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Kadarka/Kadarska/Skadarska/Gamza
Based on the genetic tests, it is a blue grape variety of Balkan origin, but is now considered entirely of the Carpathian basins. It seems certain that it is the very first blue grape that was started to be cultivated in the Carpathian basin at that time. It is found in the greatest quantity in the wine regions of the Great Plain, in Szekszárd, around Eger and in Vojvodina in Serbia. It is also from here that it is known today to wine regions.
Its current production area in Hungary is about 950 ha, most of which is still in the Danube Wine Region. It really likes loess soils, but the higher lime content does not prevent it from giving serious quality. Wine can also be very beautiful in plantations located on shale rock. On sandy soils, it produces less concentrated, but spicy, elegant wines.
What else do we know about Kadarka? For example, that it is difficult to grow because it is a sensitive variety, like pinot noir it can be classified as one of the queens of grape varieties. Anything bad that can happen to grapes usually does. Frost-sensitive, hard-to-grow variety. It produces good quality only with traditional forms of capital, it does not feel comfortable being forced into a cordon. In addition, it is also changeable, it does not preserve its properties strictly, and as a result it is prone to frequent mutations. It's no coincidence that one of the most frequently asked questions about kadarka is, which can be the real kadarka? This is precisely the characteristic of the breed that causes the most headaches for farmers - and often for consumers as well.
Like all sensitive breeds, it does not like being considered as a raw material for mass production. For this reason, it requires a lot of manual labor, but it pays off in a good vintage. The grape variety is a pinot noircollects relatively few tannins, its wine is acidic. However, the often translucent color and slimmer body are compensated by the rich, spicy aroma, smooth texture and nice acids. The truly concentrated kadarka is exciting, lovely, velvety and elegant. And it can be aged. It is a favorite component of various marriages.
It is no coincidence that in the days of large-scale production it was not possible to go far with it, its wine did not give what was expected of it either in terms of quantity or quality. The rebirth of the kadarka therefore roughly coincides with the so-called with system change (1989/90). The private bottlers that started in the early 90s first took action in Szekszárd in the case of kadarka, and then others came - Eger, Villány, Duna wine region, Arad-Hegyalja in Romania and Szerémség in Serbia.
The most beautiful kadarkas grow in different corners of the Carpathian Basin. Szekszárd, Villány or Szerémség in Vojvodina can produce wines just as popular and valuable as Eger, Mužla in Serbia, the area around Horgos, or Ménes in Romania. Almost all producers count on it for new installations. The demand for it is expected to increase even more in the next decade. In recent years, Kadarka has become almost a national affair, and some Hungarian consumers buy its wine with great enthusiasm and dedication. It would also be a special spot on the world wine market, it is worth getting to know its best producers.
The most beautiful wine cellars of the Hungarian regions are in the little-known Pázmánd areas (Etyek-Buda), in the cellar of József Szentesi, in Eger at the Orsolya Cellar, at Lajos Gál, at the Csutorás and St. Andrea Cellars, at Balázs Sziegl's and Csaba Koch's cellars in Hajós, in Csongrád-Bokros, at Bodor Martin Családi in his cellar, also in Ferenc Gulyás winery in Csongrád-Bokros, in Csongrád at Bodor Borház, in Tolna at Grál Szőlőbirt, in Szekszárd at almost all serious producers (Vida, Vestztergombi, Takler, Janó Németh, Heimann, Eszterbauer, Schieber, Szent Gaál). It was held in high esteem in Villány before the phylloxera disaster, but today its cultivation has declined somewhat. The independently trained barracks of Sauska Birtok, Jekl Pince, Zoltán Günzer, Tamás Günzer, and József Bock are perhaps the most exciting in this circle.
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