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What is so special about Garnacha?
Have you ever tried an Aragonese red wine? If the answer is yes, then you have easily met the protagonist of our post today, the Garnacha grape.
The Garnacha is one of the oldest and most appreciated grape varieties in Spanish viticulture, especially in our autonomous community.
Its origin is in the region of Aragon, the first records of it date back to the 16th century and it spread throughout Spain during the reign of the Crown of Aragon, even crossing the Pyrenees and reaching certain regions of southern France and Sardinia.
It is an extremely versatile grape, as it has been able to adapt well to the different types of soil and climates of the regions where its consumption became popular.
Its influence on the wines of Rioja and Priorat and in places like France (in the Rhône region) or in the New World has shown that this strain of great character has the capacity to produce wines of exceptional quality.
Let's get into what you really need to know about this highly appreciated grape.
What is its exact origin?
Grenache, known as Grenache in France, originated in the Aragon region of northeastern Spain, where it is still grown in various appellations of origin.
The grape was brought by monks and merchants to other wine regions in Europe during the Middle Ages, facilitating its spread across the continent. In particular, it became strongly established in the south of France, in the Rhône region, and later in the Languedoc-Roussillon area, where it became one of the most widely used grapes for the production of red wines.
In addition to its presence in Spain and France, Grenache has also been planted in various wine regions in the New World, especially in Australia, California and South America. The flexibility of this grape variety to adapt to different climates, as we have discussed before, is one of the reasons for its success in so many wine regions around the world.
What's so special about it?
The first thing you should know is that when we talk about the Garnacha grape, we are referring exclusively to the black grape, because, although there is also a white one, it is much less used.
It is a variety with medium to large grains, a rounded shape and thick skin. This thick skin is one of the characteristics that gives red Garnacha wine its dark color and tannic structure.
Wines made from this variety often have great aromatic intensity, with notes of red fruits such as strawberries, cherries and raspberries. However, Garnacha wines can also express a wide range of secondary and tertiary aromas, such as spices, aromatic herbs, and even a slight minerality depending on the growing area and its maturation in barrels.
The Garnacha vine is characterized by its strong wood canopy and upward growth. It has good wind tolerance and is prepared for the dry climates and warm winds of the Mediterranean.
The vine buds early but typically requires a growing season to fully ripen, it is often one of the last grapes to be harvested, sometimes ripening weeks before Cabernet Sauvignon.
The long ripening process allows the grape to reach high sugar levels, making Grenache wines capable of high alcohol levels, often at least 15%.
Grenache prefers dry, warm soils that are well drained but adapts relatively well to all vineyard soils.
What does a Grenache wine taste like?
Garnacha is often used as a blending component, adding body and fruit sweetness to wine, although wines made from this strain can differ greatly in their flavours depending on their production region.
This grape can give the producer some problems due to the tendency to oxidise easily and lose colour, as well as its tedious harvesting as its strong stem makes harvesting with a combine difficult.
The high levels of sugars and scarce tannins make Garnacha well suited to the production of fortified wines, such as the vin deux naturelle of Roussillon and the port-style wines of Australia.
In the Rioja region, it is often blended with other varieties such as Tempranillo and Graciano. Garnacha wines in Rioja tend to be smooth, fruity and balanced, with a good capacity for ageing in oak barrels.
On the other hand, in Priorat, one of the most prestigious appellations in Catalonia, Grenache is grown on slate soils, which provide a unique minerality to the wine, and the vineyards, often old and low-yielding, produce grapes of great concentration, so they are usually powerful, with notes of ripe fruit, dried herbs and minerals, and have excellent aging capacity.
In France, especially in the Rhône, Grenache is one of the main blending grapes in Rhône Valley wines, such as Côtes du Rhône and Châteauneuf-du-Pape. In these wines, Grenache is combined with other indigenous Rhône varieties, such as Syrah and Mourvèdre, to create wines with remarkable aromatic complexity, ranging from red fruits and spices to notes of leather, earth and aromatic herbs.
However, in Australia and New World vineyards, they tend to be more intense and mature in their flavours, with notes of red and black fruits, as well as sweet spices and a slight hint of pepper.
Other varieties in Aragon
The Aragon Denominations of Origin that most use this type of grape are Calatayud and Campo de Borja, although it is also used by the D.O Somontano and the D.O Cariñena.
There are some varieties of Garnacha with thin, dark skin, with Garnacha Tinta being the most common. Another variety, known as Garnacha Peluda due to the hairy texture under the vine leaves, is also found in Spain, being common in Borja and Cariñena, in Aragon, the autonomous community where Garnacha wine has traditionally been the most produced.
Compared to its more widely planted cousin, it produces wines with a lower amount of alcohol and a higher acidity that show spicy and savoury notes as they age.
What future awaits Grenache?
Grenache remains one of the most promising grapes in the wine world, although it is increasingly less cultivated due to its complex harvesting, which must be done almost exclusively by hand.
As wine producers around the world look to adapt to climate change and explore new ways of winemaking, Grenache offers an excellent option due to its ability to grow in hot, dry climates where other varieties might not. In addition, its versatility allows for a wide range of wine styles, both fresher and lighter, and also more aged.
If you have the chance, we encourage you to try a wine made from this type of grape yourself and judge for yourself its aromatic nuances and flavors, you are sure to end up discovering one of your favorite wines if you give it a chance.
