Red Wine Grapes

Red wines get their color from extended contact between the grape juice and their skins during maceration and fermentation. Red wine grapes look anywhere from purple to bluish to almost black while they are hanging on the vine, and it’s the pigments in the grape skins and the amount of time that they are with the juice that determines the final color of the wine. In fact, most rosé wines get their pale hues from limited maceration, from a few hours to a few days. For most red wines, maceration starts before fermentation and can continue for several days or several weeks after fermentation is complete. The winemakers are not only trying to get color from the skins, but also flavor compounds and tannins that affect the aroma, taste, color and mouthfeel of the final wine.

There are several thousand red grape varieties worldwide, with many grapes having different names in different countries or regions. And to make it more complex, many red wines aren’t a single variety at all, but rather a blend of grapes. Nevertheless, it’s worth getting to know the primary red grape varieties so you’ll have an idea of what to expect from a wine, whether blended or not.

♦ Cabernet Sauvignon  – The King of red wine grapes, Cabernet Sauvignon makes quintessential intense, blackcurranty, structured wine. Grown everywhere, it is among the greatest of wine grapes with a tannic backbone. The best can age for decades, maturing the rich fruit flavors with cigar box, tobacco, and lead pencil aromas. It is often blended with Merlot for added softness and suppleness. Bordeaux, France is the homeland of Cabernet Sauvignon, expensive, prestigious wineries claim top dollar for their wines, but Cabernet Sauvignon is grown throughout Europe with Italy, particularly Tuscany, making world-class wines as well. New World examples have more vibrant and ripe fruit and can sometimes add a hint of eucalyptus or mint. California and Australia make top examples with cult wines and devoted followings almost, if not equal to, their Old World counterparts, but delicious wine need not be expensive nor aged. Cabernet can be enjoyed young and is grown everywhere, from across the US (Washington State has a growing reputation and devoted following) to Chile, Argentina, South Africa, Bulgaria and even China.

♦ Grenache/Garnacha – Grenache is often a seriously overlooked grape. Instrumental in blended wine the world over, Grenache shines as a primary grape in the southern Rhone Valley in France (it is one of the 13 permitted grape varieties in the highly prized wines of Châteauneuf-du-Pape.) It gets overshadowed by Syrah with whom it’s often blended, but Grenache stands on it’s own as the base for many juicy rosé wines and in Spain, Garnacha makes concentrated, usually expensive, full-bodied reds in Priorat and Monsant (although it’s blended with tempranillo across the rest of Spain.) In Australia, old-vine Grenache is making juicy fruit bombs that are proving very popular. Aromas of cooked strawberries and raspberries are not uncommon and Grenache creates easy drinking reds with elevated alcohol. Also known as Cannonau in Sardinia.

♦ Malbec – The “it” grape of Argentina, Malbec makes smooth, rich, red wines with luscious blackberry, black cherry and blueberry aromas and flavors at all price points. It’s also the major grape of Cahors in south-west France where the wines can take on greener, more herbal notes while still being juicy and plummy. It is also one of the approved blending grapes in Bordeaux and is still used (although sparingly) as a blending grape for Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in France and elsewhere. Also known as Côt or Auxerrois.

♦ Merlot  – Another Internationally dominant grape, Merlot makes softer, juicer wine that is lower in tannin than Cabernet Sauvignon (with which it is usually blended) but on its own can still pack a punch. Highly-prized Right Bank Bordeaux is primarily Merlot (with added Cabernet Sauvignon as opposed to Left Bank which is the reverse) and everywhere Cabernet Sauvignon thrives, Merlot is right alongside. In California, the wines are juicier and riper than in France, but Merlot oozes with red and blue fruit, often with aromas of milk chocolate or mocha and even with a hint of minty herbs. Delicious Merlots can also be found in Washington State, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, and even Hungary and Bulgaria.

♦ Nebbiolo – Unlike many of the other popular red wine grapes, Nebbiolo is pretty exclusively grown in the Piedmont Region of Northern Italy. Other countries may be dabbling with the grape, but nowhere else is making wine with the power and sophistication of Piedmont. It’s most famous (that is, expensive) incarnations are from Barolo and Barbaresco, where the elevated acidity and tannin of the Nebbiolo grape leads to some highly complex, nuanced and extremely age worthy wines. Tart cherries, tar, roses, violets, tobacco, herbs, raisins and more are waiting for you in a glass of mature Nebbiolo, but only after time has allowed the wine to relax and mellow. In fact, until the last decade, Nebbiolo wines were considered rather undrinkable when they were young. The same tannins and acids that allow the wine to age so gracefully can be downright aggressive and unpleasant when consumed young. Modern winemaking techniques and changing styles have led to wines ready to drink in five years versus the previous standard of twenty, and outside of Barolo, there are softer, juicier wines now coming out of Piedmont. If you’d like to try a simple style ready to drink young, look for Nebbiolo d’Alba, Langhe, Gattinara, Ghemme, or Carema.

