1999 Tokaji Essencia

The 1999 Tokaji Esszencia was eked out without press over three weeks from aszu berries and aged for two years in Hungarian oak. Bottled in 375 and 500ml, it has a bouquet that rivets you to the spot: marmalade and dried quince, then nutmeg, beeswax and even a scent of hickory. It is very mercurial in the glass. Coming back, there is a touch of fresh rose petals and lavender. The palate is incredibly intense, and it is not the sweetness here that is striking, a modest 460 grams per liter, but the acidity – 19.9 grams per liter. Therefore, it is incredibly fresh and vigorous, almost so that you do not notice that enormous amount of residual slipping down the throat and threatening to overload the senses. It takes some getting used to, but strangely, once inured to that acidity, then it becomes a much easier Esszencia to imbibe. Circa the year 2250, when Earth is a nuclear wasteland, a bottle of the Pajzos 1999 Esszencia will be unearthed and this fabled Tokaji will intoxicate them as much as it did me in a long-forgotten age. You won’t taste anything quite like it all year. Drink now-2150+. Pajzos probably came to many people’s attention when no less than Robert Parker bestowed a perfect score to their 1993 Esszencia. I myself became familiar with the property through regular visits to Chateau Clinet, since proprietor Jean-Louis Laborde acquired the Tokaji estate from its previous owner, the late Jean-Michel Arcaute, in the 1990s. It was my last port of call during my week in Tokaji and I visited with winemaker Istvan Bai. It is a relatively isolated property, an uninhabited, modest-looking, slightly dishevelled house accessible by a long dirt track. Its isolation does not come without its drawbacks. Security guards patrol the vineyard to prevent thieves picking aszu berries to sell to unscrupulous winemakers. Though the uninhabited house is nothing much to look out, the magic begins as you descend into the maze of cellars that dates from the 13th century. The low-ceilinged cellar is covered in thick black mold and accommodates the used 168 and 220-liters barrels of fermenting Tokaji. It was here that I conducted the tasting. Chateau Pajzos has a distinct style of its own, the terroir tending to produce berries that are naturally higher in acidity than elsewhere. This was certainly evident in the Tokaji that were positively “zinging” with freshness and tension. I undertook a comprehensive tasting of current releases that range from dry Furmint to their extraordinary Esszencias (the spelling that they use.) Though their dry wines are definitely worth seeking out, it is clear that Tokaji Aszu is the focus, and as you ascend toward the higher sugar levels, you enter an ethereal realm. After a week tasting more than my fair share of rare Esszencia, I had not become blase about these elixirs, but for sure I could parse the astonishing from the merely “excellent.” And though I could not taste the 1993, Robert Parker nailed it because both the 1999 and 2000 Esszencias were spectacular, in particular the former, one of the most otherworldly wines I have ever tasted and completely different to any other Eszencia with hits rapier-like acidity that blitzed through the payload of sweetness without a care in the world and imbued with a kaleidoscope of flavors that ranged from crystalline honey to outrageous nutmeg notes. Not a purists’ choice for sure – they should opt for the sensual 2000. The 1999 Esszencia is reserved for those who want to experience something that they might never find again. I would add that these wines are also a steal considering the prices asked for Eszencias from other producers. Contact Russell Herman at World Wine Source Consulting; tel. (908) 771-9082; importers include V.O.S. Selections, New York, NY; The Country Vintner, Ashland, VA; Wines With Conviction, Dallas, TX; Adventures in Wine, Daly City, CA; Vin de Garde Wines, Portland, OR. Also Bordeaux Index (www.bordeauxindex.com) in the UK.