Jungberg Devin

Jungberg is a vineyard site in the Small Carpathians, and Devín is Slovakia's own aromatic white grape — a crossing of Roter Traminer and Grüner Veltliner that almost nobody outside the country grows. Víno Magula bottles this single-site expression at their family winery in Suchá nad Parnou, near Trnava, and it's one of the more distinctive whites you'll find from Central Europe.

A quick note on the catalogue: this is a white wine, not a red — worth knowing before you pour. The Magula family farm organically, certified Bio, and work in the natural idiom: spontaneous fermentation, low intervention, unfined and unfiltered, with sulphur kept very low. They belong to Slovakia's Autentista natural-wine circle, and the wine reflects that ethos of leaving well alone.

Devín is prized for its perfume, and the Jungberg site gives it a clear, characterful voice — aromatic and textural, unmistakably itself, with the gentle grip and savoury edge that low-intervention whites carry. It's a wine of personality rather than polish, made to be tasted with curiosity.

Pour it for anyone who thinks they've tried everything. It's a genuine conversation piece — a grape and a place most drinkers have never met.

How to Serve

Serve chilled but not icy, around 10 to 12°C, in a white-wine glass with a decent bowl to let the aromatics show. Drink young while the perfume is at its most expressive.

Where to Drink It

Planque near Haggerston, natural-wine territory through and through. Dandy in Newington Green, for adventurous bottles and good food. Noble Rot, if you want it somewhere that champions the obscure and the well-made.

Food Pairings

Its aromatic side loves gently spiced food — a Thai-style fish curry works a treat. I'd also drink it with roast pork and fennel, the perfume playing off the sweetness of the meat.