Hungarian Wine Tasting

Bortodoor City Wine Bar, Budapest, Hungary. Tuesday 14-July-2026.

A new country and a new set of grape varieties to learn about. So of course we had to book ourselves a wine tasting. We know nothing about Hungarian grapes and this delivered exactly what we wanted: a history of Hungarian wines, and introduction to the local grape varieties and tastings for sparkling, through white, rosè and reds. I even got a bonus sip of Tokai. Our host went by the nickname “Smike”, an American who has lived in Budapest for 17 years and is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic.

1. Beres Holdezust Habzobor Brut.

A glass of sparkling to welcome us and the first of the tasting to sip whilst we got the background to the Hungarian wine industry.

Geology: The north of the country is volcanic soils in the Carpathian mountains created by upheaval 13-15 million years ago. The south of the country has soils more Burgundian in character.

History: vineyards have been here for millennia. There was some disruption caused by the two world wars but the biggest impact was the Soviet Occupation. The authorities demanded that all vineyards across the country were to be over-planted with one of several new workhorse varietal strains developed for quantity and robustness. Two areas exempt were Tokaj and Nagy-Somlo. It was only after the end of the occupation that vignerons were able to replant local varieties better suited to their individual areas. Now those vines of an age that they are reaching their full potential.yeah, I think so

The tasting was accompanied by small platter of nibbles.  

Vinified in stainless steel. It was very pleasant and a fair match for any other nations sparking wine.

2. Harasztry Sir Irsal white 2025.

Made from a vine cross developed in the 1930s it traditionally smells of elderflowers. It is very popular with the Hungarians predominantly drunk as a spritz.

A bit too tart for my liking but I can see that it might work as a long drink.

3. Hercegkut Furmint Dry 2024 Tokaji.

A dry white from an area more famous for its dessert wines. This was described as having minerality and good aging potential. Vinified in stainless steel then aged in French oak barrels.

We got more tips on bluffing in wine: not just what fruit you are getting but what ripeness. So if it is apples are they tart / unripe / warm / baked; if cherry is it sweet dessert or tart morello.

4. Dubicz, Sarhegy Oalszrizling 2023.

Not a reisling despite the name. From the Matra region. I got kiwi and pea pod on the nose. Very pleasant.

5. Sauska Siller Villany 2025.

A peculiarity of Hungarian wine production known as “bleed the must”. After two days of skin contact half the must is removed to make a dark rosé known as Siller. The remaining 50% must is left on on the skins to produce a hyper-red wine. Interesting. I prefer a darker rosé so this was lovely. Maybe it was autosuggestion based on the colour but this had distinct strawberry notes on the palate. The presenter opined that it had some malolactic fermentation to add to the flavour.

6. Vesztergombi Kardaka Szekszard.

A pinot noir like grape grown as bush vines from the Kunsag region whose sandy soils enabled it to escape the ravages of phylloxera. Is is a cooler area where they need to used smudge pots - braziers that help keep the frosts at bay.

7. Kekfrankos Tuzko Birtok 2022

The kekfrankos grapes contributes the biggest percentage found in Bulls Blood. Smoky blueberry nose with tertiary notes of tabacco and cedar. When the assembled company were asked what food they’d pair it with Mary proposed cassoulet and I suggested smoked duck with cherry sauce. Turns out that our host always paired it with duck. Result!

8. Koch Villany Cabernet Franc Vedett Eredetu Villany Classicus 2020.

Oaked with dark fruit flavours. It had a “Top 12” sticker on it which signifies that in a nationwide blind tasting it was adjudged one of the the top twelve Hungarian wines.

9. Tokaj. 

I had been discussing dessert wines so Smike gave me a small tasting of a Tokaj. It was delicious and far better than I remember from my previous tastings of Tokaj.

A great tasting with lots banter. Then a short stroll to our restaurant for supper.

Baltic Tour 2026 - Graz

Graz, Austria, Friday/Saturday 10/11-July-2026.

