Tokaj-Hegyalja wine region
Tokaj has been declared a World Heritage Site in 2002 under the name Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape.
Tokaj wine region or Tokaj-Hegyalja wine region is a historical wine region located in northeastern Hungary. It is also one of the seven larger wine regions of Hungary.
Hegyalja means “foothills” in Hungarian, and this was the original name of the region.
The region consists of 28 named villages and 11.149 hectares of classified vineyards, of which an estimated 5,500 are currently planted.
Tokaj has been declared a World Heritage Site in 2002 under the name Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape.
However, its fame long predated this distinction because it is the origin of Tokaji aszú wine, the world’s oldest botrytized wine.
Tokaji wine became an increasingly important commodity for the region from the 17th century, its export being a major source of income for the ruling princes of Transylvania to which the Tokaj region belonged at the time. Indeed, revenues from the increasingly renowned Tokaji Aszú wine helped to pay for the wars of independence fought against Austrian Habsburg rule. The repute of Tokaji wine was enhanced when in 1703, Francis II Rákóczi, prince of Transylvania, gave King Louis XIV of France a gift of numerous bottles of wine from his Tokaj estate. Tokaji wine was then served at the Versailles Court, where it became known under the name of Tokay.
Delighted with the precious beverage, Louis XIV declared it “Vinum Regum, Rex Vinorum” (“Wine of Kings, King of Wines”).
The partition of Poland in 1795 and subsequent imposition of customs duties dealt a severe blow to the exports of Tokaji wine and precipitated the economic decline of the region. However, this was only the first of three major crises for Tokaj. The second occurred when the phylloxera epidemic reached Tokaj in 1885 and destroyed the vast majority of the vineyards in a matter of years. The third shock was when Hungary lost two-thirds of its territory under the peace Treaty of Trianon signed in June 1920, and thus Tokaj wine lost access to the majority of its domestic market. The region was also divided between Hungary and the newly created Czechoslovakia, which gained an area of 120 hectares (with the exception of 1938-1944, when Hungary took control over the territory). The latter now forms part of an adjoining wine region in Slovakia with approximately 908 hectares of classified Tokaj vineyards.
The era of communist rule in Hungary saw a deterioration in the quality and reputation of Tokaji wines.
However, since 1990 a considerable amount of investment has gone into the Tokaj region, creating what has been dubbed as the “Tokaj Renaissance”.
There are now almost 600 wineries in the region, of which about 50 produce the full range of wines.
With the permission of WOW Hungary.
The prices are indicative only. And are valid for a minimum of 2 people. We can offer more discounted prices for more participants.
Tour includes
- Pick up and drop off at your hotel
- 10 hours
- Round-trip transfers between Budapest and Tokaj by air-conditioned car
- Visiting two wineries
- Cellar visit and learning the history of Hungary and the wine region
- Tasting minimum 8 different types of wines
- Snacks and finger food during the wine tastings
- Traditional Hungarian hot meal with dessert
- Possibility of buying wine at the winery (the price of wine is not included)
- English/German or Italian speaking guide
- All local taxes