Bubbling Beneath Budapest with Garamvári
Finding Hungarian sparkling wine in Budapest is as easy as hopping in a cab! Located along the Danube on the Buda side of the river lies the neighborhood of Budafolk, an historic center of wine production and cellars. In 1880, a union of wine producing and bottling industries created a cellar network hollowed out of the limestone beneath the neighborhood. The cellar system, 25 kilometers in length and the largest in all of Europe, still exists earning the area the name “Cellar Town.”
Today a number of wineries still have production facilities here, especially those focusing on sparkling wine production like Törley, Sauska, and Garamvári. While I was in Budapest in June for the Winelovers Wine Competition, several of us from the jury took a short taxi ride to Budafolk to visit Garamvári Estate.
Garamvári Estate
Garamvári Estate began with Vencel Garamvári. After graduating with a degree in oenology in the 60s, spent some time working a the largest sparkling wine factory in Hungary. In 1990, he and a few enthusiastic and innovative partners founded Vinarium, a company dedicated to representing premium wineries and marketing their wines. Very soon, marketing other people’s wines was not enough for him and in 1993 he bought his first vineyards in the Balatonboglár and Balatonlelle areas of the South Balaton region. By 1996, the family had also acquired the cellar in Sörház Street in Budafok, which provided the perfect opportunity for sparkling wine production. They set out to renovate and equip the impressive 5,000 m2 underground site for the production of traditional method sparkling wine. The first ones were released in 1999 under the name of Chateau Vincent.
Today, three generations work together at Garamvári Estate producing not only sparkling wines but also still white rosé, and red wines.
Lellei Furmint, 2021
Sourced from Balaton, this was unlike any Furmint I’ve ever tasted. Blindfolded, I would have sworn up and down that there was New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc in my glass. I asked which yeast they use for this wine, wondering if that might give me a clue to the continental shift in my glass. The answer, “Champagne yeast” was not what I expected.
A testament to the cellar’s dry conditions!
Notes of tropical passion fruit, bright citrus, and grass leapt exuberantly from the glass. The palate delivered similar flavors along with some peachy hints. Simple, pleasant acidity, with a relatively short finish, but overall very pleasant.
Lelli Cserszegi Fűszeres, 2021
Cserszegi Fűszeres has been a favorite grape of mine since I first met it last summer. Not exactly because of the wines, which are generally simple but quaffable. But because it’s so much fun to say!
Super aromatic and pretty with lychee, flowers, and threads of white pepper. Fresh and bright on the palate. Like the Furmint, nothing complicated is happening here, but it’s a perfectly enjoyable wine (if you like showy aromatic whites anyway!).
Premium Sínai Hegy Cabernet Franc, 2018
Aged in a combination – but mostly Hungarian along with some French and American – mixed use barrels for about 15 months, this 100% Cabernet Franc came from vineyards in Villány, the heart of Hungarian Cabernet Franc production.
Fresh red berries, spice, and hints of green bell pepper greeted the nose while its soft texture slipped easily down the throat.
Premium Sínai Cabernet Sauvignon, 2018
Aged for just over a year and a half in 60% American oak, presented a softer side of this usually otherwise big, bold grape.
Rich aromas of black fruit and dark chocolate complimented brown spices seamlessly transitioned to a palate of plum, chocolate, cardamom, nutmeg, and plush tannins.
Garamvári Brut Nature, 2018
One of the interesting things I learned at Garamvári is that they disgorge more or less on demand. All the sparkling capsules have a date printed on them (hidden on them really, they’re hard to spot). Wine is disgorged in batches to meet market demand.
For this particular Chardonnay and Pinot Noir blend, whenever its disgorgement date occurred, it did not receive a dosage. Ergo, brut nature! Crunchy green apple, pear, green plums framed by notes of citrus and zippy acidity and a lovely toasty finish.
Garamvári Evolution Rose Brut, 2019
Garamvári Rosé is a 100% Pinot Noir macerated for two to three hours so the wine starts with a pink base. After disgorgement, a moderate dosage is added resulting in a residual sugar level of about 8 grams/liter.
Pale salmon on the pour with aromas of red berries, peach, and toast. Sipping revealed an elegant wine full of red currants, cranberries, raspberry, and peach, along with toast and a mildly salty/saline edge. Crisp and delicious.
Garamvári Blanc Fleur Extra Dry, 2018
The only one of Garamvári’s sweeter sparkling wines we tried, the Blanc Fleur Extra Dry comprised 100% Pinot Blanc with a residual sugar level of 12-13 g/L.
Lightly toasty notes followed by pear compote and pear blossoms with honeysuckle details greeted the nose. Not overtly sweet at all thanks to the wine’s high acidity but still with enough residual sugar to leave a creamy impression in the mouth. That said, flavors certainly fell on the “pretty” side with quince, pears, and flowers.
Garamvári Optimum Brut, 2018
The next wine took us back to a brut style (8-8.5 g/l of residual sugar). For the Optimim Brut, Garamvári blends 50% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir, and 20% Pinot Blanc.
Aromas of ripe pear, lemon puff pastry and white petals burst (if you’ll forgive the pun) from the glass. Fresh and bright with flavors of crushed pear and lemon curd and an accompanying creamy mousse.
Garamvári Tokaji Furmint Brut, 2016
A 100% Furmint made with grapes sourced from Tokaj, this one threw me almost as much as the still Furmint from Balaton! Slightly lower residual sugar than the other bruts (at around 7-7.5 g/l), it nonetheless had a rich and creamy flavor.
A crisp, fresh wine but with a richly tropical character. Citrus and cream notes framed a core of quince, mango, and linden blossom braced by firm acidity.
Garamvári Prestige Brut Magnum, 2007
Then came the magnum! I’ve not had many opportunities to have a magnum of sparkling wine. We don’t see them in Turkey (local or otherwise). I was very interested to learn how much more slowly wine develops in a magnum (and even more slowly in a double magnum, a Jeroboam, etc.). It makes absolute sense. Micro oxygenation is just that, micro, and there’s a lot more wine to affect in larger format bottle.
Bottom line: the same vintage in a standard size bottle will taste very different than wine in a larger format bottle.
A Pinot Blanc-based cuvee with a 6 g/l dosage, the magnum Garamvári opened for us came from 2007 and was very fresh despite being 15 years old! Crunchy fresh quince met juicy peaches wrapped in flakey pasty in this wine. Those pastry wrapped fruits came through beautifully on the palate along with toasted almonds and a floral kiss on the finish.
What a fun and fantastic experience!