Borfalu (Budapest)

Asszonyok és Bor...(Women and Wine)

On my first day in Budapest (Hungary), where I flew to shoot pictures in several locations in the industrial suburbs, I managed to experience a good introduction to hungarian wines : Borfalu , the "wine village", is a festive yearly event started 6 years ago by Huba Szeremley ( a vigneron in Badacsony) and a friend .
The wine village is organized like a roman army camp, with three rows of stands under open tents, large alleys between them , and a large square in its center, with a stage and a hundred or more tables and benches to enjoy both the open air barbecue food and the successive shows . Dozens of wineries from around Hungary are present and people come here for the wine , the entertainment, and for the cheerful snob-free ambiance . Hungary has 20 different wine regions , where individual estates and various organisations work to improve the quality and preserve the specificities of the different terroirs .

I arrived in Budapest in the middle of the day, a shuttle deposited me at the hostel, I took a shower and then walked to Deak Ter subway station, bought me a public transport pass and went straight to Hosok Tere (Heroes' square) where Borfalu was taking place . I had been in Hungary twice before, once on a bicycle trip across eastern Europe and last time on my motorcycle , but the language was still a barrier . Not the slightest resemblance with any of the languages I know . Happily , many young people speak english
, and I could speak german with the older generation (did not dare to try my russian here...) .
The wine tastings here are in general differently organized than in France : In France you pay an entry fee and then taste all the wines you want for free . Here you buy your ticket at the gate, receive with it a few vouchers ( 5 here ), a glass, and you will have to give several vouchers ( and buy some more inside, 50 Forints-0,22 Euro each ) for each wine you taste , going , let's say from 2 to 10 depending of the wine . Also, you are not poured just a little wine to taste , but a full glass, wich narrows somehow the number of wines you will try ( no spitting here ) . But for hungarians , wine is a feast and full glasses are a natural thing : you are here to feel well , enjoy the music, the food , and the friends . The gathering is at the same time a non-intimidating popular entertainment and a serious wine fair with many of the top tier estates in term of quality . Plus, this is not too big a wine fair, you can walk around the alleys in a few minutes . I tasted here my first Eger's bull's blood of this trip, along with other fine Tokajis . Even though I had
got some contacts through emails prior to this trip, I met some interesting people there, and got some leads for some of the visits I made in the wine regions the following days .
One of my first goals in Borfalu was to meet Huba Szeremley, with the secretary of whom I had exchanged a few emails . I wanted to speak to this winemaker/owner who is an outstanding personality in Hungary . My first day in Hungary was a success in that regard : I could interview him this very day in spite of his busy schedules, and could make the first steps for a visit in the estate the following week . This was enough for me to consider that the hungarian wine gods and angels had taken me under their umbrella...
The entertainment side of Borfalu is rich : Apart from wine forums and debates, great folkloric parades, choirs , along the lanes and on the main stage and secondary stages, with dancers, musicians, horse-mounted austro-hungarian hussars...Also classical music orchestras wich made me feel how strong were the cultural traits shared with Austria, how deep the ties between Budapest and Vienna . There was at time this new year Vienna concert feel in the music and dances on the central stage . I was beginning to discover how sad the partition of the austro-hungarian empire had been for Hungary, wich lost two thirds of its historic territory in the process . And at the same time I could see that somehow this rich culture survived the 3 disasters of the 20th century : the partition , world war 2, and socialism , even if the latter was close to destroy completely the wine part of this culture...

Even when you just sit and just wait , something around may jump at you and make you learn something . I was waiting for someone on a bench near Szeremley's stand , when these blond kids jostled in front of me and handed me a copy of the hungarian edition of Decanter . I took that picture and leafed through the glossy magazine , surprised and interested by the pictures . There is no french version of Decanter, but Hungary has one . It says a lot about hungarians eagerness for everything related to wines . 15 minutes later , I realized that the mother of these nice kids was Agnes Nemeth, the editorial director of the magazine , and that she was sitting right behind me with advertisement chief Bernadett Poos ... We had a little talk , she told me Decanter Hungary would have its first anniversary in october this year , and that she worked with different journalists for the articles . I don't read hungarian , but the pictures are great , there are articles about Hungarian wines and estates and also wines from other countries , plus a "Duchemin" survey (named from the Louis de Funes character in a comedy about restaurant-guides inspectors) about a different restaurant each month .

Once , I was walking near a side stage when I thought I was beginning to understand hungarian... A moustached man was standing there in front of an magnetized audience . I stopped , listened and was cheered by the
visible humour and pleasure wich emanated by this one man show : The man was obviously explaining how to enjoy , compare , pair the wines , with successive jokes and anectotes wich reverbarated in the audience through laughs and comments . A few words get my attention : Syrah ... he mimics something to express the personality of the grape variety , then, an other word : Cabernet Sauvignon ! His mimic embodies perfectly the strong , tannic variety . Then , Sauvignon , he says , and he starts a sort of strange jerky dance to picture the character of Sauvignon...Have you ever been hypnotized by a speech or show in a language you had no knowledge about ? That's what I felt . Then he says a few more jokes . Now , seems he speaks about wine pairing , he and the assistance get another wine in their glass , plus some cheese ..... Roquefort.... Frantsia... Montpellier.... I am sure I understant hungarian now... Penizillin.... Roquefort.... Aromat.... Gordonzola.... Frantzia.... Bleu d'Auvergne.... Fourme d'Ambert .
All this seemingly wine pairing exposé is made with utter passion and virtuosity . I swear that even if you don't understand hungarian , just listen to him a hour and you will be thrilled by the passion and emotions of wine...Now , some wine regions far from here.... Bourgogne... Chambertain.... cuvée..... musikal..... fantastikus!..... pâte persillée.... He holds a piece of cheese , his voice tones down , suddenly sensual and vibrant as if about to unveil the Graal.... Some white wine is served to him and the audience. Silence as he religiously smells , swirls and tastes the wine . At the end of his hour-long course , enthusiastic applause in the audience, wich asks for more. I asked for his name . Some one said to me he was very well known in Hungary and wrote me his name : Dr Andras Goizmadia, but the guy did not write clearly and I am not sure of the spelling . He is one of the many persons that made this Borfalu an unforgettable experience .

At the end of my stay in Hungary, I bought a few bottles in a store named "In Vino Veritas" located at Dohany u. 58-62 . You can look at their website and check their wines on the 7 pages of their catalog . 1000 Ft make about 4,4 Euro .

Comments

[hungarian girl]

I know that man he taught me law at the college of commerce, catering and tourism. he is a huge expert! and very funny too