Chapter 47: The King of Wine

Fang Yun followed Joseph and Nikledge to stroll through the Tokoy vineyards, looking at the endless vineyards, Fang Yun was very happy.

"Our vineyards here have a long history, and the Tokoy vineyard represents a unique viticultural tradition that has been passed down from generation to generation for more than 1,000 years, but it has remained unchanged," says NikliΔ‡. ”

Fang Yun was curious, "After so many years, why hasn't there been the slightest change, many wines have to be improved, and the taste of the wine is constantly adjusted according to the taste of consumers." ”

"That's a good question, and it starts with the history of Tokoy wine, where our ancestors have been cultivating grapes since the 12th century and are considered to be the world's oldest vineyards and wine processors, but it wasn't until the Austro-Hungarian Empire that Tokoy really became popular in Europe," Nikeledge said. ”

"Since the advent of Tokaw wine, it has been known all over the world for its unique top quality, becoming the king of wines, the wine of the royal family, it has been a tribute wine to European royal families for hundreds of years, Tokaj is the pride of the Hungarians, the national treasure of Hungary. ”

"You must know that it is not easy to become the king of wine, the wine of the royal family, it is not easy, it has to go through thousands of selections, after fierce competition, to beat other wines with excellent taste and color, in order to become the king of wine, which embodies the hard work of our ancestors, generation after generation of winemakers in pursuit of excellence, spent a lot of time and energy into winemaking, I as a winemaker, I have a lot of experience, I know how difficult it is to make such a good wine. ”

"The winemaker does not dare to offend the nobles of the royal family, if there is a slight deviation, the possibility of life is not guaranteed, so he is also forced by power, he has to keep improving, gradually improve the brewing process, and spend more effort to study how to make the taste better and the quality more mellow. ”

"Tokoy wine has become the national wine of Hungary, and it has become the tribute wine of the European royal family, and its status is different from other wines, and when it becomes the national wine, there will be strict standards, whether it is packaging or bottle caps, it is strictly exquisite, and if you want to change, you must obtain the consent of the state. ”

"There are strict rules and regulations, and in order to preserve the mellow taste of this sake and serve foreign guests as a national liquor, there are strict brewing requirements. ”

"Winemakers also pass on their wine-making experience from their ancestors to future generations, and the experience of winemakers is passed down from generation to generation,"

"You Chinese have an old saying, called 'rely on the mountains to eat the mountains, rely on the water to eat the water', I agree with this sentence, we have very good natural conditions here, there is a suitable climate for grape growth, but also suitable for grape growth, most of the soil is made of clay, most of the land near the south, especially the foothills of Tokoy, there is also loess component. ”

"The combination of clay and loess soils allows for the cultivation of grapes, which makes Tocoy wines with a round body, aromas and low acidity. ”

Fang Yun squatted, grabbed a handful of soil, raised it to his eyes, and looked at it carefully, this kind of soil was indeed like the one introduced by Nikellich, there was clay and loess.

"Mr. Nicklich, what do you do to produce the best wines?"

"We use the noble mold method to produce the best wine, so that it has a special aroma, noble mold is a fungus that grows in flowers and plants, when the grapes are ripe it promotes the enrichment of grape aromas and increases the sugar content to control the acidity, Tokoy wines are sweet and mellow, and the amber wine is crystal clear. ”

"I'll take some treasures from my cellar and ask Miss Fang to taste later, and now the place you're standing in is the vineyard. ”

Fang Yun looked at the vineyards in the distance and sighed very much, only to see a large area of vineyards, full of vitality, and the grapes hung on the shelves, hanging down heavily.

"Yes, it's quite large, and there's a lot of vineyards in sight. ”

Fang Yun asked: "Grapes are extremely perishable, if they are not made into wine within a certain period of time, is it impossible to ask for rotten grapes?"

Nikledge nodded, "Yes, grapes are prone to spoilage, so the wine made from it has full quality, high alcohol and high acidity, and the grapes make the wine smoother and more individual, so that the blend becomes soft, and the combination of grapes and wine can make one of the few noble wines in the world." ”

"Mr. Nicklich, did Tocoy become famous earlier or later than the famous French wines?"

"The wines made in Tocoy, created in 1502 by the famous Gaulauy family, predate the famous French wines of Souterne, two centuries before the famous French wines of Souterne, and if we talk about history, we have Tokoy wines a little earlier than theirs," said Nickledge. ”

"Today, our vineyards are a cultural landscape that many tourists come to visit, I take them with me, and as a Hungarian winemaker, I'm proud that the Tokoy wine region showcases the rich history and culture of wine production in northeastern Hungary. ”

Today, Tokoy has six old stone cellars, some of which still contain wines made 300 years ago. ”

"Everyone knows that the longer the wine is treasured, the better it tastes, the more expensive it is, and these wines become treasures and very few can be taken out. ”

"Which product is top-of-the-line in Tokaj wine?"

"Among the Tokaj wines, the top products are AΓ§u and Shomorodni, which must be aged for at least two years before they can be marketed. ”

"Of the Aso and Shomorodni, Aso is the highest grade, and it is the final product of Tokaj, which must be aged for at least three years. ”

"It's not easy to make a top-notch product, because the vineyard system is so complex, including vineyards, farms, villages, small towns, and a network of underground cellars left over from history, where every winemaking process and quality and production of the famous Tokoy wines are strictly managed and controlled. ”

"During the production process, several baskets are added to a wooden barrel of fine Tokaj dry wine, three baskets are aged for five years, and six baskets are aged for eight years before they can be bottled and marketed, and the year of the wine is on the bottle, of course, the older the vintage, the more expensive it is. ”

"Some of the most valuable wines are harvested from here, cleaned, made, packaged and shipped to be sold all over the world, and are loved by consumers all over the world, and this brand is well-known at home and abroad, which is the pride of Hungary. ”

"We have also put a lot of effort into preserving the historical sites, from the plantations, the farmhouses, the wine cellars to the churches, all of which are preserved to preserve the traditional character and allow visitors to feel the fullness of our wines. ”

"Sometimes tourists come from all over the world, we also stay with us, we will warm them up, not far from the vineyards are farms and villages, there are houses, want to stay for a while, are welcome. ”

"Miss Fang, if you want to go on a field trip, you can stay with us for a few days and experience the life of our Hungarian winemakers. ”

Joseph said: "Miss Fang rarely comes here once, just stay here for a few days, to do a field trip, one or two days is definitely not enough, it is better to stay for a week, leave the room and board to me, it will be satisfactory to Miss Fang." ”

"Then excuse me!"

"We are also very happy that we can let the Chinese audience know more about our Hungarian wine culture!"