Egervin Bulls blood 2003

Domaine: Egervin
Country: Hungary
Region: Eger
Vintage: 2003
Style: Red
Grapes: Kadarka, Kékfrankos, Blauer and possibly others
Declared Alcohol (on label): 12%
Approximate Price: $9/bottle
Date Reviewed: 6/20/2009
Reviewed By: Galen Ricci


Appearance:
Clear medium ruby core withe a light ruby/tawny rim. An ever so slight watery edge, and average moving, slightly colored legs.

Nose:
Clean without any cork flaws (TCA/TCB) or oxidization, and smells developed with a medium intensity aroma. Characteristics of Red Cherry, Red Raspberry, a little leather, and a sort of baked fruit smell, behind caramel (possibly from oak aging).

Palate:
Dry with medium acidity, medium - tannins, medium - alcohol, medium - body, medium flavor intensity and medium - length. Characteristics of Red apple, sour cherry, tart raspberry, plum and a little leather.

Conclusion:
The wine falls into the good category, it is ready to drink now, and is mid-priced for this style of wine.

Authors Notes:
This is the first bulls blood wine I have ever had. One of my wine classes covered Hungary, Austria, Romania, and Greece, so naturally we drank tokaji, zwegelt, pinot noir, and agiorgitiko from the respective regions. We did talk about bulls blood, but didnt taste one in class, so one day I saw it on a shelf for 10.99 and decided to give it a shot. So in all fairness I can evaluate the wine's attributes, but I have no other experience to compare it to. I kinda like it and for the price I feel as though this has been a good experience, I would buy another bulls blood again, but I would seek out another producer so I can see how this one compares. I like the body, and the 12% alcohol, the acidity is balanced. I would have like a little more aroma intensity, but the flavors make up for the lean bouquet. I really like the sour cherry and tart raspberry. Its should pair well with the bolognese sauce that I'm having for dinner, similar to a sangiovese from italy, except less tannins and lighter body. Which is not a bad thing. Most people would probably not like this wine because its lean, and a bit thin, but those who enjoy the experience of something unique and can appreciate lean wines might enjoy it more. Especially at this price, which believe it or not is about mid-priced for bulls blood. Im not going to score this wine, because I dont have another bulls blood to compare it to.

After some time I came back to this wine and Im starting to think that its slightly 'corked'. Its barely perceivable (if at all) on the nose, but on the mid-palate theres a little bit of a cardboard/musty flavor, however its only detectable for a brief moment before the sour/tart fruit takes charge again. In someways this doesnt surprise me because its not like bulls blood is flying off of retailers shelves, not to mention this is a 2003, so it could have been sitting around for a long time. I am not very familiar with bulls blood, and I can imagine this wine isnt really intended for prolonged bottle aging. Anyone else ever tried bulls blood?

Heres the wiki on bulls blood:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egri_Bikav%C3%A9r