Carignan is planted all over the winemaking world yet gets very little attention. We’re ready to convince you that there’s much more to this workhorse grape!
We’ve been meditating on carignan (okay, and drinking quite a bit of it as well), a grape that is widely planted but often ignored. Carignan is a red grape, originally from Northern Spain but now planted largely in Southern France and across the Mediterranean basin–it’s even been growing in the U.S. for over a century! It’s a true workhorse grape: the vines produce a ton of fruit, they can handle a lot of heat, and the grape’s dark color and bold flavors makes it ideal for blending. In other words, it’s treated as a bang-for-your-buck variety. While we love a good value, we realize that there’s so much more to carignan’s story, especially in the hands of a careful winemaker. Because carignan loves heat, many wines from this grape can be ripe and rich. But carignan also has a lot of natural acidity, which provides a great backbone to balance these lush fruit flavors. What’s more, carignan is not just a red grape.
Because carignan has existed for a very long time, it has had time to evolve into both white and pink varieties. Though hard to find, we have a couple of examples of these special carignans in the shop, thanks to winemakers like Salvador Battlebeig of Cosmic Wines in Empordà, Catalonia, who tends a scant few old vines of carignan blanc, and the even rarer pink-hued carignan gris. His 'Encarinyades' is an incredible example of how luminous these grapes can be: it’s a blend of all three versions of carignan that’s light in color, but demands serious attention. Even though carignan’s history is humble, it’s the grape with a story we’re always excited to tell. Snag some of these rare beauties while you can!
FEATURED PRODUCTS:
Martha Stoumen Carignan 'Venturi Vineyard Long Élevage' 2019
Cosmic Empordà 'Encarinyades' 2020
SHOP THE COLLECTION: Carignan
