sweets from where!?

2003 Tokaj Kereskedöház Tokaji Aszú 4 Puttonyos | Hungary

2009 Cotnari Grasa De Cotnari | DOCC Romania

Occasionally Vintages brings wines in that genuinely excite you, surprise you, remind you why you love wine so much. I adore sweet wines. Sweetness, with counterbalancing levels of acidity creates the most amazing sensations on the palate, and on the dinner table . . . divine. Sweet and savoury, that complexity of flavours that makes Chinese food the greatest cuisine in the world.

We started 2012 off with a bottle of Tokay. A solid, if unspectacular bottle, but surely that's not a crime. The Cotnari, though, was a complete shock. A sweet wine from a obscure (to put it kindly) varietal, from Romania? Why not. It was a fabulous wine, all minerals and lifted aromas, delicate yet showing good impact on the palate. Almost like a Mosel with the acidity levels, but showing some herbal/greenish notes to keep it all interesting. An amazing discovery for me. And who knew, from Romania of all places?!

Sweets for the sweet. I've been having a hell of time with the GMAT material. It's beating me senseless man, I'm getting turned inside out. This is all going to pay off right?

DF

2006 Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos

2006 Royal Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos | Hungary

Aszú wines always have the most stunning colour. And everytime I drink them, every single time . . . I ask myself why I don't have any in the cellar. I'd truthfully have no problem replacing every bottle of Sauternes I have with these wines. Who knew, that in addition to pornstars, Hungary could have such exquisite exports?!

I adore Royal Tokaji. Absolutely adore this wine. That's a bit different than even being excited - if there's any wine that I desperately need in my cellar, it's this one. It has all the earthy apricot and honey that is so singular. This 2006 is a bit less viscous, with a more subtle botrytis character, compared to the 2005. It's the low alcohol that makes the wine work so well, I'm sure of it. Acidity just shines because of the alcohol, absolutely cutting into your palate on the finish. Love it. But these wines are still so young. Working on it, working on it.

One question though . . . why the 20 cL bottle format? Just doesn't make any sense, to go smaller than a half bottle.

DF

2005 Tokaji Aszú 3 Puttonyos

2005 St. Stephen's Crown 3 Puttonyos Tokaji Aszú

Can there be a more singular wine than Tokaji? They can be so breathtaking, more complex and interesting than you could ever imagine a sweet wine to be. The second wine of our evening, and in fact, my favourite. This wine married even better with dinner, fish and various greens sautéed simply over hot oil.

Double decanted as well, and chilled in ice. This is showing a stunning amber colour, with an earthy nose of dried apricots and dates. Mineral, with mature characters. Following on the palate, with just a touch of sweetness, very bright acidity, and impeccably balanced. Long, dried fruits on an elegant finish. A wine of great breeding.

It's that incredible combination of botrytis character and minerality, all beginning to mature that makes the wine work so well with food. Just everything I want in a vin de terroir.

DF

2003 Tokaji

2003 Puklus Tokaji Aszú 2 Puttonyos, Hungary

On the back of a delicious Tokaji we drank a few weeks ago, I wanted more. This one satisfied that itch effectively, with an assertive hit of botrytised fruit and sugar. What is lacks in complexity, it more than makes up in texture. Simple, but sometimes intellectual wine experiences are overrated.

We just put in new windows in the two upstairs bedrooms. After a long day of cleaning and painting and general miscellaneous work, I was shivering for a drink. Sweet wine, rich food, yes, that makes DF a happy boy.

DF

2005 Tokaji

2005 Royal Tokaji, Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos, Hungary

The second wine of our evening. King of wines, wine of kings. Right. Another sweet wine drunk far too young, but I was proving a point - sweet wines belong on the dinner table, with food. Simply relegating them with dessert does them a disservice...who wants to drink a sweet wine with a sweet dessert? The one that is less sweet will lose, horribly. With our Chinese cuisine, this wine married just beautifully.

Look at the colour - deep and luminous, shining and bright. The bouquet is just extraordinary, with ripe apricots singing on top of the most amazing rusticity. Just mushrooms and earth character - this is going to develop so well with some bottle age. The excitement follows on the palate, perfectly balanced, elements integrated, viscous and full with a lovely stream of acidity on the blooming finish. Supple and long, at once also being fresh and lively.

This is an extraordinary wine. With food, stunning. I think I proved my point.

DF

Vinum Regnum, Rex Vinorum

Wine of kings, King of wines.

Tokaji, of Hungary. I don't have any experience with this wine, so I was very excited to open this bottle. What's fascinating about these wines is of course, the history, but also the fact that there is a classification system which lists the amount of residual sugar. I bought a 4 Puttonyos wine - this on a scale from 3 to 6. 4 is sort of a nice in between in terms of richness.

2001 Tokaj Kereskedohaz Tokaji Aszu 4 Puttonyos. As you can see from above, it has a beautiful amber colour, great saturation. Lovely aromas of dried fruits, dried red dates, mineral. Lean on the mouth though - this has about the same amount of sugar as Sauternes, but tastes nowhere as sweet. Acidity is bracing - that's what's covering up the sugar. Refreshing, perfect with fruit. A delicious wine, but still lacking. I'll stick to my Sauternes.