Hungarian Wines and Wine Regions

After a delicious paprikás csirke or foie gras rinse your throat with excellent Hungarian Wines! Our country has been blessed with a climate and soil perfect for viticulture and winemaking.

Yet, apart from Egri Bikavér (Bulls Blood) and Tokaji aszú most Hungarian wines are lesser known in the world.

Take the opportunity to discover them!

a couple of wine bottles with 3 glasses of wine next to them (rose, white and red wine in the glasses), a vineyard can be seen in the background

Wine Tasting In Downtown Budapest

The best place to sample local wine – if you don’t want to venture in the countryside – is going on a wine tasting program in a wine bar or restaurant.

The Hungarian Wine Tasting Experience offers a 9-tier tasting showcasing some truly exceptional wines (4 red, 4 white and a dessert wine from Tokaj).

During the two-hour program you’ll be served 9 matching snacks (chesse, salami, ham, dried fruits etc.) sourced from local producers so you can fully appreciate the wines. The tasting takes place right in the heart of Budapest, so you won’t have to travel a lot. Places are limited, so make sure you book in advance!

wine tasting in palinka museum

Wine Tasting Experience in Palinka Museum

Savor the complexity and heritage of Hungarian wines as you explore a curated selection, ranging from the renowned Tokaj to the robust Kadarkas of Villány, guided by our knowledgeable specialists.

9 different wines for tasting / 9 different charcuteries

Duration: 120 min. – Price57

Find out more details about the Hungarian wine tasting in Budapest city centre!

What Makes Local Wines Good?

Hungary’s climate is very favourable for quality wine growing because the average temperature is much higher than let’s say in Northern France.

In addition, autumn is rather dry with warm, sunny weeks until mid-October (a period often referred to as Indian summer).

This allows Hungary to produce the entire range of classic wines:

  • Whites,
  • Roses,
  • Reds, and
  • Natural, sweet dessert wines, like the world-famous Tokaji aszú.
A botle of rose and a bottle of white wine on a table covered with blue-white tablecloth checkered. A wine glass and a plate of snacks next to them. The table is in a vineyard

Add the slopes of volcanic origin, and you get a combination of natural conditions that with the the expertise of talented wine makers result in fine wines.

Today a rich diversity of both international and local grape varieties are grown in the 22 Hungarian wine regions and a great variety of wines are made from them.

Major Grape Varieties in Hungary

The Renaissance of Hungarian Wines

Huge wine factories in the communist regime emphasized quantity over quality.

Luckily, in the 21st century several Hungarian wine producers make wines not just because it’s good business, but they want to revive and preserve the quality and fame of local wines.

Wine drinking habits are changing as well.

A glass of delicate wine with or after your meal is becoming more and more common.

Young consumers look for quality wines that encourages wine makers to enhance the quality of local wines even more.

There are hundreds of private wineries and thousands of winemakers. They’ve won several prizes on international wine festivals and competitions in recent years.

lots of bottles of red wine from Villany in rows
Reds From Villány

Wine-growing is drifting towards mainstream nowadays, however the native varieties are still hanging on.

You’ll find many newborn wine-clubs, and wine routes all over the county as well, not to mention the numerous wine bars and restaurants in Budapest where you can sample some delightful classics.

  • Bull’s Blood from Eger,
  • Egri kriályleányka- translates to princess, a fruity white originating in Transylvania,
  • Kadarka from Szekszárd,
  • some excellent Pinot Noirs from Villány, as well as
  • great cuvées.
a young woman looking at a menu while holding a glass of white wine in her right hand in a restaurant

What to Taste & Buy?

Tokaj Aszú – The King of Wines, Wine of Kings

Tokaji aszú is one of the best sweet wines of the world and you must taste it while visiting Hungary.

Grape is left on the vines until botrytis cinerea, a type of noble mold, shrivels the grapes concentrating the sugar content.

Aszú has a very sweet almost nectar like quality and a warm amber colour.

The quality of Aszú is determined by the number of putton.

A wooden bucket that can be put and carried on the back and in which grape was gathered during harvests in the past).

The number of puttony indicates how many buckets of pressed, botrytis-matured grape were added to the still wine.

6 bottles of various Tokaji aszu wines placed on the ground in a vineyard
Tokaji Aszú Wine by various Wineries

The higher the number the more complex and sweeter the wine. Higher number puttonyos aszús (5, 6. 7) cost around 8.000 – 20.000 HUF or more.

The year of the harvest also has impact both on the price and the quality.

According to a new regulation that came in effect in 2014, only 5 and 6 puttony aszú-s are allowed to be called Tokaj aszú, the others (3 and 4 puttonyos) are called

  • late harvest or just
  • sweet wine.

