Chateau Pajzos Tokaji Harslevelu H Late Harvest 2021
Type: Sweet
Country: Hungary
Region: Tokaji
Grape Variety: 100% Harslevelu
Alcohol Percentage: 11%
Viticulture: Vegan Friendly
Climate: The region lies in the middle of Europe, at the northern limits of viticulture with late springs, very hot summers and cold winters. In the autumn it is pleasantly warm during the day, but it can be very cold and misty at nights, making the perfect conditions for the development of Botrytis
Terroir: Vineyards are southeast-southwest facing with variable soils of mixed rhyolite tuff. The microclimate is much cooler here with a lower number of sunshine hours and humidity which mean the grapes ripen later. The microclimate and soil make this land primarily suited to creating dry wines
Ageing: This wine is produced from overripe grapes at the beginning of November. The desiccated grapes, after a short maceration, are then gradually pressed to extract the sugar-rich juice. The must is left to ferment under controlled temperature in stainless steel tanks for two weeks. The resulting wine is then aged for 6 months in stainless steel tanks
Color: Golden yellow
Nose: Delicate aromas of honey, fruits and slightly sweet spice on the nose
Palate: Sweet and clean with mostly honey and fruit notes on the palate. As the wine opens, notes of ripe mango, quince, pear and tropical fruits show. Excellent balance of acidity on a lively and silky palate
About the Winery:
Hungarian Tokajis were historically among the most highly prized wines in the world. Long before Sauternes, they graced the tables of European elites and connoisseurs. In the summer of 1991, the late Jean-Michael Arcaute and Jean-Louis Laborde launched the Renaissance of Tokaji. They led a group of 12 wine lovers and acquired Château Pajzos, carrying out the same year the first “private enterprise” harvest and vinification. Today, the 100ha Domaine (55ha of vineyards) is under the sole ownership of the Laborde family, who also owns Château Clinet in Pomerol.
The estate is located in the heart of the Tokaji region, on slopes surrounding the famous wine village of Sárospatak. It was long acknowledged for having one of the finest vineyards of the region. Its volcanic, rocky soils ensure that the native varieties – Furmint, Muscat, Hárslevelu and Zéta – are both rich in natural acidity and concentration and the location between the Bodrog and Tisza rivers makes it ideal for attaining noble rot, indispensable for producing the sweet Aszú wines.
The property is managed by Ronan Laborde and his winemaking team. In recent years, they optimized the vineyard to enhance the development of botrytis, essential for Aszú wines. They changed their pruning method to single guyot in order to reduce yields and advance ripening. Depending on the moisture content of the soil, it is either ploughed or left un-tilled; nets are placed in the fall over the botrytis-affected grapes to prevent them from being eaten by animals.
