For me the heyday of Villány was around the turn of the millennium. Not because Villány wines were so much better then than now, but because they simply ruled the red wine scene, they were undoubtedly the best red wine producers of the country in the nineties and I was living my red period back then, drinking almost exclusively foreign red wines and the ones of Villány. I lost interest in them. Most red wines in Hungary are still overpriced, even the less known wineries’. You’d think that perhaps it’s just the brand, but it’s never been the case. I still believe that the bigger brands are capable of producing most of the best wines in the region and very few small wineries are able to catch up with them and only occasionally. I had a Gere Cabernet Sauvignon Barrique 2005 (an “idol” in the 90s) the other day and it was still the same as 10 years ago: smoky, charcoal bouquet from a brutally tannic body. I don’t think it’s cool any more (I’d rate it at 4 points), but it’s still better than most Villány wines of tier-2 and tier-3 producers today. But at least it fills me with nostalgy.

I know nothing about Püspüki Pincészet of Pécs and if it depended on me, I’d never have bought this bottle.

This is pale ruby Portugieser with no taste whatsoever, except hints of gasoline and perhaps some plum. Firm and relatively pleasant tannins. That’s all I can tell.

I don’t know who made this wine, I don’t know to whom and I don’t know why. But the guy who gave it to me loved it and he wanted to impress me with it. It’s a strange country, man.

Score: 3 points