Malatinszky Winery
Villány Region
Csaba Malatinszky started his career in wine as a sommelier, working in several of Budapest’s top restaurants in the 1990s. He founded his winery in 1997 and has been fully organic since 1999 (certified organic in 2009). Like the entire Villány region, Malatinszky has been influenced and inspired by Bordeaux—which Villány shares its major red grape varietals with, and has traveled to France many times. He started planting Cabernet Franc—the region’s flagship variety, in 2001. Cabernet Franc has always been present in Villány, he told us, but people didn’t know the difference between Cab Franc and Cab Sauvignon. Malatinszky’s portfolio of older vintages is one of the things that makes his cellar notable. “From the beginning I had the idea that I would sell older wines, not just sell everything as soon as it was made.” He grows Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Rhine Riesling, Muscat Ottonel, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot, and produces 60 to 80,000 bottles per year. His winery is an environmentally conscious building, and was carefully planned for his focus on aging in small barrels. His wines are spontaneously fermented with native yeasts, and they are acclaimed for their complexity and elegance.
Malatinszky's Fine Wines from Villány (6-Pack)
This Box Includes
- Malatinszky, Signature Muscat Ottonel, 2018
- Malatinszky, Signature Chardonnay, 2020
- Malatinszky, Signature Cabernet Sauvignon, 2018
- Malatinszky, Signature, 2015
- Malatinszky, Noblesse Cabernet Franc, 2015
- Malatinszky, Noblesse Serena Rubra, 2016
Kuria Cabernet Franc, 2013
“A mind-blowing Cabernet Franc that conclusively proves that Cabernet Franc has a new home in Hungary,” wrote wine critic James Suckling on this Cabernet Franc, “and is also the finest Hungarian red wine I’ve ever encountered.” Csaba Malatinszy, who opened his winery in 1997 after shifting careers from sommelier to winemaker, makes three classes of wines: Signature, Noblesse, and Kúria, with Kúria wines (such as this one) being his top quality level. They are from single vineyards, with grapes selected by parcel. One of the things we love most about Malatinszky’s wines is that while most wineries just talk about aging potential, they end up selling all of their wine too young, before that potential gets realized. Malatinszky cellars his wines, with the goal of having a portfolio of older vintages. “From the beginning I had the idea that I would sell older wines, not just sell everything as soon as it was made.” This is a very concentrated wine, with a wonderful density, very fine tannins, and a nice acidity that gives it an unexpected freshness for a ten year-old wine. This wine benefits from being decanted. Give yourself some time and patience with it so it can open up. When it opens up, you’ll be rewarded with the flavors you’d get from a wild berry patch and an herb garden. There’s thyme and oregano, turning into lavender and eucalyptus as the wine opens up. This is an organic and vegan wine, which was unfined and unfiltered, aged in a mixture of new and previously used 500 liter Hungarian oak barrels for 18 months. It’s such an elegant wine, worthy of accompanying a special occasion dinner, either with the main course or next to a nice selection of aged cheese.
Noblesse Serena Rubra, 2016
“Wine is a form of personal expression,” Csaba Malatinszky told us. “And my personal consciousness has evolved year by year.” Malatinszky produces 60 to 80,000 bottles of wine per year in his Villány winery, which was carefully planned to be an environmentally conscious building suitable for his focus on aging wines in small barrels. We love that he focuses on not just quickly selling his new wines, but on creating a portfolio of older vintages. His wines thrive on this extra age, and reveal an incredible amount of elegance and complexity as they age. This wine is a blend based on Cabernet Franc (70 percent), with some Cabernet Sauvignon (10 percent), and Merlot (20 percent). Most of Malatinszky’s red grapes (including these) come from the Máriagyűd vineyard and the Kövesföld slope. His wines are spontaneously fermented with native yeasts, and they are acclaimed for their smooth complexity. As with all of Malatinszky’s wines, this one really evolves as it sits in your glass. It has a nice texture and tannins that don’t come first, but then show up strongly. This wine reminds us of the flavors in a Black Forest cake (dark chocolate and sour cherries), and there are also ripe plums, blackberries, and violets. Like many of Malatinszky’s reds, the longer the wine stays open, the more savory the aroma turns (think mushrooms). This is an unfined wine, made only from the free-run juice, and matured in a mix of new and previously used 500-liter Hungarian oak barrels for 15 months. Alcohol is 14 percent. This is an organic and vegan wine. When it comes to food pairings, well, this wine is really the meal.
Noblesse Cabernet Franc, 2015
Like the entire Villány region, Csaba Malatinszky has been influenced and inspired by Bordeaux. Villány shares its major red grape varieties with Bordeaux, and he has traveled to France many times to gain knowledge from the region that has been so historically successful with these grapes. Malatinszky started planting Cabernet Franc—Villány’s flagship variety—in 2001. According to him, Cabernet Franc has always been present in Villány, but people didn’t know the difference between Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. “They didn’t know what Cabernet Franc was.” These days Cab Franc is the flagship grape that everyone loves in Villány. Aficionados of Bordeaux wines will love this 100 percent Cabernet Franc. It’s a deeply colored wine that changes in your glass as you sip it and sit with it. We recommend drinking it slowly, decanting or aerating it. Like this the tannins smooth out, and the nose turns from fruity to spicy. This is a serious wine—with a velvety and slightly oily texture, and very dry tannins. The flavors are complex, and evolve slowly—turning from rubbery, to dark chocolate, cherry, dried leaves, smoke, mushrooms, and Worcestershire sauce. There are intense forest fruits, coffee, cedar, and tobacco. This is an unfined wine, made only from the free-run juice, and matured in 500-liter Hungarian oak barrels for 15 months. This is a powerful wine from an excellent vintage. The dry, warm, and sunny conditions helped produce wines very suitable for aging. This wine will continue to evolve for many years to come. Malatinszky has been fully organic since 1999 (certified organic in 2009), and his wines are also vegan. This is a textbook wine to enjoy with grilled steak and potatoes.
