Royal Tokaji, Blue Label Aszú, Tokaji, 5 Puttonyos, 2016

Royal Tokaji has been making the 5 puttonyos style since 1990. The Blue Label is made with at least 90% Furmint and a touch of Hárslevelű, with berries mainly sourced from the producer’s long-term contract growers. Golden in colour, the 2016 vintage bursts with dried apricot, peach, fig honey and Osmanthus, tinted with beeswax and pepper. After aging in second or third-use Hungarian oak casks for two years, the palate displays spiced apricot and honeyed fig flavours, with Furmint’s tell-tale acidity spine (9.9g/l), followed by a lip-smacking spicy finish. Sugar level sits at 158 g/l, much higher than the 120 g/l hallmark for 5 puttonyos.