This year's Decanter World Wine Awards Regional Trophy for Hungarian Red over £15 went to Takler, Minden 50 Évben 2007 (16%)
Tasted against:
- Bock, Cuvée, Villány, Dél-Pannónia 2009
- Bock, Kékfrankos Selection 2012
- Sauska, Merlot, Villány, Dél-Pannónia 2011
Profile:
‘My family has been growing vines and making wine in the terra rossa-rich region of Szekszard since the 1700s,’ says András Takler. The winery in its present form began life in 1987 and is run by Takler along with his father and brother.
‘As the name of the wine suggests,’ he explains, ‘Minden 50 Evben (meaning Every 50 Years) is a very special wine, which can only be produced once in a winemaker’s lifetime. It was harvested from an easterly vineyard plot called Felsö-Cinka, which sits at 200m altitude.
‘We chose to wait when it came to harvesting, and eventually picked the grapes on 27 October. Most of the berries were shrivelled so the sugar content was high. Fermenting these grapes proved rather difficult, but we managed it. After 24 months ageing in 500-litre Hungarian oak barrels we bottled the wine at the end of July 2012.’
This Trophy wine is made from Kékfrankos (or Blaufränkish) – a grape at the very heart of the winery: ‘We believe unequivocally in the Kékfrankos grape,’ affirms Takler. ‘Its reliability in producing wines of character and distinction is our main motivation.’
This is the first vintage ever made of Minden 50 Evben and, staying true to its name, Takler insists that it will also be the last he will have a hand in. Just 1,700 bottles were produced.
Written by Decanter
