“Wine of kings, king of wines!” - Louis XIV

It’s Tokay Thursday!

Mind you, these are SWEET wines. Residual sugar from botrytised berries is the true essence of a Tokay. They are not off-dry; the 3 wines we feature today range from the lightly sweet to the unctuously sweet.

And then there’s this, which we were able to get a small stash of, and a TRUE STEAL at just $27 a bottle.

You see, a Szamorodni is one of the rarest styles of Tokay, because it’s only made when the Bortytis is not abundant. Literally meaning ‘as it comes’ or ‘the way it grows,’ when a vintage has some Botrytis but not enough to make Azsu Puttonyos wines, the entire harvest gets bottled as a Szamorodni. They often are, as in this case, ever-so-lightly sweet and impeccably balanced with Furmint’s signature acidity retention. The resulting wine is liquid candy, which you will find yourself unable to stop sipping. It’s a guilty pleasure with plenty of tropical fruits and citrusy brightness, and a fine example of how leaving certain things to the flow really plays out well sometimes… with endless potential for exciting pairings!

True that we have two different Châteaux we are highlighting for Tokay Thursday, Pajzos and Imperial. The former was formerly known as the Tokaj-Hétszölö Estate, prior to Michel Reybier acquiring it. That name you may know, as the owner of the legendary Classified Growth Château Cos d’Estournel. It’s no coincidence that the maker of today’s Essencia, Chateau Pajzos, is also Bordeaux-owned, since there have been many such acquisitions in this UNESCO World Heritage site.

A few years ago, Agent Noir caught a glimpse of glimmering golden bottles poured at Cos d’Estournel on a week that was all about celebrating Bordeaux. Since the space is gloriously all about Cos, these elixirs were largely going unnoticed. But the story and the connection were thrilling, just like these wines, and the rest is history. Well, recent history given that the Chateau dates back to 1502!

In an interview, French sommelier Matthias Meynard explains that “There are several similarities between Cos d’Estournel and Tokaj-Hétszölö. Like Saint-Estèphe, Tokaj is a legendary appellation. It is known for its sweet and dry white wines. The older vintages of Tokaj are marvelous with Peking duck, even if the association may be a bit daring. The wines of Cos d’Estournel and Tokaj-Hétszőlő both have exceptional cellaring potential, which is something I am always looking for. I am drawn to wines that can outlive a man, wines that we can pass down to our children or grandchildren, for whom they will evoke memories and emotions upon tasting. It is truly the great wines that allow for such journeys, be they introspective, through time, or across generations.”

Concluding, “Finally, when we talk about the passion for the exotic that characterizes Cos d’Estournel, Tokaj seems almost a logical stop along the Spice Routes. How wonderful for Michel Reybier to seek to perpetuate and sublimate these magical terroirs, for they are not without recalling certain aspects of the identity of Cos d’Estournel! “What Cos d’Estournel and Tokaj-Hétszölö have in common is precision. Precision is the sine qua non of excellence.

No press on these yet, but we’ll leave you with a Wine Advocate spotlight, “Hétszölö is one of the oldest estates in Tokaji, having been founded in 1502. The name means ‘7 vineyards,’ since it originated so, and they were one of the main sources for the famous ancient Tokajis of the Royal Imperial Estate. This was mainly because of its propensity to produce a high quantity of high-quality botrytized fruit, i.e., Aszu. One need only glance at the vineyard to see why. The 55 hectares of vine are located in a single block on one steep south-facing incline facing the Great Plain. The soil is different from the volcanic earth around Mad. Here it is mainly loess, approximately 15 centimeters deep at the bottom and becoming shallower toward the top at around 310 meters altitude. The vineyard is populated by around 80% Furmint, with Harslevelu planted at the bottom of the hill, since it needs more water. Unfortunately, all the vines were grubbed up after World War II, and so in 1991 they inaugurated a ten-year re-planting program. In 2008, the estate was acquired by the Reybier family, proprietors of Château Cos d’Estournel. The focus here is squarely upon Aszu 5-Puttonyos wines. What is slightly different here is that the Aszu berries are added before the fermentation has started, followed by a maceration of around 12 hours to one day.”