Awesome and fun wine events you’ll love in Hungary – part 1
I love a wine event, don’t you? The opportunity to taste lots of different wines, without the hassle of travelling to vineyards, which let’s face it are usually located in places which weren’t exactly easy to get to in the first place! I’ve been travelling to Hungary extensively since 2013. During that time have tasted my fair share of wines. But it is only recently that I have really discovered some amazing wine events in Hungary, and just how many of them there are. And how good they are!
So this is a guide for the uninitiated into Hungarian wine events. Before I start though – Disclaimer: There are a lot of events in Hungary and I cannot possibly cover them all. I’m just covering the ones I have personally experienced, and sharing my views on them.
The Szeged Wine Festival
Szeged Synagogue
The votive Church and Square, Szeged
So let’s start with probably the biggest – the Szeged wine festival. Szeged is a city which is located about 2 and a half hours from Budapest by train. It sits to the South of the country close to the borders with both Serbia and Romania (which are also both beautiful places to visit). The city itself is worth an overnight stop with some nice sights – churches, synagogues, museums, etc… It is also hosting the World Hot Air Balloon Championships in 2024, and who doesn’t love a sky full of Hot Air Balloons?
Particular highlights for me were the Szeged Synagogue and the Votive church, both of which were well worth a visit.
Szeged is not especially known as a wine producing area, although it is conveniently located not too far from some of the big hitters.
While the main attraction here is obviously the wine, there was also a good selection of other forms of entertainment. Dance, music, fireworks, jugglers – it was all possible to see.
One the second weekend (which sadly I missed) the event extends and fills the bridge across the Tisa river and includes more stalls, Hungarian crafts and delicacies. I’ve since found out that Szegedi Paprika is one of the two best varieties in Hungary, so its probably worth picking some up here if you visit.
The festival itself takes place each year in May and lasts for around 10 days. There are literally hundreds of Hungarian wineries represented and pretty much the whole town is taken over with the event. Other stalls, such a food stalls, arts and crafts stalls and stalls selling palinka are also present. As a musician I particularly enjoyed the music stages and the performers were very good quality. I was there for two days, and I definitely recommend arriving late afternoon, there was not a lot going on in the mornings. Although it was a easier to get wine from the stalls that were open!
The event had a really good atmosphere. It was busy but not over crowded. All the wine I had was very good. I even tried to Hungarian cider and ‘wine’ made from cherries.
Payment for everything was by card, either credit card or a special card which you could buy and top up specifically for the event. Glasses were available to hire, and get a refund on when returned.
Wines were very affordable for a glass, and didn’t struggle to try a significant number. Some of the stalls were being manned by the owners, others by staff who had been hired for the event. I very much enjoyed chatting to the owners about their wines.
This is one I’d definitely do again, and I enjoyed the train journey as well. Hungary has some really nice Intercity trains. I upgraded to 1+ seats as a bit of a treat which meant reclining cinema style seats and plenty of leg room. This was great as I’d spent a lot of time walking around.
More information at: https://szegediborfesztival.hu/ closer to May.
The Wine Lovers Grand, Budapest
By contrast with the Szeged wine festival, this one was more of a formal affair, right in the heart of Budapest. Hosted by the Corinthia hotel, this event was a showcase of wine producers from across Hungary. But this time the set up was quite different. Firstly, the Corinthia hotel is a nice venue, it oozes luxury and class. Secondly, at this event the payment was made upfront and all of the wines (sample sizes) were free. There was an impressive array of different styles on show and some producers I hadn’t come across before. I hired my glass and got stuck straight in!
By chance a number of people I know were also in attendance including Smike and Suze from Bortodoor (one of my favourite wine bars in the city). So I got quite a bit of insider knowledge on what was worth having a taste of. Without this it may have been a little overwhelming. Being a sucker for sparkling wines, I managed to explore a number of very decent examples before moving on to some more serious wines. I was also introduced to an American ex-pat via the Bortodoor crew who graciously accompanied me for much of my time at the event. Although I clearly lacked her elegance in dress sense, it was nice to share the experience with someone. I always find wine is best enjoyed in good company and good conversation.
I would say the event is a great introduction to Hungarian wine and a great chance to try lots of different wines all in one place. Strangely I found this busier than I found Szeged. This is possibly because it was indoors with less circulation space. There was also food available, and I believe a VIP area which could be accessed by buying a better ticket. During the day there were also some wine education talks, which were chargeable as well. All in all a nice experience. I needed to leave early in order to get to another event, so I probably didn’t get my money’s worth out of the slight pricey ticket. I’ll know better next time! Sadly no photos from this one.
More information at: https://wineloversrendezvenyek.hu/
Budapest Gourmet Fesztival
So I only found out this event was taking place by accident when I was chatting with my friend Gabor at the Faust Wine Cellar (which is well worth a visit). The event is an annual event which combines the best of cuisine with some fine examples of wine from Hungary and beyond. I only had a couple of hours to spend here, so I dived straight in!
The Fesztival is held in one of Budapest’s amazing green spaces, which lends it a really nice atmosphere. As with previous events, all payments are electronic, and you hire a glass. The restaurants represented were some of the best in the city, and I managed to find a really good chicken tagine which I really enjoyed. This was washed down by traditional Moroccan mint tea, which was very pleasant. I also found some of the best Macarons that I have ever tasted!
For me the vibe here was quite relaxed and it felt like a slightly more upmarket version of the Szeged wine Festival. The addition of high quality food to the wine discovery was no bad thing. And there were a number of wineries that I really enjoyed tasting from. They had one of my favourite Sauvignon Blancs from the Anonym Cellar in Etyek
A particular mention has to go to the Carastelec winery for their award winning sparkling wines. Although they are not technically Hungarian, but Romanian, their wines were mind-blowingly good. The blanc de blancs was phenomenal and the staff their spoke to me for ages about their wines. I always appreciate it when people are willing to share their passion for wine. So good was the wine there that I’ve sourced a place to buy it from in the city. I will be getting some next time I’m in Budapest.
My rookie mistake here was not buying a ticket for the full length of the event, but just for one day, and having a tour booked on the same day. Having longer here would have made it much better value.
So these are three wine events you should look into if you are in Budapest. But honestly, I have barely scratched the surface and I’ve optimistically named this part 1, as I know there will be a part 2, and potentially more to come. If you visit Hungary, I hope you stop by one or more of these events, let me know if you do. In the meantime, keep exploring this beautiful planet we live on, one glass at a time!