Szent Donát, Kopaszhegy Olaszrizling, 2018

Szent Donát Winery, Balatonfüred-Csopak Region

The Olaszrizling grape comes into its own on and around the northern shore of Lake Balaton, which is the largest lake in Central Europe. This wine, made from 100 percent Olaszrizling grapes, comes from the volcanic basalt tuff and limestone soils from Cserhegy’s Kopaszhegy (Bald Hill) vineyard, dramatically located on the Tihany peninsula jutting into Lake Balaton.

The grapes here ripen perfectly courtesy of plentiful sunshine, balanced by the lake’s moderating influence. The talented young winemaker, Tamás Kovács, hand-harvested these grapes on September 4th, spontaneously fermented them in stainless-steel tanks, and then aged the wine for eight months in tanks. This is a very natural unclarified and unfiltered wine. The color is pale lemon-green, with medium intense aromas and flavors of green apple, lime and peach. It is a medium-bodied wine, delightfully pure, juicy, and fruity on the palate, with the kind of vibrant and tongue-tingling acidity that is often lacking with this variety. It has a stony mineral kick on the finish. This is an elegant expression of Olaszrizling—which is the same grape as Austria’s Welschriesling. It is great with fish, soft cheese, chicken and other poultry dishes, and salads.