Over the last couple months I have joined others in a virtual twitter tasting and discussion of wine. The sessions take place on Tuesdays at 9:00pm (ET) with the hash tag #winestudio. They are led and organized by Protocol Wine Studio.
In June we tasted a discussed Old World Wine from Hungary and Slovenia. Both regions have a long history in producing wine, but many customers/guests/consumers seem to have limited knowledge on the wine. I think it can largely be attributed to political issues such as communism. Just as I had heard while visiting Georgia during the International Wine Tourism Conference, wine production was significantly diminished during communism. In Hungary, they were allowed to continue to produce small amounts for households, but that was almost it.
Overcoming these cultural changing times is difficult. Both Hungary and Slovenia are making great strides in showcasing their amazing wines and encouraging wine tourism.
One of my favorites wines from the tasting was Erzsébet Pince 2011 Furmint Király dúló Tokaji. The wine is from a single vineyard where the grapes ripened early due to a warm fall. The soil is volcanic with obsidian rock. The wine had incredible minerality with stone fruit notes. The wine is aged in Hungarian oak barrels which adds creaminess to the body. It's a not to be missed wine for approximately $30 retail.