local Tokaj wine.

Lecso - Hungarian Pepper Stew

Lecso is a local and traditional Hungarian stew that is made with yellow pointed peppers, tomato, onion, salt, and paprika. When making Lecso, most Hungarians will tell you that it is necessary to use the special Hungarian wax pepper. This pepper is mild in flavor and seasons from August to October. The base of Lecso is tomato and peppers that should be cooked in a pot on an open fire. Historically, this was a cheap dish for the local peasants. To cook the stew, onions, garlic, peppers, salt, and black pepper are all cooked in lard, oil, or bacon fat. Once these ingredients are slightly cooked, tomatoes are added. When the tomatoes are mushy and the juices released, the Lecso is ready to be enjoyed! This hearty meal is best enjoyed during the winter months and paired with a local Tokaj wine.

Frequently Asked Questions about Tokaj Wine Region

1. where is the tokaj wine region located, 2. what are the most famous sub-regions and appellations in tokaj , 3. what are the main grape varieties in tokaj, 4. what is the best wine to try in tokaj, 5. what does tokay taste like, map of wineries in tokaj.

Discover the locations of wineries in Tokaj

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Truly unique wines from Tokaj, one of the world’s oldest wine regions

This region in northeastern Hungary is a revelation for any wine lover.

Visiting Tokaj is a revelation for any wine lover. Everything about this region in northeastern Hungary —from its unique volcanic soil and microclimate to its indigenous grape varieties and subterranean labyrinth of mold-covered cellars—contributes to its distinctive wines. The area owes its fame to a special strand of fungus called botrytis (or the “noble rot”), the ingredient that transforms the overripe grapes into small, shrivelled raisin-like berries with concentrated sugars and flavors. Noble rot only occurs when weather conditions are perfect, and every autumn winemakers obsess over its pending arrival (or lack of arrival), since sweet aszú wines are only made in years when there is botrytis. These valuable grapes are hand-harvested one grape at a time.

Tokaj is most famous for its impossibly complex sweet wine called Tokaji Aszú. But producers in the region make a wide array of white wines, ranging from bone-dry Furmint to Tokaji Eszencia, a nectar so decadent that the sugar prevents it from fermenting to more than around 4 percent alcohol. For the sweet wines, the concentration in the botrytized grapes makes a rich, deeply golden-colored liquid with flavors that include orange marmalade, hazelnut, bread, dill, citrus, apricot, and honey.

Of Hungary’s 22 wine regions, Tokaj has a special pedigree. A Calvinist priest was the first to describe the aszú-making method in writing in 1630. That same method is still followed today—though with the benefit of better technology. In 1737 the wine growing area in Tokaj was delimited by royal decree, and in 1772 the world’s first vineyard-classification system was developed here. Wine is even mentioned in Hungary’s solemn national anthem, the Himnusz: “And let nectar’s silver rain ripen the grapes of Tokaj soon.”

Tokaj is about a 2.5-hour drive from Budapest, an easy day trip from the capital. Whether you come for the wine or not, it is well worth a visit. The region is a protected UNESCO World Heritage site , and is one of the most beautiful parts of Hungary. Its natural borders—the town of Tokaj in the southwest corner where the Bodrog and Tisza Rivers meet, the Bodrog River to the southeast, and the Zemplén Mountains to the northwest—also contribute to the tendency for botrytis to develop.

There are 28 villages in the region, with vineyards lining the back roads between them. Especially worth seeing are the pretty hamlets of Mád (home to many of the top wineries), Erdőbénye (which has a cluster of promising young winemakers), Tarcal (which boasts several luxury hotels), and Tállya (an inviting village with an old cellar row). Visitors can spot nesting storks atop poles and chimneys throughout the area during spring and summer, and kayakers and canoers enjoy the untouched surroundings on the Bodrog and Tisza Rivers.

The charming town of Tokaj itself—with its statue of a drunken naked reveler, grapes in one hand and a chalice in the other—is the district’s centerpiece. The main square has a backdrop of hills and church spires, and it holds perhaps the most famous cellar in the region. Built at the beginning of the 15th century, the Rákóczi Cellar is where King János Szapolyai was crowned in 1526 in a hall spacious enough to hold more than 100 people.

Tokaj is also an important Jewish heritage area. Jewish traders played a vital role in the production, sale, and transport of wine from Tokaj, contributing enormously to its international recognition across the centuries. Synagogues in Mád and Tokaj have been meticulously restored, and several wineries are located inside the old homes of Jewish wine merchants. Cemeteries, such as the one in Bodrogkeresztúr, are important Hasidic pilgrimage destinations.

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Everything in this area comes back to the wine, which is ever present. Tokaji Aszú is exceedingly special, with a long-lingering finish and the potential to age for decades. It even tastes of history. Meanwhile, winemakers are increasingly focusing on the dry Furmints that are starting to find their place in the crowded world of wine, because they are so versatile and sturdy enough to stand up to many different foods. Though Tokaj is the pride of Hungarian wine, it is still a secret to much of the world. Pay a visit to the winemakers here, and they will happily share that secret with you.

Learn more about the Tokaj Wine Region World Heritage site at VisitWorldHeritage.com/Tokaj

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