The winner of the Wine Producer of the Year award has been announced.Continue reading
The 2022 Sóskút Welschriesling from Figula Winery in Balatonfüred (northern shore of Lake Balaton) won the 2023 Hungarian Wine Grand Prix in the white wine category, while the 2019 Syrah from 2HA Vineyard and Winery in Badacsony (also on the northern shore) won the red wine category. In addition, the winner of the József Kosárka Memorial Award is St. Andrea Vineyard and Winery from Eger (northern Hungary).
In 2023, the Hungarian Wine Writers’ Circle evaluated for the eighth time the dry and semi-dry wines produced by Hungarian winemakers in the last five vintages and created the Super 12 list of the best white and red wines. The list of wines was continuously narrowed down over several rounds, until finally the field of twelve white wines and twelve red wines was formed.
The winners of the Hungarian Wine Grand Prix 2023 were chosen by the members of the circle at a blind tasting in Budapest at the end of December.
For the first time in the history of the award, the Balatonfüred-Csopak wine region was the winner. The Badacsony wine region has already been among the best several times, but this is the first time that it has won the Grand Prix with a red wine instead of a white.
The Balaton wine region. Photo via Facebook/2HA Szőlőbirtok és Pincészet
This time, 13 Hungarian wine regions are represented in the 2023 Super 12 list, with Eger and Szekszárd (southern Hungary) (4-4), Villány (southern Hungary), and Balatonfüred-Csopak (3-3) having the most wines.
In terms of regions, wines from Balaton took seven out of 24 places, and the Pannon wine region (Pécs, Szekszárd, Tolna, and Villány) earned the same number of places.
Interestingly, Welschriesling is becoming increasingly popular among consumers and professionals alike, with five Welschriesling wines among the 12 best white wines this year.
The wine region of Eger. Photo via Facebook/St. Andrea Szőlőbirtok
Last year, the Hungarian Wine Writers’ Circle established a special prize in honor of its late founding president, József Kosárka. Each year, the award is given to the winery with the widest range of wines in the competition.
The 2023 winner of the award, St. Andrea Vineyard and Winery from Eger, has been on the Super 12 list in the last eight years with six white wines and eight red wines, and in the 2023 competition members nominated five different wines.
The Super 12 lists are available here.
Via MTI, Featured image via Facebook/Figula Pincészet