Hungarian wine facts

[ 0 ] July 20, 2010 | The Hungarian Girl

Hand-crafted Hungarian wine bottles.

Hungary may not be the most well-known wine producing nation. However, it has certainly contributed to many aspects of wine and winemaking.

Here are some facts about wine in Hungary.

• Only three European languages have words for wine: Latin, Greek, and Hungarian.

• Vines believed to be indigenous to the region were first cultivated in Roman Times.

• Hungary is one of the few countries in the world where it’s entire land can be used for vine growing.

• There are currently 22 wine regions in Hungary.

• More than 60 percent of total wine production is white, although red wines are growing more popular and their production is increasing.

• The most well known dry red wine of Hungary is Egri Bikaver, bull’s blood of Eger.

• The vineyards of Tokaj were the first in the world to be classified according to quality.

• Throughout the 17th and 18th century, Tokaji aszu was a cherished commodity enjoyed by the royals of Europe.

• In the Hungarian National Anthem, the poet Ferenc Kölcsey (1790-1838) wrote about the country’s most precious gifts. Included is the wine of Tokaji: “In the grape fields of Tokaj, You dripped sweet nectar.”

• Somló is the smallest wine region in Hungary.

• California’s wine industry was jumpstarted by Hungarian immigrant, Ágoston Haraszthy, who shipped 300 different vine cuttings in 1861.

• Hungarian viticulturalist Zsigmond Teleki became world-famous by finding disease resistant varieties during the philoxeria epidemic that swept through Europe in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.

• Hungary’s 22 wine regions lie between the same parallels as France’s Champagne and Bordeaux.

• The word for wine in Hungarian is “bor.”