Mandolás Dry Furmint, Oremus 2023 75cl
Most people meet Tokaj through its sweet wines. Mandolás is the region's other face: a bone-dry Furmint that shows just how serious this Hungarian grape can be when the botrytis is left out of the story.
Oremus is the Tokaj estate owned by the Álvarez family of Vega Sicilia, which tells you the standard being aimed at here. Mandolás is named after a single volcanic vineyard, and the 2023 is a dry white made from Furmint fermented and aged partly in oak. The soils are loess over volcanic bedrock, and that geology shows up as a distinct stony grip in the glass.
Expect ripe pear and quince on the nose, with lemon oil, a little beeswax and a smoky, flinty note that is pure Tokaj. The palate is textured and mid-weight, with Furmint's naturally high acidity cutting a clean line through the richness. There is a subtle savoury, almost nutty character from the oak, and the finish is long, dry and mineral. This is a white with real backbone.
At around £28 it offers something you genuinely cannot get elsewhere for the money: a distinctive, age-worthy dry white from one of Europe's great wine regions. Drink it now with food, or hold a bottle two or three years to watch the waxy complexity build. A wine for the curious.
How to Serve
Serve at 10–12°C in a white wine glass. A short decant rewards a young bottle by softening the oak.
Where to Drink It
Noble Rot Soho loves a leftfield dry white. Sager + Wilde in Bethnal Green would pour it happily. The Quality Chop House has the cooking to match.
Food Pairings
Roast pork with crackling is a fine match for its acidity. Also excellent with smoked fish.
