Special events at the Hungarian National Gallery: Wine Wednesday with wines from Eger

Besides special night events, guided tours and various concerts visitors at the Hungarian National Gallery and the Vasarely Museum this summer can also sample Eger wines on three occasions as part of the ongoing Wine Wednesday series.

„Wine tasting is a cultural activity. You can write poems about wine, you can ruminate on wine and you can discuss wine using a distinctive and wide-ranging vocabulary. You can turn to colours, shapes, moods and flavours to express the character of a wine but you can also describe it with the help of pictures. This is behind the concept of Wine Wednesdays up in the Buda Castle in the Hungarian National Gallery where you are surrounded by the most beautiful works of Hungarian art”, says dr. Gábor Bellák art historian and chief curator of the National Gallery.

Years ago the summer Wine Wednesdays at the Hungarian National Gallery were launched with the intention of introducing wine lovers to the treasures of Hungarian art. On the other hand the organizers also hoped that art lovers taking part in these events would recognize and appreciate the fact that wine – just like art – was part of our national heritage and culture.

Events of the Wine Wednesday series start in July and last until mid-August.

No two events are the same, there are different topics and wines each time. During the events visitors can access the temporary exhibitions as well as the permanent exhibitions. The current temporary exhibitions at the Hungarian National Gallery are „The Surrealist Movement from Dalí to Magritte” July 17 and 24, and „Every Past is My Past” #huszadikszázad #privátfotó #Fortepan July 24. On the first two Wednesdays in August, the Wine Wednesdays with the themes “Playful” and “Flowery” will move to the Vasarely Museum.

Fresh, fruity and playful are themes that suit the Eger Wine Region to a tee. The refreshing character of the egri csillag és egri bikavér wines in the classicus category make them perfect for summer consumption. Members of Eger Wine Workshop are keen to show the light and bright side of their wine region through these white and red blends among other wines.

The Eger lineup begins with the „fresh” theme on July 17 featuring the wines of Juhász Brothers and Tóth Ferenc wineries.

Both are family wineries where the involvement of the second generation has brought new ideas and momentum. This is a topic that will surely feature in the „Wine – and what’s behind it …” conversations. Music is provided by Zsuzsa Varga and the Zuzu Jazz, Gábor Bellák gives a presentation titled „Masterworks revisited”, and there are several guided tours scheduled for the night including one in English „Wines and stories in 19th century Hungary”.

On July 24 the topic is „fruity” and the hosts of Wine Wednesday are Petrény Winery and St. Andrea.

Both Eger wineries are dedicated advocates of the idea that truly high class wines can only be crafted from grapes coming from meticulously farmed vineyards in plots of individual character and the winemaker’s task is to transfer this character into the bottle. Music is provided by István Gyárfás and Enikő Molnár, there is going to be a discussion on how one can place their family photographs in the Fortepan collection, and one of the guided tours explores the hidden meaning of fruit and plant symbols in Hungarian painting.

On August 7 the series moves to Vasarely Museum where visitors can taste the wines of the most playful Eger winemaker Jani Bolyki.

The young winemaker has recently updated the label designs of his complete range. All the labels were hand drawn by a graphic artist and it takes just one look to be drawn into the fairy tale world where the Princess is a hippo riding on the back of a zebra. Art Bonbon combines music and dance with classic and contemporary reflections in the exhibition space, there is also a talk scheduled on the birth of op-art and a special guided tour of the temporary exhibition with the theme „Art and Space”.

For more information on Wine Wednesdays, please, visit: https://mng.hu/programtipusok/borszerda/
and for information on Eger Wines: https://www.facebook.com/egribormost/