Furmint

"Arany" redirects here. For the Romanian village of Uroi, called Arany in Hungarian, see Simeria.
"Mainak" redirects here. For the shooting suspect, see 2016 UCLA shooting.
Furmint
Grape (Vitis)
Furmint grape cluster
Color of berry skinBlanc
SpeciesVitis vinifera
OriginHungary, Slovakia
Pedigree parent 1Gouais Blanc
Notable winesTokaji
Formation of seedsComplete
Sex of flowersHermaphrodite
VIVC number4292

Furmint (also known as Mainak) is a white Hungarian wine grape variety that is most noted widely grown in the Tokaj-Hegyalja wine region where it is used to produce single-varietal dry wines as well as being the principal grape in the better known Tokaji dessert wines. It is also grown in the tiny Hungarian wine region of Somló. Furmint plays a similar role in the Slovakian wine region of Tokaj. It is also grown in Austria where it is known as Mosler. Smaller plantings are found in Slovenia where it is known as Šipon. The grape is also planted in Croatia and Serbia, where it is known as Moslavac. It is also found in Romania and in former republics of the Soviet Union.[1] Furmint is a late ripening variety. For dry wines the harvest starts usually in September, however sweet wine specific harvest can start in the second half of October or even later, and is often affected by Botrytis.[2]

The name Furmint may have been taken from the word froment for the wheat-gold color of the wine it produces. While it is possible that the grape was brought to Hungary in the 13th century during the reign of King Béla IV,[3][4] ampelographers believe that the grape is likely native to the region.[5]

  1. ^ Oz Clarke Encyclopedia of Grapes pg 90 Harcourt Books 2001 ISBN 0-15-100714-4
  2. ^ J. Robinson (ed) "The Oxford Companion to Wine" Third Edition pg 292 & 348 Oxford University Press 2006 ISBN 0-19-860990-6
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference DiWine was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Wein-Plus was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours pgs 37, 373-375, 1115 Allen Lane 2012 ISBN 978-1-846-14446-2