Eger Wine [antikvár]

EGER WINE I 5DEAR READER,What makes good wine? What is its secret? Alas, this beautiful publication can reveal much about us and our homeland, about our traditions, values and resources; it cannot, however, put the secret into words. Wonderful wines require a number of factors to be in balance, but this alone does not account for Eger's superb product. The quality of our wines cannot be explained by soil, climate, geology or topography, nor can it be ascribed to our wise utilization of both modern and traditional viticultural techniques. We certainly have centuries of experience in the tending, nurturing and care of vines but this also cannot account for our superb wine. Put all these factors together and even then something intangible is missing from the mix, something beyond words, that defies description and which makes the final product incomparable.Maybe Sandor Marai, the great Hungarian novelist, best captured this elusive quality best when he wrote, 'Wine requires grace also a great vine growing region is as if it were blessed. This divine grace streams from the scenery surrounding Eger.' I believe and I profess this is so today.Our town is not unlike a unique, exceptional blend. We love to taste this cuvee and discover its rich flavours, individuality and complexity. Eger - glorified by a victorious battle against the Turks in 1552 - is rich in the special memories of the Turkish era, Baroque treasuresand curative thermal waters. The wealth of Eger, thanks to its viticulturists, vintners and, of course, the divine grace referred to above, surfaces each year in the barrels and glasses bearing the fruit of the grape harvest.It was Géza Gárdonyi, author of 'Eclipse of the Crescent Moon', who said, . .the glory of Eger shines on all its citizens'. We are a proud town, because we can build our future on a glorious past and a present replete with possibility. Wine culture is an inalienable part of all citizens of Eger, yet grape and wine mean so much more to us. They are superior to gastronomy, more important than a developing economic sector and as significant to us as proudly cherished tradition. Wine is Eger itself, and Eger is like a good wine: a cuvée of cultural and natural values, embodied in Egri Bikavér and Egri CsillagYour Good Health!László HabisMayor of Eger