2018 Grál Borpince Kadarka
Tolna, Hungary
2018
100% Kadarka
Cool continental with dry warm summers
Clay, loess and limestone
17 days on the skins in open vat with manual punchdowns. Secondary fermentation was split between 1/3 in tank and 2/3 in 1000L neutral oak barrels for 10 months.
10.9%
1.1 g/l
6.8 g/l
Notes & Pairings
Kadarka is how we found Grál in the first place despite being perhaps better known in Hungary for Kékfrankos. The 2018 spent 17 days on the skins in open vat with manual punchdowns. Secondary fermentation was split between 1/3 in tank and 2/3 in 1000L neutral oak barrels for 10 months. Blended and bottled unfiltered with a small addition of sulfur. The slighter cooler climate compared to Szekszárd is evident here. Thicker skins, a longer ripening period, and the aromatics and acidity are all a little turned up. The bottle age also helps bring this all together. This vintage also conjures up older olfactory memories of first encountering Kadarka. And while we of course enjoy the carbonic, whole cluster, amphora, and botrytized versions of Kadarka, this is from an earlier era of vats, basket presses and large barrels.
