Mad Wine
by
Terry Sullivan
Summary: As you enter the town of Ma'd you will notice a white building with the word Ma’d and an outline of the village landscape. This building is home to Mad Wine where we met the winemaker and toured the facility. An onsite restaurant, Elsö Mádi provides local foods with the winery’s portfolio of wines.
Ma’d is a very old settlement in the Tokaj region. There are records indicating vineyards in this area dating back to the 11th and 12th centuries. Although different peoples settled in the area through the centuries, they brought with them knowledge of viticulture and oenology that shaped the present day vineyards and wineries.
You can see the winery Mad Wine long before you arrive. We started in the restaurant Elsö Mádi where we ordered lunch and waited for the arrival of the winemaker Akos Bihari. Akos soon met us and we took a tour of the winery facility. During the tour we learned that Mad Wine is owned by Karoly Kovacs. The winery is an investment for the owner. Akos, the winemaker began working at Mad Wine during the harvest of 2018. Akos grew up in the Tokaj region where both of his parents’ families have been in the wine growing and winemaking business since 1563. With this background, it was natural for Akos to be a winemaker.
Vineyards
The winery owns 20 hectares (49 acres) of vineyards. The grape varieties include Furmint, Hárslevelű and Sárga Muskotály ((Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains). In addition to their vineyards, the winery also sources grapes from sixty local growers. Vineyards in this area are historic and vine roots travel through clay and rock. This gives the grapes a mineral taste.
Winery
Akos gave us a tour of the new modern wine production facility. Although mostly cement, the walls are beautifully adorned with paintings that break the monotony of gray colored walls. The fanciful paintings include grapevines with grape clusters and occasionally a wine bottle attached to the vine. This is a gentle reminder that the wine in the bottle began in the vineyard and continues in the winery. One painting shows a goat in the foreground under a vine, with the village of Ma’d in the background amongst rolling hills with vineyards on them. When asked about the goat, Akos told us that in English, GOAT is the initials for "Gratest Of All Time."He added, "This is our goal in wine makeing".
Akos took us to a room where stainless steel tanks stood like soldiers guarding the precious wine they held. Wines that are from different vineyards are fermented in stainless steel while wines from single vineyards are fermented in wood barrels. Akos also spoke about plans to build another building for storage close to the winery. The winery produces around 500,000 bottles and has the capacity to produce one million bottles of wine. Mad wines are sold in 32 countries including the United States and Canada.
Wines
The 2016 Tokaj Furmint Dry was a light yellow color with 11.5% alcohol. The wine had tropical fruits and flowers on the aroma. The taste included peach, citrus and a racy acidity. The finish was fruity. This dry Furmint can pair with white meats and fish.
The 2017 Hárslevelű was a light yellow color with 12.5% alcohol. There was a bit of sugar at 12 g/L of residual sugar. Flowers and citrus were on the aroma while the taste included daisies and citrus. The wine had a creamy mouthfeel while the finish was crisp with a lingering aftertaste.
The 2016 Szent Tomás Percze was a Furmint that had a light yellow color and 11% alcohol. The Szent Tomás brand are wines made with estate grapes from Percze, Nyúlászó, Kővágó, Dongó, Szent Tamás, Király vineyards.
Nyúlászó is the vineyard across the street from the restaurant. The Percze vineyard is next to the village. The aroma offered flowers and yellow stone fruit. The taste was reminiscent of daisies, peaches and citrus with a smooth mouthfeel and racy acidity. The finish was crisp.
The 2016 Tokaj Late Harvest was a blend of Furmint, Hárslevelű and Sárga Muskotály. The 11% alcohol wine had a yellow color. The wine was sweet with 154 g/L of residual sugar. The aroma included dried fruits. The taste had a very silky mouthfeel, dried apricots and honeysuckle. The finish was fruity.
Wine enthusiasts have different wine tourism options at Mad Wine. These include wine tastings and occasionally walks in the vineyards with tastings.
Mad Wine
Hunyadi János utca 2.
Mád 3909 Hungary
Article written April 2019.
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