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    Tokaj

    Hungary

    Volcanic hills in north-eastern Hungary, where noble rot is welcomed rather than feared.

    30–50° N30–50° SequatorTokaj
    Country
    Hungary
    Rocks in the profile
    clay, volcanic rock

    Volcanic ground

    The volcanoes here were active 9 to 15 million years ago, and more than 80% of the surface is covered by Sarmatian rhyolite tuff.1 The determining soil type is an acidic brown soil developed on a clay the dossier calls lymph-like.1 The product specification links Tokaj wines to the volcanic soils rock of the Zemplén Hills and the variety of the tuffs that cover it.2 Loess covers about 5% of the area, for example around Tarcal and Tokaj.2

    clayvolcanic rock
    Schematic profile based on the sources, not to scale.

    Aszú

    Aszú berries are grapes shrivelled on the vine by Botrytis cinerea and picked separately by hand at harvest.2 They must reach at least 45 refractometer per cent of sugar, and aszú must age for at least 18 months in wooden casks.2 The term "6 puttonyos" may appear only on aszú with at least 150 g/l of residual sugar.2 The permitted varieties are Furmint, Hárslevelű, Kabar, Kövérszőlő, Sárgamuskotály and Zéta.2

    A protected landscape

    Statutory protection began with the 1737 decree of Emperor Charles VI, King Charles III of Hungary, which UNESCO says established Tokaj as a closed wine region.1,3 The nomination dossier dates vineyard classifications to 1730, 1765 and 1772.1 Annual rainfall is around 600 to 620 mm, of which 370 to 390 mm falls in the growing season.1 The Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape was inscribed by UNESCO in 2002.3

    Timeline

    1. 1737

      A decree of Emperor Charles VI (King Charles III of Hungary) starts the statutory protection of the region.1

    2. 2002

      UNESCO inscribes the Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape on the World Heritage List.3

    Soils

    Sources

    1. Nomination dossier: Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape (1063). UNESCO World Heritage Centre / Hungary. level 2 · checked 2026-10-13
    2. TOKAJ termékleírás (OEM product specification), 2020. Agrárminisztérium (Hungary), boraszat.kormany.hu, 2020. level 1 · checked 2026-10-13
    3. Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape (World Heritage List, ref. 1063). UNESCO World Heritage Centre, 2002. level 2 · checked 2026-10-13