Budapest Wine Bars & Hungarian Wines

When we planned our 3-day trip to Budapest for the Sziget Music Festival, while thinking about what to do at the festival in the evenings, there was one topic we really wanted to integrate into our daytime city tours: Hungarian Wines! Although we had mostly heard Hungary's name in the wine world through Hungarian oak barrels used as alternatives to American and French barrels, we had never had the chance to do an in-depth research. This was a perfect opportunity for discovery.

Since we planned our trip to be limited to the festival only, we wouldn't have the chance to visit any wine regions. Therefore, we opted for wine bars to taste wines of different grape varieties and production methods in a short time. After a quick search on Google Maps, we couldn't believe our eyes. In terms of wine bar abundance, Budapest was almost on par with Paris.

As a result of our research, we selected 5 wine bars that best fit our route (Click to add to Google Maps) and had the chance to try them:

Huncutka Bite and Wine

A bar with a menu predominantly featuring natural wines. Since we didn't have this information beforehand, we approached the wines with hesitation when we arrived, and as we tried them, we realized they didn't really appeal to us. Unless you have a special interest in natural wines, we don't particularly recommend stopping by here. Two out of the 3 wines we tried were excessively vinegary and oxidative. As a couple who doesn't prefer this style of wines, this place didn't appeal to us. There's no tasting set on the menu; you can order wines you choose by the glass. The cost of 10cl glasses is around 4-5 euros on average.

Tasting Table Budapest Shop

If you want a guided tasting experience, this place offers English wine tastings by reservation until 6 PM. Since we didn't call ahead and couldn't find detailed information on their website, we missed the opportunity for such a tasting. But if you go without a reservation or after 6 PM, don't worry, you can purchase wine flights by the glass from open bottles. The wine tasting cost varies depending on the number of wines you choose. The person in charge also provides detailed information about the wines you're tasting. We had the chance to taste 5 wines here and we can say we liked all of them. This was our 2nd favorite wine tasting spot in Budapest. Although we didn't note the price and can't remember exactly, what we recall is that it was an affordable amount 🙂

Drop Shop Wine Bar

This establishment only operates as a bar after 5 PM; before 5, they only do retail sales. Since we didn't have this information, we couldn't get a chance to taste.

Tokaj Wine Bar

A place where you can mainly taste Grand Tokaj brand wines by the glass. The biggest difference from other bars is its much more traditional design. Descending via stairs, with stone walls and traditional decoration, it felt like we were taken on a journey through time. The staff is an elderly couple and they are very sweet. Although their English isn't great, they still manage to communicate somehow 🙂 There's no tasting menu, but since the number of wines served by the glass is quite high, you can create your own tasting. Although glasses are listed as 10cl on the menu, if you ask, they can serve 5cl at half the price (provided you can communicate :)). The barrel wines are quite affordable. We chose our wines from bottles. 10cl white wines ranged between 1-2 euros, and 5 Puttonyos Tokaji Aszu was around 6 euros. The wines we tasted were generally good wines. Even if you don't like sweet wines, you should definitely not skip the Tokaji Aszu, which is Hungary's unique style.

Champion Wine Vinarium&Gastro Boutique

This was by far the best wine tasting place we visited. Since we went just 1-2 hours after opening time, they didn't have many open wines, and the owner told us we could choose whichever wines we wanted from the bottles on the shelves. We were actually quite surprised by this; it was the first time we'd seen such a practice. Thanks to them, we had the opportunity to try 3 red wines from between 2011 and 2018. Finally, the owner brought us a 6 Puttonyos Tokaji Aszu, 2002 vintage, from his own uncle. We can say it was the best thing we drank during our entire Budapest trip. They have tasting menus in different formats. We went with 5 regular + 1 Tokaji Aszu, and the total cost was 20 euros.

General Comments and Notes

Our general observations and different insights about Hungarian wines:

• The most commonly used foreign grape variety as a single varietal is definitely Cabernet Franc. We had never seen any place that makes so much single-varietal Cabernet Franc before. While there are many local white grape varieties, there aren't as many in reds. Whenever we asked any place for a full-bodied red wine, they directly recommended Cabernet Franc.
• Among the white grapes, our favorite was Irsai Oliver. It's very similar to Muscat, one of our favorites; we could classify it as a slightly more mineral version.
• Furmint is one of the most common white grapes in the country. Although it's generally used in Aszu wines, we also liked its single-varietal form.
• Kadarka is the most widely used red winemaking grape in the country. It has so many similarities to Pinot Noir that in a blind tasting, I would definitely say this is a Pinot Noir. It absolutely needs to be tasted and compared side by side.
• Tokaji Aszu is definitely a wine style that even people who don't like sweet wines will love. Comparing the 2 we tasted, the 2002 6 Puttonyos left a much less sugary taste on the palate compared to the 2014 5 Puttonyos. As it aged, a magnificent maturity had developed. In all Aszus, there's a very subtle off-grape taste coming from botrytis. While this subtle taste can be disturbing in similar wines, it's absolutely not disturbing in these Aszus.
• The country generally looks like a white grape paradise. All the different white grapes we tried were very original. We tried Arany Sarfeher, Zenit, and Harslevelu as single varietals once each, and we loved the originality of all three. When you taste them, you say this is definitely a different grape. Especially for Arany Sarfeher, even though we asked different places afterwards, we couldn't find another example; apparently it's produced in very small quantities.
• In general, the reds are much more elegant, medium-bodied wines, ready to drink. The single-varietal Cabernet Franc and Syrah examples we tried were similar in this way, elegant with soft tannins. Even one of the blends presented as the most full-bodied was at a level we would call light.
• If you don't like natural wines, it's generally best to stay away from natural wines; in the examples we tasted, oxidative notes and vinegar-like character were prominent.

Favorite Wines

Our favorite wines from our 3-day trip were:

1. Monte Tokaj, Tokaji Aszu 6 Puttonyos, Furmint, 2002, White-Sweet, Hungary, Tokaj: An excellent nose, honey, yellow dried and ripe fruits. The palate is very full and lingering, the sweetness doesn't disturb at all on the palate. Definitely an extraordinary wine. 8/10
2. Havas & Timar, Franom, Cabernet Franc, 2019, Red, Hungary, Eger: A classic Cabernet Franc on the nose. Black fruits and violet are very noticeable, aromas are intense. On the palate, very elegant, tannins are very soft, oak is noticeable but not dominant. Long finish, high complexity. 7.5/10
3. Gedeon Birtok, Diofas, Arany Sarfeher, 2020, White, Hungary, Kunsag: On the nose, minerality, yellow fruits, linden honey, and herbal aromas like rosemary and green seaweed. On the palate, very original, linden aroma is dominant. From the first sip, you feel you're drinking a different grape. It has a slight sweetness coming from ripe fruits. Quite balanced, long finish, intense and lingering aromas. 7.5/10

Our overall impression of Hungarian wines is that they are definitely worth trying. There's a whole different world waiting to be discovered within. We definitely intend to repeat this surprise trip in the future.