Grape Spotlight: Etyek-Buda Szentesi Laska

Since I purchased six Szentesi Pince wines from the Taste Hungary wine club Szentesi’s Grapes from the Past shipment we will be moving rapidly from Kadarka to the other forgotten Hungarian grape varieties -- repeating many of the same geographic and winery information.

The Etyek-Buda PDO has many unique characteristics regarding Hungarian wine regions. It is very small (1,652 hectares of vineyards) and the closest to Budapest -- located just over the Buda Hills and extending southwest to Lake Velence (Hungary’s second largest lake) near the former royal city Szekesfehervar and southwest to the slopes of the Gerecse hills.  The climate here is influenced not by one, but by three geographical features; the Alfold plains to the south, Lake Balaton to the west, and the mountain winds from the Carpathians to the north. These winds help make this one of the coldest climate regions in Hungary with an average temperature of 9.5° to 10.5° C (49° to 51° F).  The soils are predominately limestone and these rolling hills have historically been planted with international varieties used in sparkling wine production: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon Blanc. Yes, even Sauvignon Blanc is used to produce Asti-like sparklers. Törley, Hungary’s largest sparkling wine producer, has been producing sparkling wine from Etyek-Buda grapes since 1882.  

Szentesi Pince is another producer utilizing grapes from this area and more importantly, József Szentesi has been instrumental in re-introducing older grape varieties lost during the phylloxera scourge in the late 19th century back to the region. In 1988, "after studying 19th-century viticultural and oenological works, he decided to plant 10 forgotten white and blue grape varieties. He requested canes from the Viticulture and Wine Research Institute of the University of Pécs and began propagating and planting the varieties around Lake Velence".  Today this endeavor has expanded to 30 grape varieties planted on 14 hectares of vines. According to the winery, and common sense suggests, that "experimenting with nearly 30 varieties is extremely challenging since in each vintage you have to hit the right harvest time exactly thirty times, you have to process thirty distinct grapes, and you have to deal with thirty different wines separately".

Laska is one of these forgotten grapes and according to Taste Hungary, "used to be amongst the most popular varieties in Hungary. But then phylloxera invaded in the late 1800s and changed the landscape of Hungarian (and European) wine. Many old Hungarian varieties died out and were not replanted. Only 10 Laska vines survived, which Szentesi discovered at the wine research institute in Pécs and planted in his vineyard". In the vineyard, Laska is late-ripening and compressed into small bunches. Grape growers must control yields to ensure full ripening. 

The Szentesi Laska 2020 ($29.90) is produced using natural fermentation, 14 months of oak aging, and bottled unfiltered.   This is a very intriguing wine; fruit-forward and medium-bodied carrying red fruits such as cranberries, cherries, and raspberries. The landing is rather soft with white pepper, approachable tannins, and lingering acidity.  Try after a short chill. And too bad the seasons are off - this would work at Thanksgiving with turkey and cranberry sauce. 

Grape Spotlight: Etyek-Buda Szentesi Kadarka

The Etyek-Buda PDO has many unique characteristics regarding Hungarian wine regions. It is very small (1,652 hectares of vineyards) and the closest to Budapest -- located just over the Buda Hills and extending southwest to Lake Velence (Hungary’s second largest lake) near the former royal city Szekesfehervar and southwest to the slopes of the Gerecse hills.  The climate here is influenced not by one, but by three geographical features; the Alfold plains to the south, Lake Balaton to the west, and the mountain winds from the Carpathians to the north. These winds help make this one of the coldest climate regions in Hungary with an average temperature of 9.5° to 10.5° C (49° to 51° F).  The soils are predominately limestone and these rolling hills have historically been planted with international varieties used in sparkling wine production: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon Blanc. Yes, even Sauvignon Blanc is used to produce Asti-like sparklers. Törley, Hungary’s largest sparkling wine producer, has been producing sparkling wine from Etyek-Buda grapes since 1882.  

Szentesi Pince is another producer utilizing grapes from this area and more importantly, József Szentesi has been instrumental in re-introducing older grape varieties lost during the phylloxera scourge in the late 19th century back to the region. In 1988, "after studying 19th-century viticultural and oenological works, he decided to plant 10 forgotten white and blue grape varieties. He requested canes from the Viticulture and Wine Research Institute of the University of Pécs and began propagating and planting the varieties around Lake Velence".  Today this endeavor has expanded to 30 grape varieties planted on 14 hectares of vines. According to the winery, and common sense suggests, that "experimenting with nearly 30 varieties is extremely challenging since in each vintage you have to hit the right harvest time exactly thirty times, you have to process thirty distinct grapes, and you have to deal with thirty different wines separately".

That being said, although the planting of Kadarka declined after the phylloxera epidemic, it is still grown in many parts of Hungary and remains a beloved and historically popular grape variety. The grape is temperamental and susceptible to grey rot difficult to fully ripen. It was most likely introduced to Hungary from the Balkans and is best known as one of the components of the Eger region's Bull's Blood blend.  From Eger, Kadarka wine can be dark, relatively tannic, and weighty. Not so from Etyek-Buda. 

