This is Konyári’s classic Bordeaux cuvée of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot from Southern-Balaton.

Purplish ruby with a dark core. On the nose quite restrained, displaying spices mingled with chocolate and a ripe mulberry undertone.  On the palate it’s medium-bodied, tight and gentle with a slightly tart soft tannic backbone supported by very subtle acidity of just the right quantity. No fruits here except the dark cherry flavoured finish. Well-structured, straightforward, well-made wine of low complexity but nothing to be too excited about as of now. So it’s a bit disappointing for HUF 4 000. Good aging potential though.

Note: it’ll respond well to decanting.

As I’m always happy to meet a new winery I can’t be too negative this time, could I? Plus, Merfelsz seem to be lovable folk: small estate (12ha), charmingly useless website, family tradition, Szekszárd roots, what’s not to liket? Nectar Sexardique is the flagship cuvée of the winery I suppose (for there is a whole empty page dedicated to it in the main menu of the winery’s website) and if you couldn’t make a decent wine in 2008 in Szekszárd then perhaps you’re in the wrong industry. Let’s see if they are.

Merfelsz – Doppio, Nectar Sexardique, 2008

According to the label on the bottle (there’s more useful information on it than anywhere else on the web combined about the wine) this is a kind of late harvest wine, which explains the alcohol (14.5%, might be too much for you, but not for me). This wine has seen 14 months in oak, unfiltered. So far it sounds like this wine mas made for me.

The nose is fresh and fruity with wild berries. Similar palate with mulberry and black-currant and tasty sour cherry bitterness. There’s no finesse here or elegance especially as long as the tannin’s concerned, at least partly due to some harsh acidity at the finish. After decanting and leaving it for a while it’ll be more evolved structurally as well as taste-wise, developing fine dark chocolate aromas.

Still much to learn, Merfelsz, and perhaps it would be wise to reconsider the pricing as well.

Lemon yellow with greenish reflections. Nettle on the nose. On the palate notes of celery and lovage mingled with light chalky minerality. Very short length. The acidity tastes flat and dull.

I’m a bit disappointed.

Hangács Bikavér 2008 is almost identical to Áldás 2008 (aka El fin de la inocencia) except that it’s not. And not just that Syrah didn’t make it to the blend at Hangács (and it’s not the less oak either). It looks like only Pinot Noir did. Hangács Pinot Noir 2006 wasn’t a huge wine itself but I wonder if Hangács Pinot Noir 2008 is any different from the Bikavér Blend made in 2008.

St. Andrea – Hangács Bikavér, 2008

Medium ruby, clear and lively. Spicy bouquet with hints of anise, clove and Açaí berry, very Pinot Noir-esque. Fresh but warm style on the palate with very smooth tannins and a sour cherry core bitterness. Loose in terms of structure, thinner than Áldás first, as far as I can judge, but feels bit more weighty after some exposure to air. The acidity remains a bit scratchy on the midpalate for hours but the palate will be packed full of fine dark chocolate.

Should be decanted long before drinking. Not so expressive at present, this Bikavér may still age better than Áldás 2008.

One more remark: this wine shouldn’t have passed the Bikavér examination. Because it’s not one.

Price: HUF 3 750

This is the flagship wine of Pannonhalmi Apátsági Pincészet and although I wasn’t very impressed with the 2007, I’ve been having good experiences with their wines from 2008 lately so selling me this wine was very easy.

Pinot Noir is on that extreme of the wine spectrum I learned to like over many years. I finally got there with Gál Tibor’s Pinot Noir 2002 and if that’s the benchmark the wine who’d take the Hungarian Pinot Noir to the next level is still to come my way.

Pannonhalmi Apátsági Pincészet – Pinot Noir, 2008

Clean, brigh pale cherry hue. Very restrained and light but fairly complex nose with a mix of spices, a drop of creamy fruit and a floral accent.

Fresh and ultra-light style on the palate too but without the acidity of all other Pannonhalmi wines I’ve tasted from this vintage. Very thin layer of spicy fruit over the underlying thin layer of bitter tannins flowing into a decent clove-flavoured finish.13.5% alcohol feels too much here.

Good wine but I’d like more definition to it and I really think they should rethink the pricing and the use of new oak barrels.