Sweet Surrender
This time of year, is there anything more enjoyable than indulging in a vintage port, a 10-year-old (or older) tawny port, a madeira or an oloroso sherry? Partaking in any of the above can be like wrapping yourself in a warm comforter on a cold night, or sitting down with friends for a meal of comfort food. These winter-friendly fortified wines not only delight the palate, they warm the soul. Of course, they're good any time of year, but their charm is never greater than it is right now.
I usually put away the lighter dessert wines until spring, but there's one I think deserves continuing attention whether it's winter or spring. I'm talking about tokay from Hungary, an often overlooked dessert wine classic. With its rich flavors of honey, apricots and macaroons, it's an absolute charmer but interesting as well. Unlike the other wines I've mentioned, it's not fortified. It's a botrytised wine, but its deep amber color and rich flavors give it snowshoes -- it'll help get you through the storm.
Consequently, I was intrigued and excited when a trip to one of my favorite local wine stores this week steered me to a tokay from an Australian winemaker, R.L. Buller & Son, for under $14. Nate at the store joked that Parker gave it a score of 110, but that's not too far off. This sticky apparently did get a 95 from WA and 91 from WS. It practically jumped into my hand.
When I finally got it home and into a glass, I was delighted at its rich butterscotch, burned sugar and caramel flavors. But, alas, it's not tokay. In fact, not much like the nuanced flavors of the real deal. But, I was not hanging my head because it did a fine imitation of a very nice tawny port. So, if you like rich, eclectic wines, it might not be the bottle for you. But it's a pretty terrific, inexpensive wood-aged, port-style wine that will help you pass the night cozily.
I usually put away the lighter dessert wines until spring, but there's one I think deserves continuing attention whether it's winter or spring. I'm talking about tokay from Hungary, an often overlooked dessert wine classic. With its rich flavors of honey, apricots and macaroons, it's an absolute charmer but interesting as well. Unlike the other wines I've mentioned, it's not fortified. It's a botrytised wine, but its deep amber color and rich flavors give it snowshoes -- it'll help get you through the storm.
Consequently, I was intrigued and excited when a trip to one of my favorite local wine stores this week steered me to a tokay from an Australian winemaker, R.L. Buller & Son, for under $14. Nate at the store joked that Parker gave it a score of 110, but that's not too far off. This sticky apparently did get a 95 from WA and 91 from WS. It practically jumped into my hand.
When I finally got it home and into a glass, I was delighted at its rich butterscotch, burned sugar and caramel flavors. But, alas, it's not tokay. In fact, not much like the nuanced flavors of the real deal. But, I was not hanging my head because it did a fine imitation of a very nice tawny port. So, if you like rich, eclectic wines, it might not be the bottle for you. But it's a pretty terrific, inexpensive wood-aged, port-style wine that will help you pass the night cozily.
posted by JD at 9:27 AM
2 Comments:
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Nice post, thank you for sharing. You have really imparted useful knowledge. A very useful post I must say. Awesome content, I bookmarked it for future reference.
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