Text 6835, 89 rader
Skriven 2006-10-22 09:37:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av GLEN JAMIESON
Ärende: HUNGARIAN DISHES 457
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 GJ> Tokay's three main grapes is made.  The Szamorodni may be dry (sz raz)
 GJ> or slightly sweet (édes).

Edes is to my understanding sweet enough to be served as
a dessert wine. Not the unctuous Aszu, but sweet enough.

   The slightly sweet version is made by
 GJ> arresting the fermentation of the wine before all of the sugar is
 GJ> converted into alcohol."

I read differently - I thought there was a small proportion of
Aszu grapes in the wine, but not enough to pull out.

 GJ> Of the Diszn¢k¢, she says, "At 6 puttonyos, Tokays begin to be so
 GJ> concentrated they are literally syupy and their aromas have an almost
 GJ> frightening intensity.

I don't know about "literally syrupy" nor "frightening intensity."
A bit of hyperbole perhaps?

 GJ> Teleki Vill nyi Pinot Noir 2003 (Ft1300 = US$6).

By no means cheap.

[Below is a relevant post from 1997]
Tokaji Disznoko 6 pts

It was a '92, so I guess that it was a bit young. Seemed forward,
a little spicy. Very luxurious on the tongue. Sweet, as you would
expect, but not cloying. I was surprised by the freshness, given
that I have previously drunk young Tokays from the state monopoly
which even upon release had a heavy, oxidized taste. The fruit
also was fresher than that from the state bottlings, which always
tasted a little wet-cardboardy and cooked. Good botrytis; long
finish; Tokay aszu, even the Communist variety, always had good
botrytis and an almost everlasting finish.

I'm not sure that the Communist government is totally to blame
for the quality of the wine, though. In the Dorothy Sayers story
The Bibulous Business of a Matter of Taste (which we've referred
to before), there is this exchange:

  It is sweet and coarse, qualities that would damn any wine
  in the eyes - the mouth, rather - of a connoisseur. ...

  Genuine Imperial Tokay is beyond the opportunities of Grub
  Street, I fear. Though I agree with you that it is horribly
  overrated ... .

Contrast this with the October 1995 Pacherenc de Vic-Bilh
(producer forgotten, but Ian says he's the best there) that
Ian served with the foie gras, which was a fullish-bodied
wine that had no botrytis to speak of (the concentrated
quality of the juice is a function of the late harvest, rather
than the action of some microorganism). An extremely fruity,
almost flowery wine that picked up on the apple garnish but whose
good acidity cut through the richness of the entree. Great legs,
quite luxurious but in a completely different way. Long finish,
but nothing compared to the Tokay.

Contrast this too with the 1988 Pacherenc de Vic-Bilh from
Collection Plaimont. A lightish-bodied wine, still quite light
in color despite its age. Semi-sweet, not as unctuous as its
rich cousin above. The fruitiness has given way to a minerally
quality that I found intriguing. (Query: anyone know anything
about the Arrufiac grape? Maybe someone who has the Oxford
Dictionary of Wine might look it up for me.) Medium finish;
all in all a medium good wine. Drank it in Italy with some of
that very savory foie-gras-stuffed salted duck breast that
Ian talked about from Les Ducs de Perigord.

- - -

It is in the same story also that Sayers helps perpetuate the
nonsense of "palate":

  There cannot be six men in the world with such a palate as yours ... .

It cannot be too often stated that what is called palate consists of
four factors, in ascending order of importance: natural acuity of
senses, love and respect for food, education, and experience. The
best way to cultivate a palate is to cultivate it! And the only thing
that stands in the way of our developing one as fancy as Lord Peter
Wimsey's is that we do not have the unlimited time and the unlimited
capital to do so.
 
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