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European Wines

HomeEuropean Wines (Page 9)

By 0European Wines, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Recently, I have read more than a few pieces about Wiener Gemischter Satz which reminded me that I'd also recently drunk some. Thanks to my very good friend from Austria who brings me interesting wines; I got to try this wine for the first time over the summer. And it was delightful. That spoiler aside, let's talk about what Wiener Gemischter Satz is. Wiener Gemischter Satz DAC Without getting up too high on my horse about it, I find people avoid wines from German-speaking countries because they're afraid of the words. Personally I find French much more difficult to deal with and feel something akin to pleasure when I massively

By 0European Wines, Red Wine, Wine Reviews

  We left the A. Gere vineyards on day 3 of our Hungarian wines tour with Hungarianwines.eu and headed to their winery for a walk around tasting of Villány's 12 best Cabernet Franc wines. Villány and Cabernet Franc While Villány's historically most important grape is Portugieser, it is most renowned for Cabernet Franc. Here in what is called the 'devil's punch bowl' due to the intense heat the region receives, Cabernet Franc ripens both well and predictably every year. Plush, velvety tannins, ripe fruit flavors, and those lovely earthy and spicy notes that make Cab Franc stand out are on full display in Villányi Franc. PDO Villány wines have three quality levels: Classic: no

By 0European Wines, Rose Wine, Sparkling Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  After our tasting and dinner at Lajvér Borbirtok in Szekszárd, we got back in our cars for the day's final drive. Happily, not three hours again. This time just one hour to get us to Villány. Half of us were dropped off at the winery Csányi Pincészet (producers of Teleki Villány wines) to stay in the winery's guesthouse. While day 2 involved a great deal of road time, day 3 of our Hungarian wines tour with Hungarianwines.eu would see us in just this one location. [caption id="attachment_16460" align="alignright" width="451"] Map courtesy of Hungarianwines.eu[/caption] Villány Due to its location in the south of Hungary, near the Croatian border, Villány (pronounced vie-añ) is the

By 0European Wines, Red Wine, Rose Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  We left Tornai after our tasting to continue our Hungarian wines tour with Hungarianwines.eu in a different region: Szekszárd. But first, another three hour drive! There was lots of driving on this trip. I was pretty happy to not have to be the one driving at least! I'm usually the one behind the wheel. Plus, all these long drives gave us time to get to know one another. [caption id="attachment_16420" align="alignright" width="449"] Map courtesy of Hungarianwines.eu[/caption] Szekszárd  Szekszárd (sek-sard), was not entirely a new-to-me region in that I'd heard of it and had previously drunk some Szekszárdi wines. But I'd never been before this tip! Located in southern Hungary, a stone's throw from

By 0European Wines, Sweet Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  We woke up on the morning of Day 2 of our Hungarian wines tour with Hungarianwines.eu at Dominium Pincészet in Mátra. After a quick breakfast (which was mostly us mainlining coffee like it was going out of style!) we piled in the van for our next adventure. My personal favorite wine region in Hungary: Somló. But first, a three hour drive to get there. [caption id="attachment_16390" align="alignright" width="498"] Map courtesy of Hungarianwines.eu[/caption] Somló It might be Hungary's smallest wine district, but lack of hectares does not diminish its impact. Nagy-Somló includes three hills, Somló Hill, Kissomló, and Ság-hegy. A stunning site, Somló Hill, the main hill, rises steeply out of

By 0European Wines, Red Wine, Rose Wine, Sparkling Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  After lunch at the Paris Passage, we headed east of Budapest to the Mátra region. With vineyards located on the lower slopes of the Mátra mountain range close to the border with Slovakia, this is Hungary's second largest PDO. Just west of Eger, the soils here consist largely of volcanic soils, sand, and loess which contribute to the region's signature aromatic whites and structured red wines. [caption id="attachment_16378" align="alignright" width="500"] Map courtesy of Hungarianwines.eu[/caption] White grape varieties here include Irsai Olivér, Rizlingszilváni, Olaszrizling, Zenit, Leányka, Hárslevelű, Sauvignon Blanc, Szürkebarát (Pinot Gris), Chardonnay, and Tramini. For reds, Kékfrankos dominates but Turán, Zweigelt, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Merlot. Getting to Know Mátra We arrived

By 0European Wines, Sweet Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  For the last four years, Hungarian Wines EU, founded by the fantastic Ágnes Németh, has run a writing competition. This was the first year I'd heard of it (thanks to an email from Ágnes and a nudge from a friend!). I entered in two categories, was a finalist in one (you can read me piece here), and actually won! Huzzah! I never win anything. And this wasn't just anything to win. Winners from each of the four categories (four each in English and four each in Hungarian) were invited to participate in a three-day study tour in Hungary. As soon as I got confirmation, I booked a flight, contacted

By 0European Wines, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Based on the Ionian island of Corfu, the Grammenos Family launched its winery in the late 1980s, before the Corfu PGI (est. 1996) even existed! The family has vineyards in several locations on Corfu including the village of Sinarades, about 2 km from the winery, as well as in Skafonas, Korakas, and Vouni on the west of the island, at an altitude of 250-300 meters. They grow several varieties but one of their main grapes is Corfu native, Kakotrygis. Κακoτρυγης (Kakotrygis) gets transliterated in several ways. I've seen it as both Kakotrygis and Kakotrigis, but it can also apparently be spelled: Kako Tryghi, Kakotriguis, Kakotriki, and Kakotryghis. Κακό (kako) means

By 10European Wines, Red Wine, Rose Wine, Sparkling Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  My introduction to Hungarian wine occurred on a work trip to Budapest in 2004. Budapest is a beautiful city I have since fallen in love with. But I felt strange in this wintery, new country where I didn’t speak the language. The wine, a syrupy, low quality Tokaji sold in the tourist shops. A memory quickly forgotten. More than 10 years later I would find myself in Hungary again for work. This time, I was not alone and was sequestered with colleagues in a spider infested hotel on Lake Balaton. The hotel food was terrible, the conference not going well, and we were at one another’s throats. Then someone

By 0Articles, European Wines

  While Turkish wine is my raison d'etre, over the last few years I have developed deep love, enthusiasm, and respect for wines from other counties as well. I prefer white wine to red and find that I gravitate towards white wines with tightly strung energy. Their verve is electric and exciting. I've been very lucky to experience a lot of Greek wine over the last few years. Two of my best friends live in Athens, always have a couch for me, and indulge my need to explore the wine scene. Given my zeal for zesty, racy wines, it's little wonder that in Greece I lean towards wines from Santorini.