Table of Contents:

• All posts
• Amsterdam, Holland / Stuttgart, Germany, 08/09-July-2026
• Graz, Austria, 10/11-July-2026
• Budapest, Hungary, 11/14-July-2026
• Pardubice, Czech, 15-July
• Gdansk / Malbork, Poland, 16/20-July-2026
• Warsaw, Poland, 21-July-2026
• Vilnius, Lithuania, 22/25-July-2026
• Riga, Latvia, 26/27-July-2026 Cancelled
• Tallinn, Estonia, 28/30-July-2026 Cancelled
• Helsinki, Finland, 31-July/01-August-2026 Cancelled 

The third day of back-to-back travel in order to pick up our original route at Graz. The reason for visiting Graz was a parkrun.

Friday 10-July-2026.

The trip from Stuttgart to Graz was smooth, uneventful and on time. We forgot to take the platform station sign so improvised with this.

We passed through some beautiful scenery with mountains in the distance.

After a quick change we headed straight out for supper, preceded by the essential beer. Although it was only an overnight in Graz it was long enough to appreciate the buildings and find the brauhaus, Glöckl Bräu, recommended by the hotel.

Graz city centre.

A weisse beer and a dunkel lager. 

The restaurant was offering cevapcici which we first tasted and loved in Vienna so it was an easy menu choice. Normally served with potatoes but we went for the healthy option and had salad.

After supper we went for a stroll around town and caught the sunset over the river Mur.

Heading back to our hotel in search of a bar for a nightcap we serendipitously stumbled across this DJ spinning vinyl in the garden of the Volkskunde museum which was a lovely way to finish the evening.

Saturday 11-July-2026.

Stadtpark, Graz 23/05/26 31:10 [55/75] 

Saturday morning was parkrun / park walk just three minutes walk from the hotel, and afterwards a chat with new parkrun friends, Oliver and Stephanie, in a local cafe.

The course is distinctly bird shaped which is why the sign has a little duck perched on it!

After a shower back at the hotel we had a lunch of sashimi at nearby Subarashii and then it was time to head to the train station for the next leg of our journey.

Next stop: Budapest

Baltic Tour 2026 - Amsterdam / Stuttgart

Amsterdam, Holland / Stuttgart, Germany. Wednesday/Thursday 08/09-July-2026.

Table of Contents:

• All posts
• Amsterdam, Holland / Stuttgart, Germany, 08/09-July-2026
• Graz, Austria, 10/11-July-2026
• Budapest, Hungary, 11/14-July-2026
• Pardubice, Czech, 15-July
• Gdansk / Malbork, Poland, 16/20-July-2026
• Warsaw, Poland, 21-July-2026
• Vilnius, Lithuania, 22/25-July-2026
• Riga, Latvia, 26/27-July-2026 Cancelled
• Tallinn, Estonia, 28/30-July-2026 Cancelled
• Helsinki, Finland, 31-July/01-August-2026 Cancelled 

Plan A was to spend the whole month of July on an interrail trip from southern Italy, across Europe, through the Baltics, across to Helsinki and fly home from there. 

We had popped back to the UK for six days in June where I found the biennial poo sticks waiting for me. I did the deed posted them off and we returned to Italy. 

Two weeks later I got a call. The results indicated that further tests were required. Since detection and early prevention is the way to go we immediately booked a flight back to the UK for the following week so that I could have a colonoscopy on the Monday after. 

All done. The team seemed relaxed about the findings. Found three polyps. As per standard protocol: small one in the bin, the two larger ones sent away to be tested. Fair amount of diverticulosis. They gave me a follow-up call to say the histology results showed nothing of concern. Phew!

They said I can’t fly for 2 weeks, but trains and ferries are Ok. 

Plan B. After weighing up various options, including postponing the whole trip, we ended up with a major replan to get us to an early point in the original route by using ferry and consecutive days train travel, picking up the route in Graz.

