Coming from New Zealand and spending most of my adult life in Sydney and now Singapore, I am a huge wine lover but also the first to admit my knowledge is firmly ensconced in new world antipodean wines. Having married a Frenchmen my palate has certainly been extended over many visits to Europe and it was on one such visit to Croatia that I first tried Eastern European wine.
We were both totally blown away by the impressive flavours, balance and quality of their white wines and our only disappointment is that we could not find these hidden gems here in Singapore (or really anywhere else for that matter).
It was therefore my great pleasure to be invited to try a range of Juliet Victor wines from Hungary, a close border neighbour with Croatia – and we had high hopes that these would deliver a similarly spectacular sip.
Juliet Victor’s vineyards are located in the heart of the Tokaj region in a village called Mád, north-east of Budapest. It is a long celebrated wine region, with a history of wine production spanning five centuries and was in fact the first place in the world to register and document individual vineyards. So indeed there is some serious wine pedigree here.
Juliet Victor has over 30 hectares of the highest quality vineyards, some with vines up to 100 years old and its mission is create the world’s finest Tokaj wines thereby redefining the perception of Hungarian wine on the world stage. I was particularly impressed to learn that the vineyards unique volcanic terroir is emphasised during production reminding me of the outstanding Mt Etna wines we enjoyed in Sicily (and continue to seek to this day).
Despite only being founded in 2016, the stellar team at Juliet Victor are certainly well on their way to achieving their goals - they became the first ever Hungarian wine to be awarded Best in Show in the history of the Decanter World Wine Awards (for their Szamorodni vintage). Added to this they hold a slew of platinum, gold and 95+ ratings from the DWWA which sees over 18,000 wine entries every year.
Impressed by the pedigree and accolades afforded onto these wines, we decided to wait for a special occasion to truly savour them. A beautiful seafood birthday dinner by the sea at Sentosa Cove seemed like the perfect occasion.
Our first drop was the Juliet Victor Furmint Bomboly 2018 (DWWA Awards 2021 Gold 95 points) – a dry single vineyard style served in a uniquely shaped long-necked bottle. Now I am very particular about my white wines and am a classic Chardonnay drinker who also enjoys the odd Riesling and Pinot Gris depending on the occasion and cuisine. Upon researching the grape, I discovered Furmint (Hungary’s flagship white wine) is in fact considered a half-sibling to both Chardonnay and Riesling.
This was EXACTLY my style of wine – perfection in a glass! With crisp minerality, notes of yellow apple, creamy quince and spices and an eternal finish it was an absolutely stunning match for our seafood spread. While it spends 8 months in Hungarian Oak barrels, the subtle oak enhances rather than masks the fruit – pairing the wine equally well with our delicate clams as it did with the bold flavours of our Szechuan prawns.
Moving onto the sweeter Juliet Victor Szamorodni 2017 (DWWA Awards 2020 Best in Show 97 points) we were truly indulged by this botrytized dessert style wine – a bright gold Tokaji with a fresh alluring fragrance, a complex stone fruit mouth feeling, muscat tones, minerality and oak blend together to create what could equally be described as liquid gold in a glass. If I had to choose between a dessert or this wine, it would be the Szamorodni every time.
With wines as high quality and unique as these, it is well worth trying something new and sampling the wares that Juliet Victor has to offer – with the range on offer in Singapore including three sweeter style Tokaji blends and four distinctive single vineyard Furmint vintages.
Juliet Victor Asia Pte. Ltd., a wine distribution company in Singapore was established by Márk Váradi who is also one of the co-owners of the Juliet Victor Winery. Juliet Victor is expanding its distribution into Asia, starting with Singapore. Wines are available to purchase in Singapore through Juliet Victor’s Singapore e-commerce platform at julietvictor.com.sg
Juliet Victor Hungarian Wines now available on e-commerce platform in Singapore
