Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 83
YEAR'S BEST EASTERN EUROPEAN WINES
221202
90 | Maranuli
$15
2015 Samegrelo Ojaleshi (Best Buy) ^ While
semi-sweet reds are often thought of as unsophisticated, the style can work well when
the sweetness is based on flavor rather than
sugar. That's the case with this red, where the
sweetness softens the tang of the cranberry
and pomegranate fruit, and highlights the
spice. It's a pretty wine, with violet scents and
gentle herbal notes that keep it balanced and
lively, ready to pair with chicken-especially
if it's Georgian-style, in a creamy sauce made
of ground walnuts and spice. § Corus Imports,
Stamford, CT
HU N G A RY W H IT E
221331
93 | Apatsagi
$26
2013 Somló Hárslevelu ^ Zoltan Balogh has
developed a style for ripe, full-bodied wines
at Apatsagi. It works well in this hárslevelu, a
wine that reminded some panelists of chenin
blanc in its rich, broad texture and multifaceted flavor. Grown on basalt and vinified
with ambient yeasts in 600- to 2,000-liter barrels, the wine feels like a late-harvest cuvée,
rich and sweet in its notes of pineapple, pear
and strawberry, but a brothy umami note
holds it firm and savory. Pour it with something rich but understated, like chicken in a
cream sauce. § Blue Danube Wine Co., Los Altos
Hills, CA
221329
90 | Fekete Béla
$25
2012 Somló Aranyhegy Juhfark ^ Now nearing 90, Béla Fekete has made this wine the
benchmark for juhfark, a specialty of Somló.
The 2012, thanks to a warm year, has a little
more fat on its bones than usual: It feels dense
and a little rustic, with dandelion scents and
melon-like flavors wrapping around its austere mineral core, and a rich, smoky umami
note that brings to mind grilled lamb chops.
That unusual meatiness, coupled with the
wine's insistent, citrusy acidity, makes it particularly appetizing. Pour it with lamb and a
dandelion-leaf salad. § Blue Danube Wine Co.,
Los Altos Hills, CA
220376
90 | Kikelet Pince
$30
2015 Tokaji Kassai Hárslevelu ^ Frenchborn Stéphanie Berecz has a soft spot for
hárslevelu, with half of her 12 acres of vines
given over to the aromatic variety. She makes
this wine from a single, south-facing parcel of
loess, fermenting it with ambient yeasts and
aging it on the lees in French and Hungarian oak barrels for four to five months. That
treatment has built a lot of texture into this
2015, a warp of honeyed richness to temper
the weft of tannins that give it grip. The fla-
vors range from Bosc pear to orange oil and
tangelo, with scents of lemongrass and lime
leaf that give it lift. Pour it with something
rich, like pork chops baked with peaches. §
Blue Danube Wine Co., Los Altos Hills, CA
220381
after opening, the acidity drawing an elegant
line through the wine that keeps it energetic.
Gorgeous now, it should also age well for
decades. § Wilson Daniels, St. Helena, CA
220382
90 | Kikelet Pince
$25
88 | Préselo
2013 Tokaji Aszu 1413 (Best Buy) ^ The year
1413 refers to the first mention of Disznókó
in a land register; the wine is made up of
botrytized bunches selected from some of
the estate's best plots. It exudes both calm
and clarity in its flavors, laying down a soft
layer of lemon cream and building in notes of
peach, pear, honey and saffron. The acidity
keeps it clean, the wine lasting with a quiet,
succulent juiciness. § Vintus, Pleasantville, NY
212721
$15
2015 Tokaji Birtok Furmint ^ Stéphanie
Berecz packs her estate cuvée with extract,
giving the wine a broad frame and an almost
meaty feel. It's ripe but not pushed, the juicy
peach notes held in balance by a firm minerality. It feels supple despite its size, a generous partner for a thick fish steak doused
in brown butter. § Blue Danube Wine Co., Los
Altos Hills, CA
220558
2015 Tokaji Muscat (Best Buy) ^ This is a big,
blowsy muscat, all green florals and limey
fruit, yet dry, with a little alcohol spice. It
would make a summery match served chilled
with a tarragon-laced lobster salad. § Georgian
House of Greater Washington, Beltsville, MD
HUN GARY DESSERT
220189
95 | Tokaji Classic
$90/500ml
1999 Tokaji Aszú 6 Puttonyos ^ Phyllis and
Andras Bruhacs started buying vineyard parcels in 1993, eventually assembling almost 20
acres as well as an old winery in Mád. They
focus on Aszú wines, blended from furmint,
hárslevelu and muscat. This wine, from one
of the most highly regarded vintages of the
last three decades, was fermented twice:
once for two and a half months, and again,
after the addition of pressed aszú berries, for
three years, before bottling in October 2004.
