Can Dry Tokaji Win as the “New Sauvignon Blanc?”

Can Dry Tokaji Win as the “New Sauvignon Blanc?”

Dry Tokaji from the Furmint grape is a delicious white wine from the Tokaj region of Hungary with very crisp acidity. Historically, Furmint and Hárslevelű grapes enjoyed harvest late in the season

Historically, Furmint and Hárslevelű grapes enjoyed harvest late in the season. Click to Tweet

This “noble rot” concentrated the sweetness of the grape, allowing for the production of the delicious sweet botrytized wine, sweet Tokaj.

Dry Tokaji and Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon : Shared Royal History

Like Sauvignon Blanc, Dry Tokaji  from the Furmint grape shares a similar royal history. Both grapes literally transformed into the “wine of kings.”

In the classic Bordeaux region of France, botrytized Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon grapes transform into the classic Sauternes, served at palace banquets.

Thousands of miles away in Tokaj, botrytized Furmint and Hárslevelű grapes were made into the classic sweet Tokaj dessert wine, also served at palace dinners.

Dry Tokaji AKA The New Furmint

In recent years, Furmint has uncoiled itself from its pedigreed history as the basis for the classic, expensive dessert wine Tokaj.

Dry and exuberant, Dry Tokaji (the Furmint grape) is characterized by lemon-lime flavors, spiked with a bit of ginger, green apple, and even mild peppercorn, give the impression of Sauvignon Blanc’s spicier cousin.

Dry Tokaji : A Taste of Terroir

Throughout history, Hungarians earned recognition for the contribution to and appreciation of the arts, music, literature, and science. Click to Tweet Hungarians earned recognition for the contribution to and appreciation of the arts, music, literature, and science. Hungarian personalities, described by historians, are complex.

So is the terroir of Tokaj.

The Tokaj terroir comprises clay / loess soil on volcanic subsoil. Sunny south-facing slopes ripen the grapes. For botrytized sweet styles, the Tisza and Bodrog rivers help the development of Botrytis (Noble Rot).

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Dry Tokaji aka Furmint : Sauvignon Blanc Style Versatility

New Zealand was among the first country outside of France to take the Sauvignon Grape and give it a fresh, exuberant spin.

That said, you will not see New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, resting on ice, at many of Paris’s famed bistros. In Paris, it is traditional for dry white wines with high acid, like Sauvignon Blanc, Muscadet, and a few others, to rest on ice and served by the glass with seafood.

In Paris, it is traditional for dry white wines with high acid, like Sauvignon Blanc, Muscadet, and a few others, to rest on ice and served by the glass with seafood. Click to Tweet

Increasingly, you will see dry Furmint from Hungary at these classic Paris bistros, eagerly consumed by an impressed Parisian crowd.

Why?

Unlike most New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, Furmint is bone dry. It is also exotic, taking on very subtle notes of spice and flowers that contrast to its searing acidity.

Furmint’s Selling Points

• • Dry Furmint offers great value for the price. It is challenging to find a dry wine under $20 displaying the steely character of a fine unoaked white Burgundy grown on limestone soil.
  • Tokaj’s young winemakers are eager to experiment with furmint in exciting, innovative ways. Some of the best expressions of Furmint ferment in stainless steel, yet experimentation is rampant.
  • Furmint pairs with a wide variety of food. It is delicious as an apéritif. It matches very well with entrees like chicken or fish. Even vegetarian fare.
  • Despite its distinctiveness, Furmint’s versatility can satisfy the most particular of palates. Sommeliers often compare Furmint to Chablis because of its mouth-watering acidity and complexity of flavor.
  • Dry Furmint can express a lean or rich mouthfeel depending on many factors that include the time of picking (early or late), length of aging in a vessel, and malolactic fermentation.

Fun Ways to Discover Dry Tokaji (Furmint)

Begin your discovery process by searching for a dry Furmint in your local or online store. You can find one for less than $20.

Search and purchase a Chablis AOC wine (the basic level) and a Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire region.

Alone or In a Group : Try Dry Tokaji & Other Crisp Wine Styles

By yourself, or in a group with one or more people, try each wine. Note how they are different and how they are the same. You might find more intense lemon flavors in a dry Furmint than Chablis, and more subtle spice.

For example, you might find more intense lemon flavors in a dry Furmint than Chablis, and more subtle spice You might find more intense lemon flavors in a dry Furmint than Chablis, and more subtle spice. Click to Tweet

Do you feel that Furmint, over the other wines, would pair better with cuisine? If so, what type of cuisine.

Extra credit question:

Which of the three wines–Furmint, Sauvignon Blanc, or Chablis, would pair best with fresh seafood?

Final Thoughts on Furmint aka Dry Tokaji

Furmint is a crisp, dry, vibrant wine that is becoming more widely available in the US market.

Priced competitively with other wines of its style, it thrives as a refreshing change to our usual “dry white wine with fish/chicken” routine.

With its exotic ancestry, Furmint is a wine that belongs on our table tonight.

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About Author Marisa D’Vari

D’Vari contributes to Forbes.com, Financial Times, World of Fine Wine, Quarterly Review of Wine, Decanter Robb Report, San Francisco Chronicle, South China Morning Post, and more.

She holds the (WSET) diploma, Certified Sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers, a Certified Wine Educator  through the Society of Wine Educators … to see it all, please click on bio