Monday, August 15, 2005
...the second question; why producing wine in Hungary...?
...well I started relatively late to drink wine; when I was 29 years old I really started to understand how nice and interesting wines can be. When I start to do something, I usually do it right from the beginning; so did I when I started with wines. Near to my home is a very nice restaurant called "Gasthof Ochsen" with an outstanding wine card. Back in 1995, the offer in Bordeaux wines was very impressive; the prices for these bottles were reasonable (most of them not more than the dealer-net price). Therefore my debut as a wine enthusiast started with the really big Bordeaux; Mouton, Latour, Lafite, Cheval Blanc, Margaux, Haut Brion, La Mission, Trotannoy, etc. Today I am quiet happy I started with the best wines...until today, these are still the wines I am returning to benchmark my taste again. After the Bordeaux session, I started with the big Californian producers, then Australia, then Italy and Spain. In the meantime, I do not just have a favorite "wine"-country anymore, but several wines from different countries. My favorite Chardonnay for example comes from Velich in Austria, my favorite Pinot Noir from Meo Camuzet in Burgundy, my favorite Riesling from Heimann Löwenstein in Germany...just a few examples. OK, my own Rhein-Riesling from 2004 I also like very much, maybe the best, but it does not suit to promote the own wine as the best, or as one of the bests. ;-)
During my time in Hungary I made many visits to wineries all over the country. Meanwhile I have several winemakers, they are also well known across the Hungarian border, as good friends; Fekete Bela/Somlo, Szepsy Istvan/Tokay, Heimann Zoltan/Szekzsard, Simon Jozsef/Eger, Tiffan Ede/Villany, Acs Karoly/Tokay (if you meet him once, ask for his Aszu Grappa...wow!!!), etc. I always liked the friendly and kind style of these people and their passion to produce wine. About four years ago, I visited the Lake Balaton region. Not the crowded north shore side from Balatonfüred down to Badacsony; no, the Tapolca and Kali basin that is located behind the shore mountain range. The environment, the climate, the soil, the calmness and the untouched nature, delighted me. When I tasted wines from this region, I knew that here is an unbelievable potential to produce great terroir wines, with outstanding minerality, acidity and extract. I thought, that this could be the place where I would like to settle down and produce a small amount of absolute high quality wines when I’m retiring one day...but as we all know, it comes as it comes; always different...But from that point and time onward, I was bound to this region and its wine tradition.
...stay tuned and read how I started to produce the first few barrels of wine...at the Csobanc Mountain, near Lake Balaton in Hungary...
(The picture show the Csobanc mountain, the place where our winery is located and where we produce our wines today...)
Friday, August 12, 2005
Why Hungary..?..Why wine..?..and other questions...
Usually one of the first two questions I am asked when people taste or buy my wines is; "...how and when did you come to Hungary..." and "...how did you come to the idea to produce wine, isn't your IT company enough...". Answer to the first question; because of a beautiful Hungarian woman! I meet her during her holidays in Switzerland about 9 years ago and could not get enough from her, so I went almost weekly to Budapest and we enjoyed a so-called "weekend-relationship". Her Name was Eva Nemes, she worked for Shering Plough the pharmaceutical company. Today she is married, became mother and is probably wearing her husbands’ name. Unfortunately, our relationship broke and we lost contact...a story that proofs that weekend-relationships are hard to manage. How ever thanks to Eva I learned very much about Hungary, its history, its culture and of course about its beautiful wines...I believe if I wouldn't meet Eva, I wouldn't be at the lake Balaton and produce wine today; Thank you so much Eva...!
Come back soon and read the answer to the second question...
Come back soon and read the answer to the second question...
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Villa Tolnay Online
This is the start of the online blog of the Villa Tolnay vineyard near the Lake Balaton in Hungary. I would like to write down here the ongoing development of the vinery and share my experience and thoughts with who ever is interested. I am happy for any kind of feedback, ideas and new contacts with other wine-enthusiasts. Stay tuned and watch this place for actual and further information and stories.
