Founded in 2002 by Loire-trained winemaker Stéphanie Berecz and her husband Zsolt in Tarcal, Kikelet crafts mineral dry whites and late-harvest wines from volcanic-rock cellars carved into the village bedrock.
Signature wines: kikelet-furmint, kikelet-harslevelu, kikelet-late-harvest
Tip: Stéphanie Berecz was awarded Winemaker of Winemakers by her peers in 2014; the natural-rock cellar environment is a highlight of any visit.
Address: Könyves Kálmán utca 62, 3915 Tarcal, Hungary, Tokaj
Barta Winery in Mád crafts single-vineyard Furmint from the historic Öreg Király dűlő and structured Aszú from meticulously tended volcanic hillside plots above the village.
Tasting: Wine shop and cellar tastings at Rákóczi utca 83, Mád; book via email or phone.
Signature wines: barta-oreg-kiraly-furmint, barta-aszu-6-puttonyos
Tip: The Rákóczi utca wine shop doubles as the tasting room; the Öreg Király (Old King) Furmint is the estate's signature white.
The Sauska family's Tokaj winery, with a new Rátka facility opened in 2023, produces sparkling Furmint, dry whites and Aszú alongside the estate's Villány reds under the same family label.
Tasting: Winery tastings and visits at the Rátka facility, opened November 2023.
Signature wines: sauska-furmint, sauska-tokaj-aszu
Tip: The traditional-method sparkling Furmint is an unusual and rewarding expression of the grape's high natural acidity.
Tokaj Nobilis was founded in 2000 in Bodrogkeresztúr by winemaker Sarolta Bárdos and her husband Péter Molnár; the 7-hectare estate focuses on single-vineyard expressions and also offers guesthouse accommodation.
Tasting: Winery visits, tastings and accommodation in Bodrogkeresztúr; booking via website.
Signature wines: tokaj-nobilis-barakonyi-furmint, tokaj-nobilis-aszu
Tip: Sarolta Bárdos is one of the region's most compelling advocates for dry Furmint; the Barakonyi plot delivers notably saline minerality.
Pendits in Abaújszántó became Hungary's first Demeter-certified biodynamic winery in 2011 and the region's first certified organic estate in 2008, producing low-intervention Furmint and rare Aszú Essencia.
Tasting: Winery visits by appointment in Abaújszántó.
Signature wines: pendits-furmint, pendits-aszu-essencia
Tip: The first Hungarian winery to achieve both Demeter biodynamic and organic certification; a reference point for natural-leaning Tokaj.
Bott Pince is a 6-hectare family estate founded in 2005, farming six single vineyards across Tokaj with no herbicides, no enzymes and spontaneous fermentation from native yeasts.
Tasting: Visits by appointment only; contact via email.
Signature wines: bott-csontos-furmint, bott-teleki-furmint
Tip: With only 6 hectares split among six named plots, each bottling is genuinely single-site; the Csontos from Erdőbénye-Olaszliszka slopes is the most characteristic.
Founded in 1989 on Tokaj's historic wine merchants' street by Erzsébet Prácser, one of the region's first female winemakers, this family cellar produces traditional dry and sweet Tokaj styles.
Tasting: Cellar tastings in the heart of Tokaj town; booking via website.
Signature wines: erzsebet-furmint-dry, erzsebet-aszu-5-puttonyos
Tip: The cellar sits on Bem Street, the historic wine trading street of Tokaj town; the family's personal history spans the transition from state to private winemaking.
