Visit from St. Andrea Winery – Spotlight on Kékfrankos

We recently had the pleasure of welcoming a special guest to Neighbor Wine Store: András Bozó from the St. Andrea Winery visited us and brought along some truly exciting wines, which are now available in our store – and also online.

During the visit, we didn’t just taste excellent wines – we also had a meaningful conversation about the winery’s present and future. It was particularly interesting to hear that St. Andrea has deliberately been focusing more on Kékfrankos(Blaufränkisch) in recent years – and for good reason.

Kékfrankos is an incredibly versatile grape variety and is of strategic importance for Hungarian viticulture. Recent experience shows that it adapts particularly well to increasingly unpredictable weather conditions: it handles summer heat and drought with ease but can also ripen beautifully in cooler vintages. Additionally, it has excellent natural resistance to common diseases, making it a great choice for more sustainable vineyard management.

But Kékfrankos isn’t just a great option from a production perspective. The wines themselves are truly impressive: they offer vibrant fruit, lively acidity, elegance, and complexity. These qualities make them excellent blending partners, but they are also increasingly popular as single-varietal wines – especially among younger wine drinkers who tend to prefer fruit-forward, fresher styles.

Recognizing this versatility, St. Andrea has increased the proportion of Kékfrankos in several of their wines – including in the Hangács Egri Bikavér, which now draws much of its power and elegance from this grape. Kékfrankos also plays a more prominent role in other Bikavér blends, contributing to the wines’ balance and true expression of their terroir.

This isn’t just a stylistic or technical decision – it’s part of a long-term, forward-thinking strategy to help redefine the Eger wine region and showcase its unique character in a modern, authentic way. Kékfrankos is key to this vision, and St. Andrea was among the first to recognize its future potential.

We’re proud to taste, present, and recommend these wines. If you’re curious about the fresh new direction of the Eger wine region, visit us in person or explore our webshop – the St. Andrea wines are already available.