Old Vines in Hungary by Lilla O’Connor
Old Vines in Hungary
Hungary is a country of culture and tradition. Hand made food (cheese, honey, homemade jam or pasta and pretty much any delicacy one can think of) and wine, of course, has always been a big part of the culture and business as usual.
About Hungary
Hungary has one of the oldest viticulture traditions in Europe. Although it is widely considered that most grape vines were introduced into the fertile lands that lay along both sides of the Danube by Roman conquerors, the Hungarian language testifies to an even more ancient tradition. The Hungarian word for wine is the only one in Europe that does not derive from the Latin ‘vino’, proving that ‘bor’ (the Hungarian word for wine) was made by this nation the region, predating Roman influence.
As a volcanic-terroir hotspot, Hungary’s continental climate is ideal for wine production. Two-thirds of the country lies on volcanic soil as demonstrated by Hungary’s many natural spa-springs. The country is located between the 46th and 49th parallel which is actually the same latitude range as many of France’s top wine regions from Northern Rhône to Champagne.
This small landlocked country embraces 6 wine regions with 22 wine districts, each with a different microclimate working with different varieties and styles. Over a hundred years ago, Hungary was one of the most important wine producers in Europe. Royal courts in Europe clinked glasses filled with precious gold Tokaji wine, while other lush Hungarian whites and reds were lauded and enjoyed throughout Europe.
The dark days
Grape farming using machinery pre communism was unheard of. After much of the wines in Hungary had to be replanted because of the devastating effects of phylloxera, values of heritage were heavily hindered during the 40 years of the communist era that came to an end in the 1990s. During those dark years, Hungary was given the role of ‘the country of steel’ by the Russians in their very unpopular five-year plans, which meant, that industrialisation suppressed the country’s agricultural heritage and this wasn’t beneficial to grape growing or winemaking either. Like everything else, farming was high scale, and winemaking too, focused on high yields and easy access to machinery. Old vines were torn up, and coal mines were dug into some of the most precious parts of Tokaj’s hillsides. Thousands of years of grape growing traditions ruined in the short blink of forty years. Well, almost.
The come back
In the nineties, Hungary could breathe again, and so could our vines. Back to the roots (literally), Hungarian winemakers upped their game and started buying back (sometimes their own) previously confiscated lands, nurtured them, and laid (and re-formed) the legal and the agricultural foundations. So it didn’t take long for old vines to be re-found, or for the growers whose wine somehow survived communism to carry on caring.
Old vines today
Today, Hungarian winemakers, a new generation – most of them grew up on the vineyard learning from their fathers, and their fathers from their fathers, winemaker knowledge passed on from generation to generation. They are passionate, committed and consider the health and happiness of their vines of paramount importance. Vines are part of the family. For these wine wizards, high yields are unimportant, and what matters is the skill of winemaking with key emphasis being paid to quality. Hence the question of old vines is a topic that has always entertained the minds of those lucky growers, who were able to keep and cherish the old trunks, as they call them ‘wise vines’. Hungary is only at the beginning of the journey of finding out more about its old vine heritage.
There is no map as such or estimates as to how many hectares are under old vines today. According to estimates 60-70% of premium wine producers will, to some extent have old vines. But is it because it's quickly becoming a great marketing tool for differentiation or is it because they are vines, they love working with? More awareness will certainly help recognition of their value at both the producer and customer level.
From the growers
Kadarka for example is one of Hungary’s oldest grown red varieties. It had set foot in the country from around 1400 when the Serbians were fleeing the Ottomans and bought the variety with them into the country. I was talking to Peter Vida, owner and winemaker of Vida Winery in Szekszard, about their story. They are real advocates of Old Vines in Hungary, amongst the very first ones, calling and labeling their wines as ‘Old Vine’.
Vida’s old vines were planted in 1920. Today, they are fascinating. As Peter was explaining these plants know what they are doing, they control themselves, with no need for yield control. They grow around 3-4 bunches per vine (about 1 kg), with optimal balance between acidity, residual sugar and aroma compounds, depth and layers of flavour and an exciting, special taste profile. Where younger vines of Kadarka bring tasters purity of fruit, these old vines result in mature, tingling vitality and elegant complexity. Their old vines bush vines’ roots reaching much further down than others, often 20 meters deep. The biggest room for error with these vines - according to Peter - is to successfully identify that ideal three to four-day window for picking that gives the perfect wine. Pick earlier and ripeness could be an issue, pick any later and a little moisture or rain could ruin the vintage. Although the Kadarka grape variety is fairly fussy anyway in terms of getting the date of harvest right and very susceptible of noble rot.
Vida are in a fortunate position in Hungary as they have a fairly accurate picture of clones. The Research Institute of Pécs (who are highly specialised in vine research in Hungary) selected their plantation as a gene bank and launched a clonal selection. 17 clones were identified that they monitored continuously for 10 years. They recorded five-six parameters including the size of the berry, the thickness of grape skin and cluster density. This research concluded that out of these clones, seven was unique, with the grape skins including more colour compounds, thicker therefore more resistant to botrytis and have a looser cluster density structure. Vida then selected three clones out of these seven that were replanted in two different sites for further monitoring.
Their old vine is called Bonsai on the label, not only because the vines look like one, but bonsai trees are believed to bring good luck and harmony and every type of bonsai tree has its own deeper meanings – and so do the vines! Vida makes about 4000 bottles per year.
According to Vivien Ujvári, old vines are more persistent and resilient to environmental changes.
Vivien, winemaker in chief of Barta winery in Tokaj and also at Ujvári Winery in Badacsony has gained her winemaking knowledge internationally in Napa Valley, New Zealand and Australia. In Tokaj, Barta winery had revived the terroir after those painful 40 years of neglect during the regime. However in Badacsony, the Ujvari Winery was founded in 1820 and today cultivate about 0.65 hectares of old vines, Olaszrizling and Szurkebarat (Pinot Gris) varieties. Viven enjoys working with old vines not only from a viticultural but also from a heritage point of view, for her, these treasured plants have historical and sentimental value. ‘They are like people, develop a personality’ she says. For this reason, each vine requires a slightly different pruning technique, individual to the vine and highly skilled hand labour. In terms of winemaking, they are much easier to work with during fermentation as their sugar-acidity balance is always great. They produce a nice, reliable fermentation curve in each vintage. Yields have never been an issue for them. Of course, old vines can die and the canopy becomes patchier, but they still able to pick about 1 kg per vine. Year on year the vines bring the same quality regardless of what the vintage brings. Drought is not a problem for them as the roots are already deep enough to absorb water from deeper soil layers even during drought). Her experience is that the vines are less prone to disease too. They produce around 3000 bottles per year.
Much more research and teamwork is needed to further investigate the knowledge we already have (and research what we don’t) with regards to our old vines of Hungary, but with good foundations and committed winemakers, it’s a noble task that we can all be passionate about.
