I’ve recently testified a revolt by a regular drinker (and apparently self-appointed free-lance vine adviser) for Bukolyi never accepting anyone’s opinion on how to make even better wines and what a rubbish method was to classify his wines according to the heights where the vines are located. Indeed, this approach might sound weird to many (the higher the vines come from, the better the quality is supposed to be, or at least this is what price tags suggest) and I cannot judge the character of Bukolyi myself. The simple fact is that his wines never disappointed me and for a rare fortunate coincidence I never had to care about the price tag so far. I hope this wouldn’t incline my judgment today. Anyway, I put this Syrah beside a cuvée from Szekszárd which I sampled later the same day.
The reviews
Gróf Buttler - Egri Syrah, 2005, Nagy-Eged, 400-500
Beautiful, lively, dark cherry color with purplish reflections. Absolutely stunning and with a beautiful, elegant fresh move.
The nose is spicy, dominantly pepper with a woody underpinning. Lot of pepper and minerality.
On the palate at start a velvety, almost oily texture is supporting the blackberry fruit aromas - I must emphasize the fact that no jam, no overly ripe fruit, but perfectly ripe, fresh blackberry fruit we have here. Later cherry, a bit of chocolate and a phosphorus undertone. The tannins are there in a powder-like , velvety form. With time and for a period, an unlit candle-like element takes over the palate. These strange, but pleasant elements are supported by nice, round acidity. Good structure. The mineral character is there from the nose to the long finish on the palate, along with a cherry seed bitterness.
Score: 6-7 points (I gave it a 6 then, now I’m inclining towards a 7-)
Takler - Cuvée Maffiózó, 2000
The color is dark, brownish ruby as far as I can tell (yeah, the local conditions weren’t perfect for that). Very intense berry fruit aromas mingled with Asian spices.
On the palate this intensity couldn’t be sustained. Even worse than that, there’s no acidity to support the big, although flat body. This is a very dry wine. Only the palate dried tobacco and a bitter finish.
Score: 5+, 6- (I might be a little bit austere here though)