Check out the best Hungarian pálinka of the year!

When we talk about pálinka, thanks to the work of commercial pálinka distilleries, we can now think of a high-quality, real gastronomic speciality. It is one of the outstanding products of our nation and one of our Hungaricums. Márton Nobilis, Minister of State for Food Industry and Trade Policy of the Ministry of Agriculture, said this at the Awards Gala Evening of the National Pálinka Excellence Programme in Budapest.

National Pálinka Excellence Programme

The State Secretary recalled that the Ministry first announced the programme in 2014, Agrárszektor reports. The aim was to make quality Hungarian pálinka known and recognised on the domestic and foreign markets. According to Márton Nobilis, this year’s National Pálinka Excellence Programme was announced in the autumn. 16 pálinka houses entered a total of 103 entries.

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He added that the figures also show that despite the pandemic and the difficult economic situation caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine, the programme is becoming increasingly popular among commercial chefs.

The results and the winner

Based on the opinion of the professional jury, 67 entries from 13 pálinka houses finally qualified for the Excellence Programme. Of these, 49 entries got the Pálinka excellence and 18 entries the TOP Pálinka excellence.

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Following the success of previous years, this year, the jury selected the Ministry of Agriculture’s pálinka out of the TOP pálinka excellences. Lunczer Pálinka House’s entry of sour cherry pálinka won this title in 2022. It is a family-run distillery in the village of Kosd. The family founded it in the year of the establishment of the National Pálinka Excellence Programme. The award-winning drink is the fruit of years of high quality work, learning and experimentation.

“There is one thing that has not changed over the years and through the many changes. That is the Hungarian people’s love of pálinka,” concluded Márton Nobilis.

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Source: agrarszektor.hu