Actually I find the event really cool! First of all because it became quite popular and a lot of people were there. It surprised me...I am not an expert of grapeyards and wines and I thought these events are for professionals. I was wrong....... I drink alcohol only occassionally but I definitely like good wines. It seems I am not alone:)
The event is located at the Palace of Buda which is a perfect choice. A couple of weeks ago we went to the other "wine event" (Borfalu) and I didntt find the location attractive enough. But having the view of the Palace in the background gave a special atmosphere to the occasion.
The price of the day-ticket was 2200 HUF (a bit more than 10 USD) which is reasonable. This price included a glass with a little bag, two tasting coupons (each 80Ft) and your entrance ticket to your wrist. These gadgets provides the image to the event, its well organized or better to say, more or less it was. Our first problem was at the tent where they sold food. In large traditional pots called "bogrács" they cooked "pörkölt" (its a traditional Hungarian food) from beef but suddenly it became clear there is no bread or noodle beside it. It was cruel...but after like 20 mins and some "revolution" they brought bread. Otherwise the management was okay.
One of the speciality of the event was that you couldn't pay with money at all. After buying the entrance tickets, you could buy coupons at special kiosks. These coupons served you as money after the entrance if you wanted to try some wine or buy something to eat. To be honest, I didn't find it too practical. Several people didn't know about it, and they tried to pay with real money which was not accepted (it was after some debate) by the staff and it was not too convenient when more than twenty people were waiting in the line. On the other hand, I found this coupon thingy as a trick. One portion of "pörkölt" costed like 19 coupons (1 coupon was 80 HUF) which means 1520 HUF (apr. 7,5 USD). This price is expensive considering the circumstances (no place to sit, no service and only plastic utensils to eat with) and some people around us made remarks they sell the food at the price of gold.
But a wine festival is about wine.:) And in this term the festival was perfect. Hungary has very good wines and here you could find all the important brands and the famous cellars. In the last 20 years, a new generation of cellars appeared. Producing wine became again a traditional family business for some people, running their own grapefields with wineyard and cellars as in old times. It has a special atmosphere which makes the whole industry attractive to me.
I drank a lot:) First I tried a dry and white wine from Szekszárd but then I decided to concentrate on the foreign wines. The special guest of the festival was South Africa and I can admit they have great wines:) But our favorite was the Spanish and the very sweet Portugal one. Actually I regretted we didn't buy a bottle from that Porto.:)
I finished the tour with a white Argentinian wine. Then, we tried to get home by tramway. It was a long trip:)
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Present ideas
The event is located at the Palace of Buda which is a perfect choice. A couple of weeks ago we went to the other "wine event" (Borfalu) and I didntt find the location attractive enough. But having the view of the Palace in the background gave a special atmosphere to the occasion.
The price of the day-ticket was 2200 HUF (a bit more than 10 USD) which is reasonable. This price included a glass with a little bag, two tasting coupons (each 80Ft) and your entrance ticket to your wrist. These gadgets provides the image to the event, its well organized or better to say, more or less it was. Our first problem was at the tent where they sold food. In large traditional pots called "bogrács" they cooked "pörkölt" (its a traditional Hungarian food) from beef but suddenly it became clear there is no bread or noodle beside it. It was cruel...but after like 20 mins and some "revolution" they brought bread. Otherwise the management was okay.
One of the speciality of the event was that you couldn't pay with money at all. After buying the entrance tickets, you could buy coupons at special kiosks. These coupons served you as money after the entrance if you wanted to try some wine or buy something to eat. To be honest, I didn't find it too practical. Several people didn't know about it, and they tried to pay with real money which was not accepted (it was after some debate) by the staff and it was not too convenient when more than twenty people were waiting in the line. On the other hand, I found this coupon thingy as a trick. One portion of "pörkölt" costed like 19 coupons (1 coupon was 80 HUF) which means 1520 HUF (apr. 7,5 USD). This price is expensive considering the circumstances (no place to sit, no service and only plastic utensils to eat with) and some people around us made remarks they sell the food at the price of gold.
But a wine festival is about wine.:) And in this term the festival was perfect. Hungary has very good wines and here you could find all the important brands and the famous cellars. In the last 20 years, a new generation of cellars appeared. Producing wine became again a traditional family business for some people, running their own grapefields with wineyard and cellars as in old times. It has a special atmosphere which makes the whole industry attractive to me.
I drank a lot:) First I tried a dry and white wine from Szekszárd but then I decided to concentrate on the foreign wines. The special guest of the festival was South Africa and I can admit they have great wines:) But our favorite was the Spanish and the very sweet Portugal one. Actually I regretted we didn't buy a bottle from that Porto.:)
I finished the tour with a white Argentinian wine. Then, we tried to get home by tramway. It was a long trip:)
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Present ideas