One of the great joys of our work at Oakland Yard is learning about wine from unfamiliar regions. Just this week, in addition to the bottles we sampled from the US and western europe, we also tasted wine from Vermont, the Canary Islands, Turkey, and the Republic of Georgia. In the seven years since we opened the shop, our central and eastern european section has grown considerably, as has our appreciation for wines from Slovakia, Serbia, Bosnia Herzegovina, Slovenia, Croatia, Romania, and especially Hungary. We have come to love Hungarian wines; the flinty smoke of Furmint from volcanic soil, the earthy spice of a tart Kadarka, the fox-colored hue of a classic Szekszárd siller...formerly unknown pleasures discovered here at Oakland Yard.

Most of these delightful discoveries, and almost all of our limited but growing knowledge of Hungarian wines, are the result of years of tasting with Eric Danch, an importer whose infectious zeal has led countless buyers in the bay area to a greater appreciation of these unique wines. For many years, and against the wind, Eric has been sowing the seeds, and they’ve taken root and grown into a terrible thirst. An avid student and engaging teacher, with a deep love for Eastern European culture, Hungarian history, enology, geology, gastronomy...you name it, and Eric’s got a story or two, and answers to some nagging questions, like Why is necrotrophic fungi on my grapes sometimes a good thing? How deep is Lake Balaton? What’s the spirit of an Eastern Orthodox baptism? How high is your pirate tax? What does it mean when my Hungarian friends call my wine a fence-buster or a window-crawler? Were you really once part of a traveling circus and can you still ride a unicycle while juggling? Yes, Mr. Danch knows the answers to these and many other questions you wouldn’t even think to ask anyone else. He also knows how to make a meaty, spicy, Hungarian goulash to accompany your flights of Furmint, Olaszrizling, Kadarka, and Kékfrankos, so please join us TONIGHT with ERIC DANCH at Oakland Yard for Hungarian Thursday Night Flights with complementary goulash while supplies last.

TONIGHT - THURSDAY NIGHT FLIGHTS: HUNGARIAN WINE with special guest importer ERIC DANCH of DANCH & GRANGER SELECTIONS
2021 Kali Kovek Rezeda Olaszrizling
2020 Kikelet Birtok Furmint
2022 Heimann & Fiai Kadarka
2021 Wetzer Kekfrankos
Tasting flights $18 from 5-9 with Eric’s bonus goulash from 6pm ‘til it’s all ate up and wines by the glass until 9pm

SATURDAY 4/27: SPANISH WINE FLIGHTS - A stellar lineup of new Iberian acquisitions
2022 Desconcierto Albariño
2020 TEO Alicante Blanco Joven Viognier
2020 La Viña de la Merce Rioja Crianza
2021 Sindicat la Figuera Montsant Garnatxa Negra
Tasting flights $18 from 2-6pm and wines by the glass until 9pm


Egészségére and Salud !
Max