1976 Hungarovin Tokaji Aszu Essencia

BY IAN D’AGATA | DECEMBER 12, 2016 

Hungarian Aszu Essencia has long been one of my favorite wines of all, given that to consume the similarly named but much more expensive Essencia regularly, would require a bankroll comparable to the GNP of a small country. Both wines are typical of the prosciutto-shaped Tokaji region of north-east Hungary, and are made mainly from the Furmint grape variety (Hungarians take this wine and its region seriously, to the point that the country’s national anthem thanks God that Tokaj szőlővesszein nektárt csepegtettél ("into the vineyards of Tokaj you dripped sweet nectar").

Aszu wines are made by adding 25Kg. (55 pounds) hods (puttonyos, in Hungarian) filled with air-dried (or aszu, in Hungarian) grapes to a dry base wine made mostly with Furmint. The number of puttonyos added greatly increases the texture and sweetness of the final wine. A six puttonyos wine has roughly 150 g/L residual sugar; Aszu Essencia wines clock in at least at 180 g/L residual sugar but were usually much more sweet than that. The term “Aszu Essencia” was introduced as an official quality level by the Communist regime in the 1960s, but had been used on labels already centuries earlier (such as in the case of the “comet vintage” of 1811). Nevertheless, as consumers always confused Aszu Essencia with the even more expensive Essencia, legislators have decided to move away from the Aszu Essencia category (2009 vintage was the last in which it appears on labels).