Wine Guild Tour Reports

Hungary

This tour started with a tasting held at the British Embassy, where we were introduced to the main characteristics of Hungarian wine. The following day we went to the shores of Lake Balaton, where some of the finest white wines are produced, and were not only treated to a most impressive tasting lunch but a tour of the vineyards to experience the triple effects of direct sunshine, of reflected sunshine from the lake and the heat retention of the basaltic rocks - which allows for some spectacular late harvested wines. Another trip was to Tokaji, where we were greeted by our brothers from the local Guild, who intronised our Chancellor and treated us all to a tasting of ten superb Tokajis of escalating splendour - each introduced by a musical accompaniment - followed by visits to various cellars. The full programme included other tastings, dinners and sight seeing, but the highlight of the tour was an official banquet hosted by the Prime Minister, Dr Viktor Orban, in the splendid Parliament building, with the cream of Hungary's winemakers among our hosts.

Photo of wine tasting

South Africa

The changes wrought in South Africa in recent years are apparent in the wine industry as anywhere, and this tour, led and tutored by the knowledgeable and indefatigable Dave Hughes, not only took us to some of the most delightful vineyards amidst spectacular scenery, but also introduced us to several of the young and dynamic winemakers who have re-established South Africa on the world map. Wine tastings showed the immense range of varieties cultivated, and the impacts of terroir, (even if some winemakers were finding their new found freedom to import French and American oak barrels a trifle too tempting for some tastes), and there is a real sense of balancing the best attributes of both the old and the new worlds. Our hosts were most generous, the dining an impressive match for the wines on offer, and the abiding sense was that the tour should have been much longer to do full justice to everything which was on offer.

Photo of banquet

Champagne/Alsace

A hotel in Dizy was the rendezvous for tour members, from which we headed to the Abbaye in Hautvillers, the cradle of Champagne, where Dom Perignon perfected his wine-making. L'Abbaye is still the home of Dom Perignon, the premier marque for the House of Moet and is surrounded by some of the choicest vineyards in all Champagne. A tour of the museum and tutored tasting of Vintage Dom Perignon was then followed by an official reception at the Mairie, since Hautvillers is twinned with Beaulieu, during which honorary membership was conferred on the Mayor. The Guild hosted a dinner at which all the wines were locally produced. The following morning there was a further tutored tasting of champagnes before the tour party transferred to Alsace.

In Alsace we were able to combine some sightseeing of this historic region, so rich in mediaeval architecture, within a busy schedule of tastings, lunches, dinners and official engagements. We were officially received in the Town Hall of Eguisheim, also twinned with Hautvillers and thus to Beaulieu, where the reception and honouring of the Mayor was followed by a spectacular dinner in the Michelin starred Caveau d'Eguisheim - recommended to any visitor. Tastings were held with Hugel, tutored and hosted by the irrepressible octogenarian Jean Hugel, whose help with the tour organisation was invaluable, as well as Schlumberger, Theo Cattin and Trimbach, all of whom ably demonstrated the exceptional quality of their wines. Some members chose to visit other wine-makers in the odd spare moments of the tour, while others went sightseeing or just relaxed. The Guild held a banquet at the three-starred Auberge de l'Ill as a highlight of the tour and to thank their many hosts, during which the Chancellor conferred honorary membership on Jean Hugel and David Ling.

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