Tokaj-Hegyalja presentations at the conference in France

Four researchers from our institution participated in the Boire à la Renaissance International conference organised by the Renaissance Research Institute of the University of Tours last week.
The four presentations were all related to Tokaj-Hegyalja: the reputation of these wines in Hungary and France, and in particular their popularity among the French aristocracy, illustrates the increasingly international “career” of the aszú. The two lectures on the medicinal bolus of Tokaj dealt with its discovery, its first unknown mention, its use during the plague epidemic of Vienna in 1553 and its historical and medical context, also highlighting its prominent role in contemporary humanist correspondence and naturalia collections. Antonio Gazio’s volume dedicated to Bishop Francis Thurzo of Nitra, first published in 1539, provides a witty summary of the medicinal properties of wine and beer, arguing for the benefits of the former.
The next 66th international conference of the Centre d’études supérieures de la Renaissance will take place next year in Sárospatak, is another important milestone in the relationship between the two institutions.