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A few weeks ago I reviewed the newly released Seven Hills Hungarian Single Malt Whisky. Check it out here. It turned out to be quite a conversation maker. A lot of seasoned whisky drinkers / connoisseurs said that it does not taste like whisky but rather like brandy, which I completely agree with. I pointed out that the things that make it so, is the distillation method and the casks… The casks they use are way too strong and they overpower anything that the whisky would like to offer. I think this is the basic issue with Hungarian whisky creations for now. Is this a different story? Today we are taking a look at the first hungarian single malt that is being produced for nearly two decades. None other than the Békési 12 yo Single Barrel Hungarian Single Malt Whisky.

About the distillery

Békési Pálinka Zrt. is a family business whose history began in 1984, when they first entered the camp of private brewers and built a new brewery in the Csatárkert part of the city of Békés.

At that time they were still active as private entrepreneurs, hired brandy brewers. Three years later, they had the opportunity to purchase the steam locomotive of the neighboring Sarkad sugar factory. From then on, the cauldrons were heated with the help of the already 90-year-old train, which was a special sight. Because it was near the road, many people stopped to admire it. In 1991, the time came for them to found the company called Békési és Fia Bt. and from then on they also brewed commercial brandy. They were the first in the country to re-produce brandies in 0.05 liter packaging.

Pálinka was brewed in the Csatárkert until 1996, but the time of the small, outdated distillery was over: they rented out, and in 1993 they bought the pálinka distillery on Gőzmalom row, where they continued to brew and commercialize pálinka. Here, with greater capacity and storage, it became possible to produce large quantities of brandy. The increasing sales of bottles made it necessary for Bt. to transform into a joint-stock company.

They became one of Hungary's leading and best-known brandy (pálinka) distilleries.

The company also opened its doors to hikers, as the Békési Pálinka Stop has been open for visitors since September 12, 2003. Next to the kitchen, the brandy tasting room and museum were created from a buffet car and a freight car bought next to the steam locomotive.

The increasing visitor traffic made it necessary to create a larger and more modern tasting and presentation area. This wonderful monument building is located in the city center of Békés, which was originally a synagogue. The Békési Szilvapálinka Center (BPC) came to life in this building.

They started distilling whisky around 2000. Aging it in Sessile Oak casks for at least 12 years. They also bottled special editions such as the 14 yo, the 18 yo Irish Cask finish or the 18 yo Bock Wine Cask finish.

(Pálinka is a type of brandy that is considered to be the Hungarian National spirit drink. Can be made of a variety of fruits and it can be very tasty.)

Békési 12 yo Single Barrel Hungarian Single Malt - Natural Color, Non-chill filtered (?), 43%

"Békési Single Malt, like traditional Scotch whiskies, is made from one type of barley malt and aged in oak barrels."

Nose: No surprises here. This is not reminiscent of whisky in any shape or form. We have a pálinka, made of grape pomace. It exactly smells like that. Besides that, you can smell some vanilla and toffee. A slight malty note. Then just bitter, overpowering oak. This smell would not be considered good even among grape pomace pálinka either. What could have gone wrong here? Did I get a bad / faulty batch? I genuinely hope it is the case. I was expecting way more.

Taste: Again. Grape pomace pálinka. Grapes and vanilla. A hint of toffee and espresso. Sour and bitter oak overpowering the whole palate. It is also extremely alcoholic and just bad. I am sorry. It is bad. I wish I did not have to be this harsh but this is just the reality of how things are.

Finish: Short and alcoholic. It is again like a pálinka, and a bad pálinka at that sadly. Sour coffee, rotten wood. Bitter oak again dominating the finish too.

Overall it is not a good "whisky", not a good spirit drink. I could not recommend it to anyone. It might just be a bad batch, and I hope to God it is. I hope this drink is way better and I just got a bad sample. I rate this 60 / 100.

I think that Hungarian whisky production has a lot to improve. I still think that the main issues are the same as they always have been. 1 the distillation method and 2 the casks that we use for aging. I think if we want to create a Hungarian whisky that will be praised and loved, we need to use pot stills like they use in Scotland and we need to use casks that are not overpowering. Hungarian virgin oak is very powerful. And these distilleries use 136l versions of them! What an error. It just kills the spirit. It would kill any new make. Even a smoky one. I hope someone at some point realizes that this is the issue and will invest and build a whisky distillery. Until then we will be stuck where we are.

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Check out the points on all the whiskies I've rated and ranked head-to-head over HERE.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it. To many more. Sláinte.