July 20, 2016

The Story of Tokaji Wine

 The wines of the Hungarian region of Tokaj, or as they say it “toe-kay,” are a window into the past. For one, the word for wine in Hungarian, Bor, isn’t derived from the latin word for wine (vinum). This suggests that the area has a winemaking history that grew independently of, –and perhaps before– Roman expansion. There have also been discoveries unearthed of prehistoric forests in northeastern Hungary (close to Tokaj) that reveal Devonian era vines, the precursors to the modern grape vine. Regardless of these two intriguing finds, it’s the sweet wines of Tokaj that provide the most compelling story of Hungary’s role in the modern history of wine.