Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/780573
96 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } FEBRUARY/MARCH 2017 PHOTOS: MICHAEL MORSE PHOTO: CAL BINGHAM Hungary Region: Tokaj Wine: MÁD 2015 Furmint Wine: Szent Tamás 2012 Furmint István Szepsy Jr. is the 18th-gener- ation winemaker for Szent Tamás Winery in Tokaj, Hungary. Hungary's most northeastern region is celebrated Tokaj, home to sweet Tokaji wines that date at least back to their first mention in 1067. Six hundred years later, Louis XIV would proclaim it "Wine of Kings and the King of Wines." But István Szepsy Jr. and his renowned winemaker father, István Szepsy Sr., have been the innovators of a new movement of dry Furmint. Thanks to them, the indigenous grape that is the foundation for Tokaj's historic wines is meeting a modern palate. While the first dry Furmint wines emerged in 2000, it was in 2011 that Szepsy Jr. created the first vineyard-selected dry Furmint for Szent Tamás Winery and then introduced MÁD, the first village-level dry Furmint of the region (named after the village in Tokaj). The Tokaj region was once home to over 400 active volcanoes. Over millennia, volcanic eruptions and hydrothermal activity created cycles of heating and cooling that are partly responsible for exposed layers of permeable, rocky, low-pH soils in which roots burrow down as far as 65 feet below the surface. The vines possess such incredible suction power at these great depths that water sources are easily found, eliminating the need for irrigation. MÁD Furmint 2015 exhibits a fragrant, tropical nose with roundness of guava, kiwi and an edgier lime zest. White floral tones, apples and granitic, saline stripes on the mid-palate make for good company across the palate. Szent Tamás Furmint 2012 is complex due to being fermented and aged in 200- liter Hungarian oak barrels for 12 months; local bentonite is used for fining. On the nose, notes reminiscent of an Alsatian Riesling come to the fore: apricot, nectarine and jasmine. But on the palate, bracing acidity leans in to sear the pineapple, peach and woodsy tones; the finish is rich and generously broad. At SommCon 2016 (from left to right): Attila Balla, President and CEO of Vinum Tokaj International LLC; Eniko˝ Magyar, Project Director, Wines of Excellence; Meridith May, Publisher/Editorial Director, The Somm Journal; and István Szepsy Jr. winemaker for Szent Tamás and Mad Wine Winery. { sommcon recap }