♦ Pinot Noir – If a wine lover is going to wax poetic about a grape, that grape is bound to be Pinot Noir. Hauntingly beautiful, silky, supple, nuanced, seductive, delicate, complex – these are the words one uses to describe good Pinot Noir. Unlike Cabernet Sauvignon or other big, voluptuous grapes, Pinot Noir’s power lies in its elegance. Notoriously difficult to grow and vinify, Pinot Noir can also be the source of painfully bad, insipid, watery, sour, heavy, or even sickly jammy wine. It’s grown pretty much everywhere these days, but the standard bearer remains Burgundy, France where wine can have luscious aromas of cherries, raspberries, cranberries, and strawberries while hinting at mushrooms, gamey meat and decaying leaves. When it comes to Pinot Noir, it seems that all roads lead to Burgundy. Everyone is chasing that style, yet around the world, the most successful and celebrated Pinots come from places that respect Burgundy, but are defining their own unique style. In California, it’s places like the Russian River Valley, Carneros, and the Sonoma Coast. Oregon has seen huge success in Willamette Valley. In New Zealand, places like Wairapa, Marlborough, and Central Otago are making a mark. Germany makes some lovely Pinot Noir (they call it Spätburgunder,) Italy has some nice examples of Pinot Nero, and across wine regions the world over, attractive Pinot Noir can be found. Unfortunately, it is also true that across wine regions the world over, not-so-attractive versions are ever present.

♦ Sangiovese – The grape behind the famous wine of Chianti, Sangiovese makes Italy’s most famed red wine. In fact, all over Italy, and Tuscany more specifically, Sangiovese makes some seriously delicious wine. Cherries and plums, earth and herbs, ripe but tart, Sangiovese seems to be the grape that for most, typifies Italian wine. Daily drinkers can be light and refreshing, while bigger, more structured, tannic and powerful wines are presented like Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano (don’t get that confused with Montepulciano d’Abruzzo which is from a different region and indeed a different grape.) Those wines along with the best Chiantis can be aged for quite a long time, and while other countries are growing Sangiovese, so far they pale in comparison to the Italian originals.

♦ Syrah/Shiraz – Two names for the same grape, but reflecting where they are grown and the style of wine made. Syrah is the French name, and while Syrah is grown throughout France, the most iconic wines come from the Northern Rhone from places like Côte-Rôtie or Crozes-Hermitage where the wine is intensely flavored with bold fruit, plums and raspberries and aromas or tar, green and black peppercorn, olives, herbs, smoked meats and bacon. Shiraz is the Australian name for the grape and the style here is richer, more lush ripe fruit, more chocolatey, and the spice leans towards black pepper, vanilla, and fruitcake. In other parts of the world, like Spain, USA, South Africa, Italy and Chile, Syrah is grown and made into some delicious wine, whether on its own or as part of a blend. Countries outside of Australia using the Shiraz name are usually doing so because they are emulating the richer Australian style.

♦ Tempranillo – Where would Spain be without its most iconic grape? The star of Rioja, whether in it’s easy drinking Crianza style or the headier and age worthy reservas and gran reservas, Tempranillo smells of red fruits like cherries and strawberries, can develop tobacco aromas and with the use of american oak can smell like dill and coconuts. And yet, unlike Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo is not always easily recognizable. Grander, richer styles in Ribera del Duero and in the powerful and intense wines of Toro, the fruit tends to lean more towards plums and blackberries, overlaid with vanilla spice. Tempranillo is grown and used in other places (called Tinta Roriz in Portugal it can be used in the fortified wine Port) and Argentina, Australia, California, Texas, Oregon and the South of France are all experimenting with the grape.

♦ Zinfandel – California may be famed for growing Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, but Zinfandel is the one grape it can really call its own. While it may be the same grape as Primitivo in Italy, and probably originated in Croatia, it was the good old USA that put Zinfandel on the map. Made famous in the 1980s and 90s by  Sutter Home as White Zinfandel (a name that confuses me since white zinfandel is pink) the dry, red versions made in California today are the standard bearers of the Zinfandel grape. Across California Zinfandel is being made into jammy, brambly wine without big tannins that can be easy drinking and fruity, perfect with barbecue or cheeseburgers, or more seriously intense, spicy , and expensive. Either way, there will most likely be lots of blackberry and raspberry smells and flavors in your glass and probably quite a lot of alcohol too, since the grape can get seriously ripe in the California sun and 15% ABV for Zinfandel seems downright common these days.

Once you are familiar with the ten common varieties above, here are other less common but still popular red grape varieties to check out…

Aglianico, Barbera, Cabernet Franc, Carignan, Carmenere, Corvina, Dolcetto, Gamay, Mouvedre, Pinotage, Tannat