Price Of A Bottle Of Tokaj Aszú:

  • depending on the number of puttony-s, age, cellar: around 8 000 – 50 000 HUF/0.5 L bottle

The Best Aszú-s Are Produced By The Following Wineries:

Chateau Dereszla

This renowned wine estate is in Bodrogkeresztúr, Felső u. 2., 3916 HU –

The 5 puttony 2007 Aszú made the 20th spot in the list of The World’s 100 Best Wines by Wine Spectator magazine.

The historic cellar is stretching 1 km long and 3 storeys deep under the Dereszla vineyard. They welcome tourists, wine lovers for tasting in 25 or 60 prs rooms.

3 cellars in Tokaj - Chateau Dereszla estate on a clear sunny day
Chateau Dereszla Wine Estate

Hétszőlő Estate

Demeter Zoltán’s Winery,

Address: Tokaj, Vasvári Pál utca 3., 3910

6-puttony aszús of 2007, 2008, Holdvölgy aszú, He also has very nice furmint, and hárselevelű.

Tokaji Oremus Aszú-s

Address: Bajcsy-Zsilinszky Endre utca 45, 3934 Hungary.

prize winner bottles,

The winery/cellar – owned by the Spanish Tempos Vega Sicilia – is located in Tolcsva town, some 30 kms north of Tokaj: Tasting tours can be arranged.

Tokaj-Hétszőlő Estate

Address: Bajcsy-Zsilinszky utca 19, 3911 Hungary, on the southern slopes of the Tokaj Hill

The historic Rákóczy cellar is also owned by the company.

Michel Reybier, French wine maker from Bordeaux, bought Hétszőlő in 2009 and resurrected wine making, bringing the deserved fame and acknowledgment of wines made there.

The Furmint, Sárgamuskotály (yellow muscat) are also exceptional. See website for more information.

Wine Regions in Hungary

Hungary has 22 wine regions that boast not only with

  • excellent quality wines but
  • beautiful scenery and
  • interesting sights.

Besides wine tasting, these regions offer colourful programs to entertain visitors throughout the year.

rolling, green hills of vineyards somewhere in Hungary, at sunset

Etyek-Buda Wine Region

The Etyek-Buda region is the closest to Budapest and offers

  • Some trully excellent wines,
  • Tasty local food,
  • Fresh air, and
  • Friendly people who are happy to talk about wine making and their way of life.

These regions boast not only excellent quality wines but beautiful scenery, local gastronomy and interesting sights.

The best time to get to these regions to taste wines and discover the beauty of Hungarian countryside is

  • late spring-early summer or
  • in September-October, when grape harvests are accompanied by festive events and programs.
rows of vine possibly late autumn in Etyek
A Vineyard In Etyek

Wine Regions – North-East Hungary

Northern Hungary gives home to two world-famous wine regions.

Tokaj-Hegyalja

Perhaps the best-known of all Hungarian wine region is Tokaj where

  • excellent sweet dessert wines and
  • full-bodied whites are produced.

The honey-like aszú dessert wine, that brought fame to this wine growing territory, is considered to be among the first three of the best wines in the world,

Noble botrytis gives the sweet, nectar-like quality of the Aszú made in Tokaj.

the green hills of Tokaj wine region, two churches in the background
Tokaj-Hegyalja Wine Region

The uniqueness of Tokaj stems from occurence of several natural attributes:

Major Grape Varieties & Wines:

  • Furmint,
  • Hárslevelű (Linden-leaf),
  • Yellow Muscat.

Eger

The Eger Wine Region is also well-known outside Hungary mainly for its full-bodied red, the Bull’s Blood.

It was widely advertised and exported to western countries during the communist era.

Talented wine makers resurrected viticulture in the region and today not only the red wines but whites like the

  • indigenous Leányka,
  • Királyleányka,
  • Tramini,
  • Olaszrizling (Italian Riesling) are on par with some of the top-quality international white wines.

The Szépasszony Völgye (Valley of Beautiful Women) just outside Eger offers a scenic place for tasting wines of Eger.

rows of oak barrels in the Thummerer cellar, Noszvaj
Thummerer Cellar, Noszvaj

Major Grape Varieties & Wines:

  • reds: Kékfrankos (Blaufrankish), Merlot, Kékoportó forms the basis of Bull’s Blood,
  • whites: Leányka, Királyleányka, Tramini, Olaszrizling (Italian Riesling)

Southern Transdanubian Wine Regions

Two regions produce outstanding reds in the Mediterranean area south of Lake Balaton known as Southern Transdanubia.