I purchased the Szentesi Kadarka 2020 ($27.90) through the Taste Hungary wine club and their shipment of  Szentesi’s Grapes from the Past. This Kadarka is from old clone vines from the Nadap vineyard planted in 1988. József's low intervention approach meant a natural fermentation and after one year of aging in neutral oak, bottled unfiltered.   The result is an elegant light to medium-bodied wine with crisp red fruit, gentle and approachable tannins, and fresh acidity. 

Grape Spotlight: IGP Peninsula de Setúbal Castelão from Casa Ermelinda Freitas

I'm not sure how I came to obtain this 2021 Vinho Regional Peninsula de Setúbal Vinha Da Fonte Reserva from Casa Ermelinda Freitas but seeing it in the cellar reminded me of our past trip to Portugal and exploring the areas surrounding Lisbon. This is a large, one-hundred-year-old family winery, currently led by Leanor Freitas, where 60% of their vineyards are dedicated to the Castelão variety. This is a dark-skinned grape that is especially suited for the sandy soils along Portugal's southern coast which includes the Setúbal Peninsula across the Tejo estuary.  The climate in Setúbal is distinctly Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and a majority of rainfall concentrated into the mild, winter months.  This sandy soil is rich in moisture which, along with the surrounding river and ocean breezes, refreshes and rejuvenates the vines during the dry summers. 

Leanor Freitas is the 4th generation female to oversee the company. "The winery was established in 1920 by Leonilde Freitas, continued by his granddaughter, Germana Freitas, and later by his great-granddaughter, Ermelinda Freitas, to whom Casa Ermelinda Freitas owes its name. With the premature death of her husband, Manuel João de Freitas, Ermelinda Freitas continued to manage the company with her only daughter, Leonor Freitas".

The vineyards of Casa Ermelinda Freitas are located in Fernando Pó of ​​the Palmela* region and began as 60 ha of only two varieties: Castelão and Fernão Pires.  Leonor Freitas introduced a range of new varieties, such as Trincadeira, Touriga Nacional, Aragonês, Syrah, and Alicante Bouschet, so that today, the winery farms 550 hectares of vineyards of 30 different grape varieties. 

The 2021 Vinho Regional Peninsula de Setúbal Vinha Da Fonte Reserva is a blend of five grape varieties with Castelão and Cabernet Sauvignon as the dominant players. The percentages are followed by Touriga Nacional, Syrah, and Alicante Bouschet.  It carries the Vinho Regional Peninsula de Setúbal designation which is the former name for the new Peninsula de Setúbal IGP. The grapes are fermented in stainless steel vats and aged for 9 months in French oak separately before blending.  This is a very intriguing wine, ripe fruit and yet rustic, with hints of wood and approachable tannins.  Give me a plate of sausages at an outdoor Lisbon street fair. 

*Palmela has its own DOC which primarily covers red wines made from Castelão.

Old Growth Orchard Ciders from British Columbia's Lonetree Cider

This month I received three ciders through the BevFluence® New Perspectives on Cider, Perry, and Brandy campaign that's from an interesting source. These are Canadian ciders, and more specifically, old-growth orchard ciders, from Lonetree Cider.

Lonetree Cider is located in British Columbia and was introduced to us through Cider Canada / Cidre Canada. They use solely B.C. grown fruit from family orchards within the Kelowna region of the Okanagan Valley. In fact, their grower cooperative is composed of 500 family orchardists who may have had to uproot the orchard in favor of more lucrative vineyards if not for Lonetree. and these ciders help subsist these orchards. The cidery also chose to emphasize the Old Growth aspect of these orchards as the label signifies that many of these trees are over 80 years old.

Authentic Dry Apple Cider
This dry cider is made from a blend of old-world cider apples, such as Belle de Boskoop and Bramley, then fermented with table apples; MacIntosh, Spartan, and Golden Delicious. I was planning on sipping with a shot of Campari, as is my usual custom with dry ciders, but the cider was so flavorful I didn't want to waste the savory contents. 

Apple Ginger Cider
This cider is made from apples and real ginger and this Ginger Cider is intense. Intensely ginger. Which translates to "let's use as an ingredient for a cocktail". One of my favorite cocktails calls for equal parts ginger beer and grapefruit juice with a healthy dose of pitorro rum. Tonight I used the Ginger Cider and the earthy Three Rum Estate Rhum Agricole from Louisiana. This makes a funky and refreshing cocktail. An old-growth, cane-to-glass cocktail.

Apple Rhubarb Cider
Apples and rhubarb. Now, being from the Mid-Atlantic, I'm really not sure what rhubarb tastes like. What I can say, is this cider provides a tasteful combination of apples and red berries with tartness and acidity to lift the sugars. And it does pair nicely with Buc-ees Cherry Maple beef jerky.