The Romans brought vines to Pannonia, and by the 5th century AD, there are records of extensive vineyards in what is now Hungary. The Hungarians brought their wine-making knowledge from the East. According to Ibn Rustah, the Hungarian tribes were familiar with wine-making long time before the Hungarian conquest of the Carpathian Basin.

Over the following centuries, new grape varieties were brought in from Italy and France. Most of the production was of white wine in that period.

It was also during the Turkish occupation that the Tokaj region became known for dessert wines, harvested late to encourage noble rot. Tokaji aszú is mentioned in a document of 1571, and it was famously christened by Louis XIV of France (1638-1715) "Vinum Regum, Rex Vinorum" – Wine of Kings, King of Wines.

After the Ottoman Empire ceded Hungary to the Austrians in 1699, the Germanic influence was felt with the introduction of grape varieties such as Blauer Portugieser. That influence also showed in the start in 1730 of the world's first vineyard classification in Tokaj, based on soil, aspect and propensity to noble rot.

Hungarian white wines are mainly fresh and light wines from various wine regions and a come from a variety of styles such as -Bükk which are mainly white wines, Eger: fresh whites from Leányka and Királyleányka, full-bodied whites mainly from Olaszrizling or Chardonnay. Neszmély: fresh and aromatic whites. Etyek-Buda: fresh white wines, with considerable acidity. Mór: volcanic soil, full-bodied whites. Main variety: Ezerjó.
Pannonhalma: full-bodied whites.Pécs: mainly whites and from the famous Tokaj wine region and Tokaji (wine)

The main Hungarian grape varieties vary from region to region these consist of - Hárslevelű grapes. There are also several varieties of grape are known to have originated in Hungary. These are:Ezerjó,Hárslevelű,Irsai Oliver,Cserszegi fűszeres,Királyleányka,Zenit, Other varieties of grape that may have originated in Hungary include:Furmint,Juhfark,Kéknyelű