  • High number of sunny hours in a year,
  • long history and
  • traditions of wine making, as well as
  • the unique soil make the following two regions among the best red wine producing areas both on local and international level.
white-washed wine cellar row in Vilány village, potted, red geraniums on the roadside
Cellars In Villány

Villány-Siklós Wine Region

Exquisite reds are produced on the gentle slopes of Villány and Siklós Hills produce.

In my opinion the best Pinot Noir in Hungary comes from the Villány region, but you’ll enjoy other red varieties too.

Major Grape Varieties & Wines:

Reds:

  • Kékfrankos (Blaufrankish),
  • Portugeiser,
  • Merlot.

Whites:

  • Italian Riesling (olaszrizling),
  • Leányka an indigenous variety, with elegant body,
  • Linden-leaf (hárslevelű), which is excellent for making dessert wines.

Wonderful wine routes and local cellars welcome wine lovers who want to enjoy great wines within beautiful surroundings in

  • Villánykövesd and
  • Palkonya.

TIP: Time your visit during the Villány Wine Festival organised around the first weekend of each October.

Szekszárd

Kadarka, a rich, full-bodied local variety, was once the leading wine variety in the Szekszárd.

The region lies in southern Transdanubia in the vicinity of Pécs town.

In the 19th century it was even exported to France because the Kadarka matched the quality of their reds.

Unfortunately, similarly to other wine varieties, Kadarka was neglected and almost brought to extinction during the communist decades.

Luckily, devoted wine makers managed to preserve this special wine that goes well with traditional Hungarian dishes made with paprika.

The cellar and vineyard of Janos Németh wine maker in Szekszárd
A Winery In Szekszárd

Due to the area’s perfect blend of natural qualities besides Kadarka, some beautiful other reds come form Szekszárd:

  • Cabernet Franc,
  • Cabernet Sauvignon.

Szekszárdi people consider their Bull’s Blood more authentic and of better quality than the one produced in Eger. My husband and I (amateur wine connoisseurs) also prefer Szekszárd Bull’s Blood because of its fiery, velvety texture and rich fragrance.

Major Grape Varieties & Wines:

  • Cabernet Franc,
  • Cabernet Sauvignon,
  • Kékfrankos (Blaufrankish),
  • Merlot

TIP: The Szekszárd Harvest Days Festival (Szekszárdi Szüreti Napok) around mid-September is a great time for wine tasting and visting the cellars.

Wine Regions at Lake Balaton

Both the northern and southern shores of Lake Balaton has been made for wine growing.

During a wine tasting tour around the lake you can not only discover some delightful Hungarian wines but the experience will be enhanced by

  • the beauty of the landscape and
  • countless activities the Balaton offers throughout the year.

The nearness of the lake creates a sub-Mediterranean climate. Wines vary from cellar to cellar depending on which slope the vineyard is on.

Badacsony

a vineyard with basalt rock in the background, Badacsony Hill

The basalt slopes rising on the northern shore of Lake Balaton offer the pleasant combination of breathtaking view and delicious local wines.

Whites dominate the wine scale produced on the volcanic hills of

  • Szt György,
  • Gulács, Csobánc and
  • Tóti Hills. 

The colour of wines are an excellent blend of yellow and green, the sight of which makes you want to taste it right away.

Szürkebarát (Pinot Gris) and a local variety, Kéknyelű, are the cream of the crop wines in the Badacsony wine region.

Major Grape Varieties & Wines:

  • Italian Riesling,
  • Pinot Gris,
  • Kéknyelű.

Balatonfüred-Csopak

Lake Balaton and Balatonfured town from a lookout tower
View from the Jókai Lookout, Balatonfüred

The Balatonfüred-Csopak wine region nestles in the northeastern corner of Lake Balaton.

The combination of

  • the healing waters and
  • the wines make Balatonfüred a popular tourist destination all over the world.

The nearby Tihany Peninsula also belongs to this region.

Italian Riesling riches its full potential in this wine region.

Its fine bouquet and the bitterish taste resembling almond are unmatched.

The rich, earthy aroma of the Balatonfüred-Csopaki wines is attributed to the red soil characteristic of this region.

Balatonboglár

Very good, light, fruity whites are made on from the grapes produced on the flat area on the south shore of Lake Balaton.

Balatonboglár wines with their balanced acid content provide excellent basis for champagne making.

Wine Regions in North-Western Hungary

Sopron

Holy Trinity statue in Sopron's centre
The Baroque Downtown of Sopron

The Sopron area in the North Western crook of Hungary is one of the most significant red wine producing regions in Hungary.

