The Carpathian Basin is a wonderful place for those who love variety and quality in wine. Wineries with the longest history are found within Hungary, however, some interesting vine-growing areas and vintners can be found beyond its borders.
The Primatical Wine Guild was established by Cardinal Dr. Péter Erdő, the Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest and Hungary’s Primate, to preserve and develop this colorful wine culture, with the additional goal of making the treasures produced in the Carpathian Basin more widely known and recognized abroad.
The 12-member Wine Guild counts Julius Janus, Archbishop and Apostolic Nuncio, Dr. Árpád Kovács, president of the State Audit Office of Hungary, Dr. Zoltán Lomniczi, chairman of the Supreme Court of Hungary, and Dr. Szilveszter Vizi E., president of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, among its own, together with captains of Hungarian industry. The Wine Guild, born of an exemplary cooperation among chief representatives of the cultural, economic and scientific life of Hungary who support Hungary’s wine culture, established a committee of respected professionals charged with choosing the Primatical Wines, i.e., wines that will carry the Vinum Primatis distinction. The group of wines is compiled via a strict selection from among the handcrafted wines of Hungary’s best winemakers. Vinum Primatis Zrt. will purchase the entire stock of the selected wines, and distribute them both domestically and abroad.
The activities of the company, which is partly owned by the church, will not end there. It will conduct events, wine dinners and tastings, first in Hungary, Poland and Transylvania, and will develop and operate the professional programs to be held in the 3,000 square-meter cellar complex below the Esztergom Cathedral. The cellar, expected to open in summer 2010, will be home to an interactive wine museum introducing the wines of the Carpathian Basin, a tourist center and a restaurant.
The Vinum Primatis brand store is located in the Buda Castle district, where in addition to the Vinum Primatis and Vinum Liturgicum wines, visitors can also find other excellent wines from Hungary and the surrounding countries of the Carpathian Basin. This year Vinum Primatis will appear independently for the first time at the XVII. Budapest International Wine and Champagne Festival, to be held September 10th-14th in the Castle District, at stand No. 25. Vinum Primatis’ current wine selection will be available, and in addition, visitors can taste and pre-purchase the best wines scheduled to come to the market in the fall.
