The Royal Tokaji Wine Company was established in 1989 in the village of Mád in the Tokaji region and is a joint venture 63 local growers led by Istvan Szepsy, who was a descendant of the legendary Mate Szepsy, and foreign investors, among those, the celebrated wine author Hugh Johnson. Hugh has put all his effort into preserving the unique values of the Tokaji region to create high quality Aszú wines and pioneered the production of Single Vineyard wines. Today, The Royal Tokaji Company has become one of the most famous wineries in Tokaji.
The Royal Tokaji Company today is a benchmark for the noble wines of the region, from their 3 Puttonyos wines at around 60-90 grams per litre of residual sugar through to the intense Essencia at 450-850 grams, they are wines that offer the drinker a unique insight to one of the great wine styles of the world.
99-100 Points Vinous
The 2009 Tokaji Essencia comes in 1,386 individual red lacquer hand-crafted boxes containing a 375ml bottle and an obligatory hand-blown glass spoon, which is not there for decorative purposes. It does enhance imbibement, allowing that enormous hit of sucrosity to land straight on the tongue instead of clinging to the sides of your mouth or gums. It has a surprisingly bashful nose for the first 12 hours. Whereas some burst from the glass, this chooses to unfurl and only as if toying with you, gradually reveals scents of fresh fig, Medjool dates, Seville orange marmalade and Clementines. I notice that the aromatics blossom on the second day as it deftly slips into fifth gear. The palate also meliorates, obviously unctuous and yet paradoxically weightless thanks to that acidity. Again, fig features prominently allied with marmalade, demerara and quince, more desiccated orange peel and syrup towards the harmonious finish. Wonderful precision throughout, this magnificent Essencia that will outlast you and I.
99 Points James Suckling
Wine does not get more concentrated, dense and viscous than this Tokaji Essencia, but alongside the unctuous sweetness, it also has extraordinary freshness. The fruit aromas range from blood to quince jelly, but there’s also a slew of spices and notes of flowers and forest honey. Although it barely has 2% alcohol, it is much more vinous than that figure suggests. Titanic brulee character at the huge finish. Just 1,386 half-bottles were made. Should live longer than any of us! Drink or hold.