Today, the deep caramel hue and smoky
campfire scents attest to its age, but the
wine still feels vivacious: Its notes of blood
orange and candied citrus cut the sweetness
and keep the wine lively and fresh. Floral and
herbal notes add to the impression of finesse
and delicacy, and suggest this wine has a long
life ahead. § David Bowler Wines, NY
212707
93 | Royal Tokaji
$200/500ml
2009 Tokaji Aszú 6 Puttonyos Great First
Growth Mezes Maly ^ The 2009 vintage was
a tricky one in Tokaji, with drought and heat
speeding ripeness through the summer, then
October rain falling on the superripe berries.
Even forced to pick early, the Royal Tokaji
team managed to pull in a luscious Aszú
from Mezes Maly, its First Growth vineyard
in Tarcal. It smells of pure honey and feels as
round as a peach, the 220 grams of sugar it
packs is fully saturated with profound fruit
flavor. Those flavors remain fresh for days
92 | Disznókó
$35/500ml
90 | Royal Tokaji
$54/500ml
2009 Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos ^ From an
early vintage in Tokaji, the picking dates
forced by rain in early October, this is bright
and fresh the acidity charging the wine with
energy as it brings more and different flavors
to the fore: honeysuckle, candied orange,
lemon meringue and sage. The structure
suggests it will age well, but it also has the
restraint to be delicious right now with a
cheese plate. § Wilson Daniels, St. Helena, CA
220191
90 | Tokaji Classic
2002 Tokaji Aszú 6 Puttonyos ^ From a
warm, early-maturing year, this chestnuthued 2002 is satiny and dense, its honeyed
flavor suffused with warm gingerbread richness and orange acidity. The acidity is a little
volatile, so best to enjoy this now, with the
cheese course. § David Bowler Wines, NY
220194
88 | Tokaji Classic
$25/500ml
2007 Tokaji Late Harvest Cuvée (Best
Buy) ^ Hárslevelu and muscat give this wine
floral scents and a plump pineapple fruitiness, while furmint provides the spice. It's
mature and nutty, with a burnt-orange acidity and an almost tannic texture that curbs
the sweetness. Try it with a coffee-flavored
panna cotta. § David Bowler Wines, NY
SLOVAKIA WHITE
220451
90 | Château Belá
$17
2015 Sturovo Riesling (Best Buy) ^ Winemaker Miroslav Petrech works with Germany's Egon Müller family, who invested in this
southern Slovakian estate in 2000. Petrech's
2015 riesling is richer and fruitier than any
Saar example, but no less resolutely varietal,
with petrol scents and crisp, sweet lemonapple fruit. Ripe and forward, it's a big-boned
white for pork with grilled peaches this summer. § Frederick Wildman and Sons, NY n
WINE & SPIRITS
JUNE 2017
83
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - June 2017
Contents
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - Cover1
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - Cover2
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 1
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 2
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 3
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 4
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - Contents
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 6
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 7
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 8
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 9
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 10
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 11
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 12
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 13
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 14
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 15
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 16
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 17
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 18
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 19
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 20
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 21
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 22
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 23
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 24
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 25
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 26
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 27
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 28
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Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 30
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Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 95
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - 96
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - Cover3
Wine & Spirits - June 2017 - Cover4
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