Gala dinner with Foreign Ministers

This time, the gala dinner on 11 March, was hosted by the Function Hall of the Hungarian National Museum. The place where once the upper house of people’s representative national assembly of 1848, held its meetings and operated until the Parliament Building was erected. The square in front of the museum was a key scene of the Hungarian revolution: it was this place where on 15 March 1848, Sándor Petőfi recited the National anthem, his poem inspired by the revolution. Founded in 1802, the Hungarian National Museum is not merely just one of the many museums in Budapest, nor is it simply a building where the national collection is stored. It is the symbol of national freedom, as we remember it now, and at the beginning of spring, in the Ides of March.

As opposed to previous dinners, hosting hundreds of guests, and to the originally anticipated turnover rate, only forty visitors took part at this gala dinner, which created an intimate atmosphere. Guests arriving at the classicist building, is decorated by the frescos of Károly Lotz, Mór. Than, and other prominent painters of the 19^th century, were welcomed with Törley Chardonnay Brut, 2006 sparkling wine, orange juice and mineral water. Visitors were entertained, by Rajkó Art Ensemble’s show, featuring works by Brahms and Kodály, and later the Duna Dance Ensemble performed. 

This time, the wines served came from the Northern Transdanubian Wine Region. The region includes four sub-regions around Buda and the Danube section, north of Budapest. The Sopron Wine Sub-Region, next to the Austro-Hungarian border, is also a part of the region. The total area of these sub-regions is 23,000 hectares, with 6500 hectares of crop area.

Wines and meals of the dinner

The wine: Maurus Ezerjó 2007 (Maurus Winery)

With barely 800 hectares of crop area, the Mór Wine Sub-Region has a climate, which is relatively cool compared to other parts of Hungary. It is characterised by mild winters, wet summers, and windy weather. Its dominant grape variety is a historic white one, called “Ezerjó”, which became the principal variety during the replanting, after the late 19^th century phylloxera epidemic. The grape comes from a 25-30-year-old vineyard whose soil is a mixture of loess and lime. The must was fermented in 225-liter barrels, partly using the grape’s own yeast. The masculine wines of Mór, usually reaches their full strength, three years after the harvest, and their unique taste, also matures in the third year. This wine was in its third year and in its best form.

Starter for the wine: pheasant mousse with forest mushrooms

Pheasant mousse was made of pheasant meat, prepared at a low temperature (58°C), chopped to thin slices, seasoned with Dijon mustard and tarragon; and lastly, together with eggs and cream, filled into cottage bread rolls, specially prepared for this purpose. This was topped with the slightly elder-scented agar-agar discs, incorporating forest mushrooms and rose petals, and sprinkled with five different savoury and healthy fresh vegetables, such as beet leaves, onion germs and watercress, which not only functioned as a decoration.A borhoz az előétel: Fácán mousse erdei gombákkal. 

This starter presented many surprises. It was pouring out fabulously rich flavours, ranging from the mousse’s pleasant tarragon and the soft wine’s bouquet to the unique spring flavours of green and crimson germ vegetables. The agar-agar discs would have made it even by themselves. Germ vegetables also brought many surprises from melon and anise to fresh onion. The starter seemed as if it wanted to make a worthy pair of the excellent Mór wine’s name: “Ezerjó” (‘thousand good’). Indeed, it was a “thousand good.” The Choice of meal and wine really complimented one another.

The soup: fried paprika soup with garlic chips

Fried paprika evokes both Hungarian cuisine, and Greece and Spain, Hungary’s southern neighbours. Its preparation requires oil, onion, fried paprika, and cream. It is customary with cream soups. The ready-made beautiful and flattering soup, receives some pumpkinseed oil, garlic chips and a thin slice of fried capia paprika, immediately before serving. It was a restrained, femininely elegant, and smooth soup. It was served hot, with just the right thickness and a pleasant style.

The wine: Etyeki Pinot Noir 2006 (Mansion of Etyek)

The nearest vineyards to Budapest are located in the neighbourhood of Etyek, at the base of the Buda Hills. The total crop area of these plantations, accounts for 2000 hectares. Since the phylloxera epidemic (1895), it transformed this wine sub-region, which is now characterised by white wine, and particularly base wine for sparkling wines. The grape of Etyek Pinot Noir 2006, was harvested from a crop area of merely two hectares, and fermented in a wooden tub and then half of it was put in new barrels, and the other half in second-used barrels for 10 months. It has a beautiful crimson colour, high alcohol content, and a medium intensive, unmistakable pinot noir bouquet on the nose.

The main dish prepared, to accompany the wine was mangalitza loin, with potato béles and cabbage, boiled in red wine. Mangalitza, is native to Hungary and was already a wide-spread breed at the time of the Hungarian National Museum’s foundation, at the beginning of the 19^th century. Today, it is protected by law. The dish resembles a Wellington tenderloin steak, but despite the similarity in looks, they differ in many ways. The mangalitza loin had been prepared at 68°C for 24 hours. It grew to be tender and soft. The meat was surrounded by red cabbage boiled with red wine, and topped with potato dough, and was finally baked as a whole. It was served sliced, with cold cooked lentils in onion and vinegar. The dish was a spectacular choice, and a beautiful sight, one with varied tastes. It elicited the best characteristics of Etyek Pinot Noir 2006. It was worth preparing, and was worthy of the distinguished event: it has international and Hungarian influence at the same time.

The spirit: Gönci apricot pálinka (Bestillo Pálinka House)

The pálinka with the protected geographical indication “Gönci”, it was made from apricot, the characteristic fruit of a town in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County, called Gönc, which is also famous for its barrel. The significance of the fruit in the region is clearly shown by the fact that 35-40 percent of Hungary’s apricot produce comes from Zemplén and Abaúj, especially from the neighbourhood of Gönc. With its 1800-1900 annual sunny hours on average and other favourable ecological conditions, this land is one of the best for growing apricot in the country. The primary variety, is the Hungarian kajszi, but other authorised varieties, such as the Hungarian kajszi of Gönc and the crimson kajszi of Cegléd, are also grown here. The pálinka, is produced from a mash, which is fermented for 6-10 days, then distilled and aged for at least 3 months. This is how the Gönci apricot pálinka, which has protected designation of origin, reaches its full and harmonic taste.

The Gönci apricot pálinka, was matched with an excellent choice, a classic Hungarian dessert, Rákóczi túrós pie. This emblematic confectionery, which is often spoken of along with Dobos torte and Somló sponge cake, was named after its inventor, master chef, János Rákóczi. It has been a popular and fashionable pastry ever since the 1930s. Its recipe was first published in the December 1937, issue of Magyar Szakács. Rákóczi túrós became internationally known fifty years ago, in the Brussels World Fair (1958), where eventually János Rákóczi led the Hungarian restaurants.

The dessert was a composition of seven drop-shaped Rákóczi túrós pastries, arranged in harmony with the ornament, which was drawn on the plate. The ornament revoked the trailing colourful embroideries, which were frequently depicted in animated Hungarian folk tales. The halved current berries, also formed part of the pattern. The small Rákóczi túrós pieces, preserved every characteristics of the originally more robust pastry. Its layers were composed of linzer, cottage cheese cream, apricot jam made of gelatine sheet, and meringue. Overall, it gave a perfect representation of the original pastry. The dessert was served in a decorative manner, and provided good sets of taste.

We had a gala dinner, which was well considered and elaborately performed; both in its entirety, and in its individual parts. Tastes came out clearly, understandably and in good matches. The serving was well considered and natural. It was a dinner worthy of the foreign ministers’ meeting.

Sándor Csíki