June 11, 2011
Join us for a special day in the Eger region. We’ll spend much of the day at the Pentecost/Whitsunday Village Festival in the charming, and very traditional, village of Noszvaj. The program is all about food and wine, and we’ll have the chance to visit the homes of some of the villagers to taste home-cooked regional specialties. We’ll stop in Eger for a look around and a wine tasting, and then return to Noszvaj for dinner with wine pairings in the cellar of the Thummerer family’s winery. Throughout the day we’ll taste pinot noirs, kadarkas, and kékfrankos’, and learn all about the region’s signature wine, “Bull’s Blood”, tasting how much it has improved in recent years. Though Eger is better known for its reds, there will also be whites (including native varietals like leányka and kiralyleányka).
{9:30am} Depart from Budapest. We will meet at Batthyány tér and depart promptly.
{11:30} Arrive in Noszvaj, explore the family-cooking in the village.
—Visit Katalin Kovács, who will prepare a tarragon and pork ragout soup served in a loaf and a curd cheese and potato tart.
—Visit the home of Csaba Fülöp who will prepare a brick oven-baked pork tenderloin with potatoes and a selection of strudel. (Wine will be provided with lunch).
—Walk around the village and then take a walk in the vineyards around Noszvaj
{3:30pm} Tour and tasting of six wines at the award-winning Nimród Kovács winery, located on one of Eger’s several old neighborhoods of cellars.
{5pm} Walk around the center of Eger. Some of the sights you can visit on your own include the cathedral, the castle, the 17th century minaret, Dobó tér and the Baroque Minorite Church.
{6:30pm} Cellar tour and tasting at the Thummerer winery, which has deep stone cellars and makes ultra-traditional wine. A five-course wine-pairing dinner in the cellar will follow.
Tomato and eggplant chutney with cheese crisps
Sauvignon blanc 2007Cured Hungarian grey beef with thyme
Chardonnay 2008Trout with tarragon butter and warm bean salad
Olaszrizling 2007Confit of veal chops with vegetable rösti and wild mushrooms
Garabonciás cuvée 2006Poppyseed soufflé with cherries from Szomolyai
Kadarka 2003
Vili papa marc pálinka
{9pm} Arrive back in Budapest, drop-off at Batthyány tér.
Price: 30,000 HUF per person, all-inclusive of transportation and the above wine tastings and food. Space will be limited. Call or email (+36-30-298-0076) with any questions or to reserve your place. A 25 percent deposit (payable via paypal) will be required to hold your place.