Royal Tokaji Essencia drinking temperature

Have never had this before… am planning on opening my 1999 bottle for Mother’s day. I understand this is pretty intense and is a sipping drink.

I’m guessing it’s probably best at room temperature. Would be interested hearing opinions on serving temperature.

I will probably use Riedel 416 “Rheingau” glasses for this. Would also be interested in hearing alternatives for that as well.

Knowing my mom, she will probably hate it.

I have a couple bottles of this but have not had it either. I would think slightly under room temp, although I think it finished out at something like 2.9% abv so room temp shouldn’t be a problem.

The couple of times I have had it recently it has been started at cellar temp or just above and left out … I think that worked very well. I wouldn’t want it colder than cellar temp and think that many nuances came out as it slightly warmed…but too warm and I think it loses focus and depth.

Chill it.

Unless your room is a meat locker.

Then room temp is OK.

But in the USA, most people keep their rooms at 70 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s deadly for ANY wine IMHO. And if it’s a sweet wine, like an Auslese, it’s usually better considerably cooler than 70 degrees F.

The cellars in Tokaj are pretty cold - like low 50s. I’ve had lots of wine in those cellars and it’s just fine at that temp. When not in the cellar, people always chill it down to around that. I’ve gotten kind of nauseous drinking that stuff too warm - it’s like drinking a glass of maple syrup.

Remember, the warmer the beverage, the more you taste sugar and alcohol. Think about Vodka you pull out of the freezer as opposed to the bottle sitting on the windowsill.

Despite the high sugar content in that wine, the point of it is NOT simply to taste a shitload of sugar. In that case, you may as well just have warm or room temp Pepsi. You don’t want the wine cold enough to kill all the flavor, but you want it cold enough to be palatable and prevent the sugar from overwhelming you entirely. It’s going to warm up in your mouth obviously, so let that happen naturally so you get some of the complexity of the wine before you’re slammed into smithereens by the sugar. Plus, if it’s too cold initially, let it sit for a couple of minutes. Unless you drink all of your whites very warm, make sure it’s at least the temp you’d serve a decent white, if not a bit cooler.

Besides, whatever your preference ends up being, I think it’s always better to start out too cold than too warm because all you need to do is wait a couple of minutes, whereas starting out too warm means you have to get up and put your glass in the freezer.

Enjoy! It’s cool stuff.

Thanks for the replies so far! I tend to like wines on the cooler side (even reds!), so I will probably chill it to around 45-50 F.

I like drinking maple syrup so I will probably like this.

I like cellar temp for beginning. 55 degrees F at my house. It intensifies the sense of acidity. If you have it at room temperature, you won’t really get to see the acidity that underpins these great wines.
My opinion only.

Greg T is spot on. Agree with all who say 50-55 degrees to start. You can watch it develop as it warms and decide for yourself where it hits the “sweet spot” with the ideal balance between RS and acid.

Wine & Spirits calls this a 100 point wine and I can see why after tasting. This really is ambrosia. Try to imagine eating a flawless and perfectly ripe fruit that is a cross between a peach, plum, orange, and fig. Now imagine doing so while standing in a bitter orange tree grove which is in full blossom.

Finish lasts for at least three minutes. Unbelievable. Worth opening the bottle.

I’m going to try to savor the bottle as long as I can with a Rabbit stopper and wine preserver gas!

P.S. - I went with a temp of 50F (used a thermo chiller) but I think it does do a bit better by just putting it in the fridge. I used Diva Liquor glasses which worked very well. Since such a small amount is poured, the temp climbs rather quickly.