The Tokaji Aszú is a special wine produced in the Tokaj wine region; it is the nectar of individually hand-picked “aszú” berries botrytised on the vinestock.

It is made by bathing the dough in high quality must or wine of the same year from the Tokaj wine region. Following fermentation, it is maturing and refining in oak casks placed in a constant-temperature cellar.

What are Aszú grapes?

Grapes are not a simple variety, but are a transformation of Furmint grapes due to a special fungal infection. Botrytis cinerea is a fungus that can infect grapes. The process involves a gradual loss of moisture and an increase in sugar content, with the grapes drying out and becoming smaller and smaller, just like raisins. The word “aszú” means dried out.

The Furmint grape ripens late in October, when it rains a lot but it is still hot during the day in the Tokaj wine region. The combination of the rainy weather and the hot days results in the Botrytis-infected grapes not rotting but instead drying out. Not only Furmint can produce aszú grapes but Hárslevelű, Muscat Blanc can too.

How to make aszú wine?

The harvest usually takes place between October and December, when the aszú grapes are sorted from the furmint grapes by hand. After the aszú grapes have been crushed, they are left to soak in Furmint wine for 24-48 hours. The grapes are then pressed and the juice is finally fermented into aszú wine. Before sale, aszú must be matured by the producers for at least 2 years, one year in oak barrels and one year in bottles.

Meaning of “puttony” number

There are several different degrees of sweetness in aszú wine, which are often labeled with a number, e.g. 5-puttony. Puttony is a traditional harvest pot that had to be carried on the back during the harvest.

It shows how many “puttony” (approx. 25 kg) aszú grapes must be added to a standard barrel (they are called barrels from Gönc which are 136 l) of wine.

The “5-puttonyos-aszú” should contain 120 grams of sugar per liter, and the “6-puttonyos” should contain 150 grams per litres.

Tokaji aszú wine is still very popular in the world. The wine has a good balance between acidity and sweetness. A very sweet taste from the start is followed by an exciting acid body together with citrus, pear and apricot flavors. Due to the wine’s high sugar content, it can also be offered alone as a dessert, but is best known as a dessert wine, often enjoyed with cakes.