The Amber Nectar

'I was given a glass of Imperial Tokaji. It was so different from any other wine it was like seeing a new primary colour...'

[E.H. Benson]

INTRODUCING TOKAJI '93 Aszú Essencia from Crown Estates, an entirely Hungarian owned firm. Harvested just three years following Communism’s conclusion, this suprisingly refreshing nectar comes from the Szarvas vineyard, one of two ‘Great First Growths’. Amber maple syrup in colour, it possesses powerful, but not candied, lavish aromas of blood orange marmalade (without the tang) and sultanas. The palate lethargically drips with honeycomb soothed just in time by juicy acidity. Riveting. I would love to one day indulge in straight Essencia which technically isn’t wine, being just 5p/c in alcohol with over 700g/litre of unfermented sugar. For now, though, this 200g/l beauty is gloriously opulent. It will effortlessly outlive me...

I was asked by Nina Caplan, Time Out magazine's Features Editor, to select three bottles for a forthcoming feature on fine fare from London merchants. I chose to provoke: Essex appeal, New Hall Bacchus '05, Inama '06 suave Soave, and the amorously sited Wooing Tree Pinot Noir '06 from Central Otago. I look forward to reading her reaction in May...