Oily texture first, then it turns super youthful, bright and cheerful with pure and vibrant lemons, acacia flowers and honey. This is quite complex, nimble and elegant with lots of verve. Simply irresistible in its youth. Really effortless. Drink or hold.

The 2016 vintage is the first since 2008 in which Royal Tokaji has released the full range of its aszú wines, including single-vineyard bottlings from its top parcels. The season’s warm, humid summer allowed for ample botrytis to develop on the grapes; the Royal Tokaji team then made multiple passes through the vineyards over the course of several weeks, picking the fruit a berry at a time to ensure only healthy botrytis. This bottling comes from one of the region’s most hallowed vineyards, where the volcanic subsoil is covered with a deep layer of loess. The wine is as complex as it is delicious, with notes of lemon zest, smoke and stone balancing out the dense, sweet notes of roasted peach and pear. The flavors last, youthful in their energy and delicate in their detail, holding their vivacity for more than a week after the bottle has been open. This should age for decades, though there’s no reason not to enjoy it right now.

Aromas of white freesia, lanolin, honeysuckle and beeswax prepares the palate for flavors of apricot, orange zest and white-peach juice. Made from grapes grown on the Mezes Maly single vineyard, this has heft on the palate and pleasant mouthfeel. The finish offers fruit sweetness with balanced acidity. - Jeff Jenssen

From the ‘Great 1st growth’ Mézes Mály, this 2016 Aszú has a lime, struck match and earthy nose, backed with aromas of fresh apricot and white blossoms. Sweet spices and grapefruit zest are sprinkled on the pure, honeyed palate of raisin and dried apricot, with piercing acidity (10.7g/l) as the spine, complex and extremely long. (Drink between 2020-2025)

The 2016 Mézes Mály Great First Growth Tokaji Aszú 6 Puttonyos, which contains 180.9g/L residual sugar, is the one cuvée whose nose I could not quite work out at first. It needs a few minutes to really coalesce, eventually offering toffee apple, adhesive, lanolin and wood resin scents. Personally, I prefer the Betsek and then the Nyulászó on the nose. The harmonious palate is business as usual, featuring pure botrytized fruit, a superb bed of acidity, and orange peel, marmalade and a touch of lemon sherbet toward the persistent finish, where a welcome touch of bitterness lingers in the mouth. Maybe the nose just needs time. -- Neal Martin