Single-Vineyard
First Growth, 6 Puttonyos

The first vineyard that Royal Tokaji purchased was a portion of Nyulászó (NEW-lah-zoh), one of the most well-known vineyards in Tokaj. “Nyulászó” comes from an ancient Hungarian word meaning “to catch hares.” The vineyard is located on south-, southwest- and southeast-facing slopes overlooking the village of Mád. The grapes grown here produce lively, elegant and highly-perfumed wines, characteristics typically associated with wine grapes grown in loess soil, even though Nyulászó is predominantly red volcanic-clay with only pockets of loess soil. Because of this unusual soil composition, the wines that are made from Nyulászó’s grapes are the most complex wines in the Royal Tokaji portfolio.

A very mild winter was followed by rain from spring until early summer. In August, the weather changed dramatically. September was cool and wet again, delaying ripening. A lovely and very long Indian summer from early October turned a good vintage into a great one. The miraculous weather provided perfect conditions for developing aszú berries and the harvest was of unmatched quality.

The 2008 Nyulászó displays dried figs, a slight metallic hint and ripe peach on the nose, and figs as well as peach on palate. An elegant wine with an almond note and well-integrated, refreshing acidity on the finish. The sugar is slightly lower (161g/L) than usual for this vineyard, and this makes for the most elegant Nyulászó we have yet produced.