Wednesday 08-July-2026.

Day one was a train across to Newcastle and an overnight ferry to Amsterdam. We did this trip in reverse at the end of our first Interrail journey. It is a relaxing way to start the journey. Our ferry: Princess Seaways.

View of Newcastle as we departed.

We ignored the buffet option and booked ourselves into the on-board restaurant for an excellent meal. First course marinated beef.

Followed by a generous portion of salmon.

All washed down with some New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. My iPhone was confused as to exactly where we were.

A final view of the sunset then a nightcap in the bar before retiring to our cabin.

Thursday 09-July-2026.

Arriving at Amsterdam harbour after a hearty breakfast on board. Not very picturesque but hardly surprising as it is a hard-working industrial port.

As Graz is too far to reach in a single day we planned to break our journey in Stuttgart. Disembarking the ferry we got the DFDS shuttle bus direct to Amsterdam central station but no time for touristing as we had our first train to catch. 

This is the view across from the main station. 

On arrival in Stuttgart, on the recommendation of our friend Marcus, we dined in Carls Brauhaus with traditional Swabian dishes (crispy ravioli and turkey ragout with Swabian noodles) washed down with some excellent beer. I do like Dunkel style beer; these are a weisse and a dunkel weisse respectively.

On the way to the restaurant I was amused by these pedestrian lights.

Green hippo?

Our Premier Inn was set in the CBD, mostly an urban desert of office blocks, but we were able to find a bar for a night cap before returning to our hotel. 

Next stop: Graz.

Wine Tasting - Tutored Tasting

Vineria del Borgo, Cisternino, Puglia. Monday 29-June-2026.

The local wine bar Vineria del Borgo offers a couple of options for wine tasting. A simple three wine flight or a four wine tutored tasting with accompanying nibbles. We of course went with the latter. We were joined by our new Cistranese friend Nancy and her visiting friend Bridget. The wines were presented by Luca Cinque of The Italian Label and came from two different wineries.

1. Metodo Classico, “1950”, Rivera.

The first wine we sampled was a sparkling made from Bombino Bianco. Made by the traditional champagne method it spent 24 months on the lees and this bottle was disgorged in November 2025 with zero dosage.

A very light straw colour with a yeasty nose and touches of melon and peach kernel on the palate. Mary’s favourite of the evening.

2. Locorotondo Bianco DOC, Rivera.

The regulations for Locorotondo DOC is: Verdeca at least 50%; Bianco d’Alessano at least 35% and whatever remains has to be a local grape variety, normally Minutolo. This producer has opted to go for 50/50 Verdeca/Bianco d’Alessano with no Minutolo at all.

Very pale lemon colour with floral notes on the nose which apparently comes from the Bianco d’Alessano. Luckily not as floral on the palate as this could have been a bit too much. Interesting to try a different style of Locorotondo DOC. For me it was a little tart on the palate but had a lovely smooth texture; Mary liked it.

The sommelier gave us a top tip for bluffing in wine tastings. Depending on the flavours you pick up, it’s a safe bet to go for one of the following three: apple, pineapple or melon as appropriate. Other fruits are available, but those are good options.

3. Susumaniello Rosato Salento IGP, Sammarco.

Apparently, the Susumaniello grape gets its name from the dialect word for a donkey on an account of how these vines carry a heavy load with huge bunches of grapes right from the first couple of years.

The colour was a lovely pale pink and, maybe it’s auto suggestion because of the colour but I got a rose petal on the nose. Very pleasant and should be great with food. 

We had an interesting discussion on the difference between biological wines (which these were) and biodynamic wines which is a whole more complex discipline altogether. 

4. Primitivo Rosso Salento IGP, Sammarco.

Like the Susumaniello above, many of the Primitivo vines are not trained on wires but grown as low bush vines which makes harvesting back breaking work. There are two main areas where the Primitivo grape is grown. Gioia del Colle where the wines are 100% Primitivo and generally up to 13% alcohol. Primitivo di Manduria must contain at least 85% Primitivo grapes and a natural alcohol content of at least 13.5%.

