A royal decree pronounced Tokaj-Hegyalja the first closed wine region in the world in 1737. UNESCO World Heritage Committee added the region to the World Heritage List as the "cultural landscape of the Tokaj-Hegyalja historical wine region" in 2002. Mád is in the heart of this region.
People started to trade with wine here as early as the 1500s and 1600s. Traditionally, the dominant grape varieties were furmint, hárslevelű (French: Feuille de Tilleul) and sárgamuskotály (Muscat Lunel). Today we can also find kövérszőlő, zéta (Oremus) and gohér.
The late harvest traditionally starts here on Day of St. Jude (October 28). The typical white wines, such as Tokaji Furmint, Tokaji Hárslevelű and Sárgamuskotály, are born after this very day. However, overriped grapes (sometimes partly covered with botrytis, i.e. gray mold) are harvested later than the Day of St. Jude, rather at the end of November. As a result, the sugar content is quite high of these, so called, "aszú" wines, and they have a pleasant, fruity aroma. In addition to aszú, several typical regional wines are made in the Tokaj Wine Region, such as szamorodni, the so-called Tokaj "fordítás", "máslás" and "eszencia".
People have preserved the traditional ways of making these special type of wines. You may follow along every step of production of the Tokaj wine in the ancient wine cellars of traditional vineyards, villages and towns.