Samuel Tinon, Tokaji Aszú, 5 Puttonyos (500ml)
Tokaj, Hungary 2007 (500mL)
Regular price$95.00
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Samuel Tinon, Tokaji Aszú, 5 Puttonyos (500ml)
Once again, thanks to a top specialist importer, we are thrilled to offer another premier example of Hungarian Tokaji. Samuel Tinon’s Tokaji Aszú competes with sweet wines of all types, at any price range, and this “5 Puttonyos” bottling is one of the most concentrated botrytis-affected wines the world has to offer. The integration of sugar, extract, and acidity in this bottle exudes luxury and will age effortlessly for 25, 50, even 100 years.
Tokaj is still largely undiscovered in the US market, but this historic wine region has been in the midst of an exciting renaissance over the last quarter century: Following Communism’s dissolution and the first wave of privatization, Tokaj repositioned itself as a world-class appellation. Deservedly so, too—they are the oldest region for botrytized wine production and responsible for the first-ever vineyard classification system. Now, the wines coming out of the region are nothing short of sensational; they are powered by quality, terroir, and individualism; a perfect description of grower-producer Samuel Tinon. I urge you to explore this emerging (yet richly historical) region and in doing so, you’ll not only be tasting a piece of Hungarian culture, but one of the finest sweet wines in existence. Pair it with a main course, dessert, or on its own. Drink it now, in 25 years, or hold it for future generations. We scraped together what little remains—enough for three per person. Enjoy this fantastic treat.
Tokaj is still largely undiscovered in the US market, but this historic wine region has been in the midst of an exciting renaissance over the last quarter century: Following Communism’s dissolution and the first wave of privatization, Tokaj repositioned itself as a world-class appellation. Deservedly so, too—they are the oldest region for botrytized wine production and responsible for the first-ever vineyard classification system. Now, the wines coming out of the region are nothing short of sensational; they are powered by quality, terroir, and individualism; a perfect description of grower-producer Samuel Tinon. I urge you to explore this emerging (yet richly historical) region and in doing so, you’ll not only be tasting a piece of Hungarian culture, but one of the finest sweet wines in existence. Pair it with a main course, dessert, or on its own. Drink it now, in 25 years, or hold it for future generations. We scraped together what little remains—enough for three per person. Enjoy this fantastic treat.
First, a brief rundown of Tokaji wine and its historical importance. As medieval Europe transitioned into the Renaissance and the early modern era, sugar remained a rare commodity, alchemy was wildly popular, and people were anxious for alcohol. Imagine being able to drink sweet golden wine at a time like this—Tokaji wines were considered legendary elixirs! It was medicine (available by prescription until the early 1900s) for popes, the choice drink for tsars, and a well-documented muse for Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Franz Liszt, Bram Stoker, Leo Tolstoy, and Voltaire—“This wine invigorates every fibre of my brain and, deep in my soul, produces a charming glint of intelligence and good humour.” Swiss-born alchemist Paracelsus spent years trying to extract actual gold from it. Thomas Jefferson imported it for presidential banquets. Essentially, the allure and mystique of Tokaji wines reached far and wide.
So what is Aszú? The word itself means “dried,” but in wine it refers to grapes that have been affected by botrytis cinerea (known as ‘noble rot’). These grapes are laboriously hand-picked berry by berry. Originally, they were put into a puttony, a small wooden basket that could carry about 55 pounds—it could take a skilled worker two full days to fill a basket. Once the puttony is full, berries are mashed into a chutney-like consistency and macerated with either a fermenting must or an already fermented base wine. Then, they are pressed into gönci, special 136-liter barrels of Hungarian oak sourced from the forests bordering the appellation. Aszú is essentially a skin-contact sweet wine. The number of puttony added to a single gönci barrel originally defined the puttonyos scale, but nowadays, Aszú is measured by residual sugar (grams/liter). As of 2014, Tokaji Aszú wines must at least be a grade of 5 puttonyos—a minimum of 120 grams per liter.
Now, on to today’s wine: Samuel Tinon was born in Bordeaux in 1969 and moved to Hungary immediately after the Revolutions in 1989—one of the first Frenchmen to do so. After meeting a journalist writing about wines from Tokaj, they acquired a cellar and married in 1999. His first vintage of Tokaji Aszú came the following year. Today, Samuel farms 12 acres of incredibly old vines—some that are pushing 90 years old. The soils here are largely volcanic and calcareous clay, dating back 15 million years. In the vineyard, Samuel eschews herbicides, pesticides, and machines; only hands are used here. After a lengthy harvest, the berries were mashed into a paste and macerated in a finished dry wine for one month. It was then transferred into barrel for two years of aging. Unlike modern producers, Samuel never adds sulfur and refuses to top the barrels off—he operates traditionally and oxygen exposure is key. The final blend in 2007 was 90% Furmint and 10% Hárslevelu and though listed at 5 puttonyos, its sugar level qualifies for 6 puttonyos.
In the glass, the wine shows a brilliant deep orange infused with dark gold hues. There is tremendous concentration and viscosity here. An initial wave of raw honey and tangerine blossoms rush forward before dipping your nose into the glass. When you do, you’ll pick up additional notes of dried quince, apricot jam, peach preserves, caramelized pineapple, citrus blossoms, toasted hazelnut, white cherry, dried wildflowers, and soft accents of exotic spice. The rich palate is impressively balanced by an energizing lift of acidity and crushed-rock minerality which moderates the sweetness. You’ll be amazed at just how integrated the sugars are at 11 years of age and, somehow, they’ll only improve as years pass by. This is opulence at its finest boosted by tantalizing levels of acidity. If you allow yourself three bottles, try one every decade (or two if you’re a spring chicken) and you’ll be amazed to the point of speechlessness with each pull of the cork. When consuming, allow this to open up around cellar temperature in a dessert wine glass or standard snifter because its aromatics are endlessly intoxicating. You can drink this after dinner, next to the attached foie gras recipe or, according to Samuel Tinon, “with pancakes by the fireside, after a long walk.” Either way, enjoy this remarkable treat!