This wine spent six months fermented in stainless steel tanks followed by two months in bottle.

The wine was a dark, opaque ruby with a very jammy nose, I was picking up blackberry. There was some grip to the wine, which indicates enough tannins to give it some aging potential.

As part of the tasting we got a two full plates of assorted cheese and salumi, but I was too busy eating to take a photo at the start.

After all this, we went to Bar Fod for an ice cream dessert and a glass of Prosecco to finish off the evening. A very enjoyable tasting and, as always, we learnt something new.

Big Benches

Puglia, Italy  Saturday/Sunday 27/28-June-2026.

We first came across the Big Bench project back in 2023 whilst on an inter railing journey to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary [Tirano]. Whilst out walking we spotted a red dot on the distant hillside. A bit of internet and map searching we found out that it was a “Panchina Grande” or “Big Bench” so we went off to investigate.

Big Bench #218.

It is big! There was a clue in the name after all.

The Big Bench Community Project (BBCP) is a non-profit initiative launched by American designer Chris Bangle. It features oversized, brightly coloured public benches placed in scenic, easily accessible spots that make adults feel like children again. It started in 2010 in Clavesana, Piedmont, Italy. Bangle provides the design and building instructions for free to local communities and private sponsors, but the towns themselves are responsible for funding and construction.

The criteria for a bench were that it must be on accessible public land, in the countryside and have beautiful views. Access to the bench must be free and unhindered 24/7. This bench certainly fits the bill apart from the accessibility bit as it was poorly signposted over the last stretch and it took us a while to find it as you can see from all the backtracking.

Big Bench #056.

Very shortly after Mary‘s sister, Sandra, found one in Scotland whilst visiting Arbroath for a parkrun in October 2023. It turns out to be the only one in Scotland and she only stumbled upon it because of some dodgy satnav directions.

Big Bench #457. 

Sandra then came across another one whilst touring Italy this year. Here is brother-in-law George sitting on the one they found during a slow stroll through an affluent area of Cuneo.

Big Bench #451.

Sandra was now winning in the big bench competition 2 to 1. Having forgotten all about them, Mary was inspired to check out the Big Bench Community Project website and discovered there were two in Puglia including a new one had been installed very close to us only last year (October 2025). 

When we first found out about them we thought they were all red but now know different. The icons on the map indicate the colour of the seat and legs.

It had to be done: Saturday on the way back from parkrun we took a little detour to see Big Bench #451 and admire the stunning views from the Belvedere di Caranna over the coastal plain.

Big Bench #194.

It was now Mary 2, Sandra 2 so we just had to visit the other bench in Puglia. Sunday morning, we drove to the outskirts of Taranto to find Big Bench #194. It was a 50 minute drive to near Taranto, then a dirt road for about 1km and a walk around a melon field, only just resisting the temptation to scrump a delicious looking melon! 

I predict we will all be checking out the map whenever we are visiting other parts of Italy and elsewhere to see if we can bag a few more. Nothing like a bit of sibling rivalry!

Everyday Differences in Puglia: Unfinished Wine

Puglia Differences: an occasional series on things that strike this Brit as so very Italian. 

Over many years we have noticed that the Italians are generally moderate wine drinkers. Nowhere is that more apparent than in a restaurant. We have more than once seen a group of four share a bottle of wine and leave some in their glasses. This may not be so true of the younger generation of Italians from seeing them in the bars where they hang out; they do seem to have developed more of a taste for alcohol.

Recently we were in a restaurant where a table of six all left some unfinished wine. Such a waste.

Likewise, the couple on the table behind us left some in their glass. 

That just would not happen in the UK - people would make sure they finished the wine that they paid for. Maybe it's to do with the cost of wine or our respective nations attitude towards alcohol - although to be seen to be drunk would still be a "brutta figura" round here.