READ THE DIAGRAM
Aszú: returning concentrated berries to the process
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Organizing typical processes. Check the detailed conditions for sorting, maceration, fermentation, and aging against producer information and documentation for the vintage in question. To the supporting reference ↓
FIELD NOTE 01
Select individual berries
Grapes for Aszú are concentrated by botrytis and drying. At Disznókő, workers repeatedly patrol the vineyard, picking out suitable grapes one by one. Since whole bunches are not all ready at the same time, the harvest unit is very important.
It is a process of judging by weather and berry condition, and the same quantity cannot be obtained every year. It’s not sufficient to think that if there is noble rot, the fruit material will automatically be high quality.
FIELD NOTE 02
Pressing after maceration
Concentrated berries are soaked in juice, fermenting must, or new wine to extract sugars and compounds, then pressed and moved to fermentation and maturation. At Disznókő, their public winemaking process uses must or new wine for soaking, with the decision made for each lot.
This differs from ports where fermentation is stopped by fortification. Instead of focusing first on sweetness as a result, illustrate and compare the processes of concentrating and macerating the base ingredients.
FIELD NOTE 03
Essenzia takes a different path
Eszencia uses highly concentrated juice that flows out under the weight of gathered berries. The sugar concentration is extremely high, resulting in very slow fermentation. This is not the same process as soaking the berries as for Aszú.
Do not assume the sugar or alcohol levels published by a producer apply as fixed values to all Eszencia. Individual technical documents are examples to detail the production process.
FIELD NOTE 04
Re-read the old puttonyos indication.
The official Tokay explanation states that since 2013, Aszú must have at least 120g/L residual sugar and 6 puttonyos is displayed for 150g/L or more. Don’t use the old 3- and 4-puttonyos scale directly as the minimum for present-day Aszú.
Do not confuse the historic Aszú Eszencia and Eszencia. By recording label name, harvest year and the applicable period together, you can reduce misreading of older bottles.
This is not a method based on fortification. The process is traced from selection of concentrated berries, maceration, and pressing.
PAUSE & REFLECT
Check your understanding.
Is Aszú a wine in which sugar is retained by fortification?
Read the explanation ＋
This is not a method based on fortification. The process is traced from selection of concentrated berries, maceration, and pressing.
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Furmint: comparing dry harvest and Aszú berry selection →
Sources and reference materials
These are the reference materials for the main text. For details of production regulations, consult the current documents. For individual wine specifications, refer to materials for the relevant vintage.
- Disznókő | Harvest and selection of raw materials ↗
- Disznókő | Aszú winemaking ↗
- Magyar Bor｜Tokaj’s Region of Origin and Wine Categories ↗