Tokaj, Hungary

After decades of Communist state monopoly, the Hungarian wine industry underwent gradual privatisation after 1990. Royal Tokaji was one of the very first to benefit from international investment. Initial vintages of that decade were not exceptional, but ideal conditions in 1993 allowed new producers to make Tokaji of high quality. Although vintages of the early 1990s have not aged particularly well, 1993 has stood the test of time.

Royal Tokaji was founded by Hugh Johnson, Peter Vinding-Diers and other investors, who acquired some outstanding vineyards and hired István Szepsy as consultant winemaker. Szepsy was profoundly knowledgeable about traditional techniques for the production of Tokaji Aszú. From the outset there was a conflict between an oxidative style of winemaking, misleadingly thought of as ‘traditional’, and a more modern approach that ignored the rulebook and permitted experimentation with fermentation techniques as well as ageing in newer barrels. Royal Tokaji would prove innovative without pursuing an oxidative style.

Warm weather at flowering ensured a good crop, and the balmy summer that followed brought the vines to full maturity. Autumnal mists brought an early onset of botrytis, allowing the production of exceptional aszú wines.

The Royal Tokaji founders relied on historic vineyard classification maps from the late 17th century when buying or leasing parcels of vines. Nyulászó had been classified as first growth, and the company acquired 12ha (today expanded to 18ha) of southeast-facing vines at an elevation of 200m. The topsoils are volcanic, and below lies a complex blend of clay, calcareous loam, tufa and quartz.

Aszú means a wine made from handpicked botrytised grapes. A paste is made