FERMENTATION AND AGING
Grapes were crushed, de-stemmed, and then gently pressed after brief skin contact. Juice was left to settle for two days before being transferred into a mix of old French and both new and old Hungarian oak barrels, all around 225L in size. The wine was fermented with cultured yeast, then aged on fine lees for 6 months with batonnage. Bottled in August 2016.
TECHNICAL DATA
Alcohol percentage: 12.74
Total acid (g/l): 7.1
C6 sugars (g/l): 1.3
SO2 at bottling: 123 mg / 25 mg
pH: 3.04
THE VINEYARD
First documented in 1550, Mestervölgy stands for “Master Valley”, a name that stuck because the site was initially owned by the schoolmasters of Tarcal’s protestant congregation. The soil in this beautifully situated vineyard is primarily loess, mixed with some clay and broken rocks. Furmint and Hárslevelű vines in Basilicus’ 2.5 acres in Mestervölgy are around 50 to 60 years old, resulting in a very rich and complex Furmint that is rightly regarded as Basilicus’s flagship dry wine.
VINTAGE AND HARVEST
2015 turned out to be a fairly good vintage for vineyards on the southfacing slopes of Tokaj Hill, with an evenly distributed temperature profile and along with lower than average rainfall. A slight drought caused grapes to ripen earlier than usual while simultaneously allowing for minimal pest control, resulting in a very healthy crop. 2015 was a remarkably great year for dry wines. For our 2015 Mestervölgy Furmint, grapes were harvested manually in two phases in early October.
$ 29.00 $174.00 / 6 pk