Lying near the border with Austria, the Sopron wine region produces wines very much similar to wines made in Burgenland.

The rich, deep red Soproni Kékfrankos (Blaufrankish) is slightly tarter than the ones produced in other Hungarian wine regions.

Due to the cool climate wines have

  • high tannin content and
  • are a bit acidic.

In the Baroque town of Sopron you can admire stunning buildings and cityscape. The proximity of the Lake Fertő promises plenty of opportunities for active relaxation.

TIP: Hay or pine wreaths hung on the gates of houses indicates that you can taste local wines there. White or red ribbon marks whether white, red or both wines are offered.

Ászár-Neszmély Wine Region

Ászár-Neszmély in Western Transdanubia lies on the slopes of the Gerecse Hills along the Danube, on 1500 hectare area.

a moren winery in a valely among green vineyards at Aszar-Neszmely

Mostly white wines are produced – with some experiments with red grape varietals – in this winemaking area of Hungary that include major international varieties like:

  • Chardonnay,
  • Sauvignon Blanc,
  • Rhine Riesling,
  • Tramini
  • Muscat Ottonel, and
  • Irsai Olivér.

The climatic conditions are favourable for making fragrant, elegant whites with high acid content.

Ászár Neszmély Wines need at least 5-6 years to develop into top-quality wines.

Cserszegi Fűszeres, a unique Hungarian variety, produced in the region by Neszmély Hilltop winery won the award of “White Wine of the Year” in Great Britain in 1998.

Somló Region

a grey stone, modern wine cellar, Kreinbacher Birtok
Kreinbacher Estate, Somló

Three hills comprise this small wine region of Hungary in Central Transdanubia where only white varieties are grown.

The volcanic soil is rich in minerals, which gives an earthy character to Somló wines.

You can explore the area on 4 wine routes while enjoying the beautiful vista and the historic sights like the

  • St. Margaret Chapel along with three chapel ruins or
  • the Somló Castle.

Wine making looks back to great traditions here.

Similarly to Tokaj, Somló wines were also considered to have medicinal and magical qualities, like the wines of wedding nights.

  • Full-bodied,
  • well-rounded, a
  • cidic wines that require long ageing in wooden casks comprise the majority of Somló wines.

Major Grape Varieties & Wines:

  • Somlói Juhfark a native variety (Hungaricum),
  • Furmint,
  • Italian Riesling

The Kreinbacher Estate is the most dynamically developing winery in the Somló area, founded in 2002 by József Kreinbacher entrepreneur.

They work on 40 hectare land and planted exclusively native grape varieties in 2003.

They also come out with a champagne in 2014 prepared with the Méthode Traditionnelle method:

  • Extra Dry,
  • a Brut Classic,
  • Brut Nature, and
  • Brut Prestige.
a champagne in a cooler, a couple of champagne and wine glasses on a restaurant table

21-st century technology, rolling hills, unique terroir and hospitality characterize the estate.

Tourists, wine enthusiasts are very welcome to tour the winery and the vineyards.

You can also spend a couple of days in the 16-room hotel (Accent chain) on the estate.

There’s a Wine Bar & Bistro with

  • delicious countryside dishes,
  • breakfast,
  • gourmet diner or
  • wine diner form 10 people. 

If you only come for a couple of hours you can enjoy the fantastic view form the terrace with a cup of coffee and snack.

Most notable wines:

  • Öregtőkék Bora
  • Hárslevelű Válogatás
  • Juhfark Selection 2013
  • Nagy Somlói 2012 and 2013.

Visit the estate’s official website for more details.

Wine Festivals and Events in Budapest

TIP: If you plan to come to Budapest in the first half of September, do visit the Wine Festival in Buda castle, the largest wine event in Hungary. You can taste and buy award winning Hungarian wines, while enjoying the numerous accompanying events.

To buy good quality Hungarian wines, look for wine shops.

They have wide selection of wines and the shop assistants will give you a helping hand to choose the bottles that match your taste the best.

TIP: Discover Budapest wine bars on a unique tour on an afternoon in either June or July. Taste wines and meet the wine makers at 28 bars, cafes and bistros in both parts of the city!

stari plum beer250

TIP: Enjoy the Local Craft Beers!

On our Budapest Craft Beer Cruise you’ll taste 5 x 150 ml of the best Hungarian specialty brews + you’ll choose your favourite and get 1 pint for FREE!

A 2-hour boat tour, snacks, live music are also included in 33 EUR price.

Book online!

Craft Beer Cruise – 19:00

Craft Beer Cruise – 22:00