2019 Réka Konz 'Robin' Pet'nat

Region: Barabás < Hungary

Grape: Királyleányka; Riesling; Hárslevelű; Furmint

Winemaker:  Annamária Réka Koncz

We're obsessed with Réka Konz, a tiny, female-founded and run estate
in Hungary near the Ukrainian border.  Annamária Réka Konz studied
enology and got her Masters in Agriculture, then traveled around
working in vineyards (Slovenia, Italy, France) and settled in the
natural wine centric community in Copenhagen.  After this natural wine
immersion, she realized she had everything she needed to make her own
natural wine in the place where she grew up, so she returned to her
hometown near the village of Barabás and bought 3 acres.  Since her
first release in 2016, she is the only commercial (and certainly
exported) producer in a once highly regarded but currently forgotten
region, where the climate and soils are more akin to nearby Tokaj.
According to our importer, Eric Danch, "her vines are crazy,  with
6-10 foot arms sprawling out with multiple birds nests burrowed in.
The place is buzzing with birds, bugs, and even some openings to
badger dens. As you walk around you eventually end up at an obelisk
with the colors of the Hungarian flag. The border with Ukraine
and within eyesight, you can also see occupied guard towers on the
next few hills over. The biological and geopolitical diversity here is
palpable".

This is Annamária's Méthode Ancestrale (Pét-nat) made with a Királyleánka-heavy field blend along with Rhine Riesling, Hárslevelű and a small amount of Furmint. It’s like the sparkling version of the Óra, her orange wine that everyone loved last fall. Bottled undisgorged, it's cloudy, with he thicker skins of the older clones and organic farming maintain a surprising structure along with the brightness and life present in all her wines. Aromatic, intensely mineral, and the added texture mixed with the bubbles make it really delicious. She only made 66 cases, so we are lucky to get even one.