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On Tuesday, the winners of the National Assembly Wine Competition were announced, with 89 wineries competing from 18 wine regions in Hungary and two from beyond the border, with 185 wines. At the awards ceremony in the Parliament, Speaker of the National Assembly László Kövér presented the awards in nine categories.
“For centuries, grapes and wine have been part of Hungarian cultural heritage, one of the defining elements of our national consciousness, folklore, and literary values,” said László Kövér, Speaker of the Parliament, at the Wine Awards Ceremony in the Parliament House. He recalled that the event was launched eight years ago with the hope of creating a tradition that would resonate with Hungarian winemakers in the Carpathian Basin.
He added that the fair’s legitimacy is proven by the 1,500 wines and 300 winemakers who have so far participated, and by the positive national and international feedback.
The National Assembly Speaker said that this year, sparkling wine was also in the judges’ glasses. He noted it was reassuring that the new category, introduced to honor the bicentenary of Hungarian sparkling wine production, had been entered with top quality drinks.
Kövér stressed that the production of sparkling wine, that was doomed to a four-decade fate in Hungary in the 20th century, is booming, with the country producing around 200,000 hectoliters of sparkling wine a year, making it the 10th-11th largest producer in the world. He emphasized that
our goal should be nothing less than to win back old markets, win new ones, and catch up with the world’s major sparkling wine producing powers, Italy, France, Germany, and Spain.”
Group photo of the award winners. In the front row László Kövér, Speaker of the Nationa Alssambly (R) and Ottó Légli, chairman of the jury of the wine competition (L). Photo: MTI/Kovács Attila
At the award ceremony, Ottó Légli, chairman of the jury, assessing this year’s grape harvest, said that winemakers will not celebrate this year’s vintage, but they have already learned from their ancestors that winemakers are a source of serenity and wisdom.
The 2024 competition was made up of 89 wineries from 18 wine-growing regions in Hungary and two from beyond the border, with 185 wines.
Via MTI, Featured image: Pixabay