Wine report from Budapest
a top white wine… and it’s not even Spanish.
Our loyal customers have known it for years: for two estates, we occasionally look beyond Spain.
Primeurs: one of them will be featured next weekend with the
primeur releases of
Eben Sadie from South Africa.
And for the other one, we head to Hungary. Last Friday, I was in Budapest with a few very good friends for a small tasting of the better white wines Hungary has to offer.
Because let’s be honest: we don’t need to pretend to be modest and say there is anyone in Belgium who knows the Spanish wine landscape better than we do. But when it comes to Hungary and Hungarian wines, we still have a lot to learn. And we should be honest about that too.
So when we are in Budapest with friends, we are also there to work 😉 !!
And so we taste a lot of different wines…
We have to! We need to stay up to date with the best wines out there. Especially if I claim myself that we have the finest Hungarian white wines in our range!
And after our extensive “field research”, I’m happy to confirm once again: the white Mandolás from Oremus-Vega Sicilia still stands out above the rest!
I don’t need to convince you if you’ve already bought it once: you already know this is
one of the most ambitious projects of the Alvarez family behind the famous
Vega Sicilia from Ribera del Duero.
They bought this estate shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall because they already saw the incredible potential of this region in the Zemplén mountains, not far from the Ukrainian border. First of all because, historically, this was one of the world’s great regions for sweet wines with its famous Tokaj Aszú wines.
But Pablo Alvarez immediately also saw the potential to produce great dry white wines.
And by now, we know more than ever that he fully succeeded in that ambition!
The best example is their Mandolás. A complex white wine with plenty of freshness, minerality and length.
And the biggest surprise: it’s not expensive at all.
And as you know, I don’t often use “Vega Sicilia” and “not expensive” in the same sentence.
But here I have every reason to do so. This Mandolás is a white wine with an outstanding pedigree at an incredible price. The only reason it is still available at this price today is because the wider public still doesn’t know this wine, this region and its fantastic grape variety well enough: Furmint.
I’ve had it blind in my glass so many times by now. And now I know: when it tastes like a great Chardonnay from Burgundy, but with a touch of Loire Chenin, it is often Furmint: mineral and tight in its youth, opulent and complex with age.
Have you never tasted or bought it before?
Don’t hesitate. This is one you really should try!
Not only because of the reputation of Vega Sicilia, but because it simply doesn’t need that reputation to stand out. This wine is a top-class white in its own right and without a doubt one of the best white wines in our range.
We have also received the new 2023 vintage since this spring.
A fantastic vintage with at least another 10 years of ageing potential!