Tokaji Oremus Aszú 3 Puttonyos

Tokaji Oremus Aszú 3 Puttonyos is a sweet wine produced by the Oremus winery in the prestigious Tokai denomination, in Tokaj-Hegyalja (Hungary) with the native Furmint, Zéta, Hérslevelü, Sárgamuskotály varieties.

 

In 1993, with the intention of recovering one of the most prestigious wine areas in the world, the Álvarez family, owner of Vega Sicilia, founded the Tokaj Oremus winery. To this end, they built, taking advantage of the underground tunnels built in the 13th century and follow the meticulous method of elaboration developed more than 400 years ago. As a result, an excellent range of wines was born, considered one of the best in the world. 

 

Tokaji Oremus Aszú 3 Puttonyos comes from vineyards listed as World Heritage by UNESCO. Being made with grapes affected by botrytis, a fungus also known as noble rot, is only possible in good vintages. These are vines located 200 meters above sea level, with a low yield (172 kilos per hectare) and selected one-by-one by hand in the vineyard itself.

 

Following the same guidelines as hundreds of years ago, Tokaji Oremus Aszú 3 Puttonyos must is placed in a Hungarian "de Gönc" wooden barrel (136 liters) and macerated with three Puttonyos (with three 25 kg baskets of noble grapes, Aszú grapes or grapes with botrytis). Two days later they’re pressed and a slow fermentation begins which can last up to two months. Subsequently it’s transferred into wooden barrels, a little Aszú berry essence is added and there it ages for 2 or 3 years. Finally, it rests another year in the bottle.

 

Taking into account that the number of puttonyos refers to the number of baskets of Aszú grapes used, Tokaji Oremus Aszú 3 Puttonyos is the sweet wine from this winery with the lowest level of sugar. One of the most valued sweet liquors in the world, that King Louis XIV himself defined as "wine of kings and king of wines".