What makes Hungarian wines excellent?

The main task of Hungary’s National Wine Excellence Programme (NBP) is to find excellent Hungarian wines and to make sure that they find their market, for the benefit of winemakers and the country’s image. In the spirit of this the National Wine Experts Committee (OBB) organised the Nationwide Tasting programme series. OBB president András Horkay told our magazine that the success of the Book of Excellent Wines series in 2013 showed that the products contained in these books represent the highest quality and they can be used as a wine guide by Hungarian consumers. Winemakers have realised the significance of the National Wine Excellence Programme, for instance in 2014 almost 600 white wines were sent for tasting. Altogether 272 white wines qualified (from 558 entries) to the group of Excellent Wines from wine regions in Hungary and in neighbouring countries: 223 got 3 stars, 43 earned 4 starts and 3 white wines were rewarded with 5 stars. The selection process wasn’t complicated but all wines had to be available in stores and they had to have the National Food Chain Safety Authority’s (NÉBIH) authorisation to be put into circulation. Minimum 500 bottles had to be made from these wines and their gross price couldn’t be lower than HUF 750. OBB members selected the Excellent White Wines of 2014 with a several-round evaluation process. Besides the white wine book, another publication will come out in 2014, due to the superb results of the National Wine Excellence Programme: the Christmas of 2014 will bring the debut of the Book of Excellent Sparkling Wines and Aszús.

Horkay András
elnök
Országos Borszakértő Bizottság