Signature, 2015
Csaba Malatinszky’s family descends from an old aristocratic land-owning family (their crest dates back to 1341), who suffered the same fate as many Hungarians under Communism. His grandfather was an earl, his father was literature professor, and his mother was an ethnographer. They were forced to move to the rural Great Plain, due to their background. The family were never winemakers, but historically they had land in Tokaj and Badacsony—so wine culture was always present in the family. However, like the rest of the winemakers in the Villány region, Malatinszky has been most influenced and inspired by Bordeaux. He has traveled to France many times to gain insight into the French region which Villány shares its major red grape varieties with. This is a Bordeaux blend (50 percent Cabernet Franc, 30 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, and 20 percent Merlot) which shows Malatinszky’s Bordeaux education and state of mind. The weather in vintage 2015 was excellent, with dry, warm, and sunny conditions that helped produce wines with great aroma and aging potential. This is an elegant wine with strong tannins that are nicely balanced by the fruitiness (alcohol is 14 percent). The nose is fruity (plum, blackberry), and the palate is intense, with hints of tobacco, leather, and cigars. The finish is nice and long. This wine was aged for 12 months in 500-liter Hungarian oak barrels. This is an organic and vegan wine. We like this wine with long-cooked meat dishes—like lamb or barbecue. It’s also good with cheese, especially older hard cheese.
Signature Cabernet Sauvignon, 2018
Csaba Malatinszky started his career in wine as a sommelier, working in several of Budapest’s top restaurants in the 1990s. When he decided to go in the direction of winemaking (founding his winery in 1997), he set high standards for himself right from the start. “My goal was to produce a few internationally outstanding wines,” he said. “Later I realized that all of my wines have to be outstanding.” That aim is obvious when you talk to Malatinszky, visit his winery, and taste his wines. Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the important grapes in the Villány region—used on its own and in Bordeaux-style blends. And this one is a fine example. On the nose there are delicious notes of cassis, blackberry, plum jam, cloves, and cinnamon. There are layers of flavor, from fruitiness (tart strawberries and currants), spiciness (cloves and white pepper), oakyness (smoke and tobacco), as well as smoked ham, roasted bell pepper, and licorice. This wine was aged for 12 months in 500-liter Hungarian oak barrels. Alcohol is 13.5 percent, and the tannins give it a very dry finish. This wine has the acidity and tannins needed to continue to age well in the bottle. It’s an elegant and complex wine, which is great with burgers, grilled steak and vegetables, or csevapcsicsi (Balkan meatballs). This is an organic and vegan wine.
Signature Chardonnay, 2020
Chardonnay is grown on nearly 2,400 hectares in Hungary. It’s a great grape for reflecting the characteristics of its terroir, and the hopes and style of its winemaker. Csaba Malatinszky is a fan of this variety, and makes it in an old world style. Malatinszky started his career in wine as a sommelier, working in top Budapest’s restaurants in the 1990s, and then decided he wanted to make the switch from selling wine to making wine in 1997 when he opened his own winery. He has been fully organic since 1999 (certified since 2009). This is a full wine, with a rich and balanced body and acidity structure (alcohol is 12.5 percent). Like most Villány whites, grapes come from the Siklós area, from 10-year-old vines in the Zuhánya vineyard. On the nose there is yeastiness, some savoury mushroom notes, and a hint of gunpowder. This wine benefits from being opened in advance, and we find that it opens up beautifully after getting a bit of air in the glass—with pineapple, pear, citrus, and peach flavors emerging. This wine is great on its own, and is also a versatile match for many foods. Try it with a Hungarian dish like stuffed cabbage or pasta with cabbage. Or, with roasted pork or chicken with a creamy sauce. This is an organic and vegan wine.
Signature Muscat Ottonel, 2018
Pure 100 percent Muscat Ottonel, such as this one, is not typical. Muscat Ottonel is an aromatic variety originating from the Loire Valley, but this wine expresses the Villány terroir in an exciting way. Characterized by its floral and perfume notes, this is a really enjoyable wine, on the lighter side, with layers of flavor that unfold as you drink. It has a greenish/yellow color, with lemon and fresh grass coming through at first. There are herbal and spicy characteristics (lemongrass, fenugreek, and fennel seed), but the faint tar aroma (think fresh poured asphalt) is especially intriguing. Grapes for this wine came from the Siklós area (as grapes for all of Villány’s whites do). Villány is Hungary’s southernmost region—with the warmest weather and most sunshine—known for its bold Bordeaux-influenced reds. So it’s not surprising that whites get somewhat overlooked. Csaba Malatinszky, too, is known for his complex and age-worthy reds, but he pays just as much attention to producing fine white wines that express the Villány terroir. This is a fresh tasting wine, with soft acidity and a hint of residual sugar. We like this wine next to foods that have citrus flavors (like salads with citrus vinaigrette), duck with orange sauce, or ceviche. Try it also with hot food (for example, Chinese food with Szechuan peppers), or with cured or smoked salmon. This is an organic and vegan wine.