Tokaji should need no introduction - one of the greatest and certainly most individual styles of sweet wine found anywhere. Indeed, in the 18th century, this liquid gold was the most highly-prized and sought-after wine in the world, served to Princes, Kings and Czars at every capital in Europe. Louis XIV famously pronounced it "Wine of Kings and King of Wines". Admittedly, he was bribed with several barrels of Eszencia, but his opinion carried even more weight at the time than that of Robert Parker today !
With such a long history, it is difficult to separate fact from fantasy, but there is no doubt that Tokaji producers had discovered the beneficial properties of noble rot by 1650. This gave them a hundred-year head start on the Germans, and nearly 200 on the vignerons of Sauternes. The Tokaj district was delimited by royal decree in 1737, and the world's first vineyard classification system introduced in 1772. Unfortunately, Communist dogma and the realpolitik of the Cold War era were not conducive to fine wine production. Individual vineyard identities and the quest for perfection were subsumed in the mediocrity of state farm collectives, and the inevitable reorientation towards a Russian market thirsty for large quantities of the cheapest wines possible.
When the Iron Curtain was drawn back, fine Tokaji was more a legend than a reality, a romance fuelled by the recollections of a few wise old connoisseurs. But the allure was undeniable, and it quickly attracted both romantics and hard-headed money men to this rustic corner of northeastern Hungary. The Vega Sicilia team were aware of the dangers this gold rush presented, and realised that "if you're going to do it, do it right". Guided by this philosophy, they spared no expense in securing the most highly-rated vineyards, plus several kilometres of ideal underground cellars. These cellars are particularly important to the quality of Tokaji, because they create perfect conditions for long cask ageing: a constant temperature of 10°C, 95% humidity, and an ambient colony of moulds and bacteria that protect the wines from spoilage. The estate they bought was rechristened Oremus, and a team of the most experienced local and imported winemakers was put in place, under the direction of Andras Backsos, the most knowledgeable and passionate of the former state managers. Their aim was simply to produce the very best Tokaji imaginable.
Twenty years on, the Oremus wines are bang on target. The classic Aszu dessert wines are pure and precise and beautifully balanced, neither oxidised in the false-traditional style, nor over-oaked in an attempt to impress with modernity, but with a mineral-infused energy that ensures outstanding persistence and length. Meanwhile, Oremus have pioneered two new styles of Tokaji wine : a classy dry white from the exotically spicy Furmint grape, and a Late Harvest made in the style of a Beerenauslese, from bunches partially attained by botrytis.
