📍 Kunság

Kunság is a protected designation of origin (PDO) for wines from central Hungary. Most of its area lies on the Great Hungarian Plain between the Danube and the Tisza and in the Tiszazug, around towns such as Kecskemét; it is part of the Danube (Alföld) region. The land is flat and lies below 150 metres above sea level.

The soils are mostly calcareous sand. Sand warms up quickly, and with more than 75% quartz it is immune to phylloxera: the phylloxera epidemic that began in 1875 left the vineyards here almost untouched. The climate is continental, with hot summers and cold winters, an average temperature of 10–11 °C, more than 2,000 hours of sunshine and 450–500 mm of rain a year.

Traditional grapes include Ezerjó, Kadarka and Kövidinka, while newer Hungarian-bred varieties such as Irsai Olivér, Cserszegi Fűszeres and Generosa have become more important. Arany Sárfehér and Kékfrankos are also among the permitted varieties. The white and rosé wines are intensely aromatic, and the reds are fruity and light with soft tannins; most wines are made for short ageing. Sparkling and semi-sparkling wines are also produced.

Vineyards here are first recorded in 1075. After the Ottoman period, vines were planted to bind the shifting sands. Today Kunság grows nearly half of Hungary's grapes.