Grenache (Ganarcha) grape in the world

Hello,

A late Happy New year to everybody but a sincere wish!

I'm a big fan of Grenache and a little frustrated over the difficulty to find good wines based on Grenache, besides some great Spanish wines. Is there any other wines in the world having a rather large proportion of Grenache? How do they taste? Do you enjoy them?

Cheers, Eve

[David M. Bueker]

I'm a big fan of Grenache and a little frustrated over the difficulty to find good wines based on Grenache, besides some great Spanish wines. Is there any other wines in the world having a rather large proportion of Grenache? How do they taste? Do you enjoy them?

Eve,

If you are looking for pure Grenache you can head for Australia, and there's a few in California. I tend to find them big and rich like many (but not all) new-wave Spanish wines. They're well made, but not my cup of tea (or Grenache). I'll take mine in a Chateauneuf du Pape blend (or in an Edmunds St. John blend).

I'll take mine in a Chateauneuf du Pape blend (or in an Edmunds St. John blend).

I also love Chateauneuf du Pape but I'm trying to figure out if there are less "classical" wines based on Grenache.

[David M. Bueker]

Eve,

One producer I can recommend in Australia is Clarendon Hills. There's lots more Grenache-based wines in Australia, but I haven't tasted them recently. I do know that Torbreck, d'Arenberg and Two hands (among others) make well-regarded Grenache wines.

Eve,

One producer I can recommend in Australia is Clarendon Hills. There's lots more Grenache-based wines in Australia, but I haven't tasted them recently. I do know that Torbreck, d'Arenberg and Two hands (among others) make well-regarded Grenache wines.

Thanks, David. I'll look for those wines.

Eve,

Unless you are after exoticism, why look beyond France for Grenache?

Grenache dominated blends are the rule in Côtes du Rhône, CDR Villages, Costières de Nîmes, Gigondas, Vacqueyras, etc. as well as in classical Châteauneuf du Pape and to a less extent in Roussillon.

Even 100% Grenache cuvées exist, though contravening appellation rules.

The most famous is, of course, CdP Château Rayas, but I also know of Côtes du Roussillon-Villages La Petite Sibérie from Domaine du Clos des Fées (warning € 200 price tag) and Vacqueyras Variation from Domaine de Montvac recommended by Tony Fletcher and realistically priced.

If you like VDN, Banyuls, Maury and Rivesaltes (not the Muscat) are predominately and often 100% Grenache (legally, I think, for VDN).

Unless you are after exoticism, why look beyond France for Grenache?

Tim,
Thanks for the info. I'm a little after exoticism - living in France and having access to most of the wines you mentioned (even if I didn't buy the most pricey). I was wondering, reading your answer and David's, if Grenache is a more popular grape than I expected. What do you think?

Eve:

Here's a very good Grenache-based wine I had with my Christmas Dinner, and my tasting notes:

Argiolas "Costera" 2005

Dark, ruby-red color; the nose has smells of olive-paste (tapenade), mixed with a black-berry/licorice, rosemary element, and a hint of ripe figs (lovely, perfumed, warm & spicy bouquet); medium to full-body with a nice oak/vanilla seasoning and an almost sweet richness, but with some notable dry tannins and enough acidity to clean the mouth and match very well with any kind of hearty, Winter meal. This wine is produced by an excellent winery in Sardinia/Sardegna: "Argiolas" from a mix of grapes, mostly "Cannonau" (which is the same grape as the French "Grenache"). It cost me $13.99/bottle here in the Chicago area.

marco

Good subject!

Priorat from Spain springs to mind right away, but not always 100% garnacha.
From Oz, look for Fire Block, 12 Staves and Clarendon Hills. But yes, so many out there!

edit......Domaine Saladin, Cotes du Rhone Villages, has a very nice Grenache- based red. I have a bottle of their white I am opening for this months Wine Focus!

Marco beat me to it: Sardinian "Cannonau" is Grenache by another name, although its flavor profile is (usually) darker and denser than Grenache from the Southern Rhone. Argiolas is indeed a respected producer, and their somewhat pricey "Turriga" bottling is generally considered the best Cannonau produced on the island. I've also seen Grenache called "Alicante" in Tuscany, not to be confused with the primarily French Alicante Bouchet.

grenache is the second most widely planted grape on the planet. first is Airen.

grenache is the second most widely planted grape on the planet. first is Airen.

...and more bottles of grenache are produced in Spain than anywhere else, which may earn the right to start referring to the grape as garnacha, as Jancis Robinson claimed long ago.

I was wondering, reading your answer and David's, if Grenache is a more popular grape than I expected. What do you think?

I think that Grenache is indeed a popular grape and, more importantly, one capable of producing really great wines. Some geeks tend to disparage it for its easy soft fruitiness and high alcohol but acknowledge superb results when it is blended with, principally, Mourvèdre and Syrah in Châteauneuf du Pape. However, good vintages of Rayas suffice to demonstrate that in can be great unblended, albeit quite different in character from classically blended CdP. And there are succulent CDR with very high Grenache content from estates like Gramenon.

Another demonstration of Grenache's popularity, at least when blended, is that Châteauneuf du Pape is one of Robert Parker's favourite wines.

(For people of my generation, the reputation of Grenache suffered from its former frequent use to sweeten the fruit and strengthen the body of more northerly wines. With hindsight, or perhaps hind-taste, there must have been a lot of Grenache in much "Pommard" or "Nuits Saint-Georges" sold in the UK before it joined the EU.)

No one has mentioned Calatayud in Spain as a source of pure Garnacha...wooded and not...there are loads of 40-60 year old vineyards there; the wines range stylstically from thick 'n' rich to correct and balanced.

Hi Eve,

I am a fan of Grenache myself. I just had a bottle of an Old Vines Grenache from Spain that was affordable and very good. It was:

Etim Old Vines Grenache 2002 from Penedes, Spain. 14% abv Great food wine that matched well with a black bean and chorizo soup. Deep purple color, good balance and nice finish. Just $19.00 $CAN

No one has mentioned Calatayud in Spain as a source of pure Garnacha...wooded and not...there are loads of 40-60 year old vineyards there; the wines range stylstically from thick 'n' rich to correct and balanced.

Robert, it is nice to see that you still look in here. You are though, awfully tight lipped. do you travel for your employer? do you ever get to Ky?

No one has mentioned Calatayud in Spain as a source of pure Garnacha...wooded and not...there are loads of 40-60 year old vineyards there; the wines range stylistically from thick 'n' rich to correct and balanced.

Robert, it is nice to see that you still look in here. You are though, awfully tight lipped. do you travel for your employer? do you ever get to Ky?

Hello Bob,

I poke in occasionally...hope that you're well. Parsimony is a trait of mine, yes. I travel a good bit...60-65 nights per year away from home, the rest of the time I work form home. Fran still handles Kentucky. I pass through from time to time, on the way to other areas. Business is very good these days...KPF is growing and growing.

Had any old Musar or Tahbilk lately?

Eve, next time you and Randy are in SB, why don't we put together a small grenache tasting? I've got some of the wines that are recommended above from Australia and CA, and we can pick up some Spanish ones. It would be a good excuse to dip into my collection of older Alban granache, too.