Spain’s most famous wine region is mixing it up with this native grape

Many wine lovers think of grenache as a French grape — after all, it’s the backbone in red blends like Côtes-du-Rhône and Chateauneuf-du-Pape. However, this grape is native to Spain, where it is known as “garnacha.”

While this prolific vine is planted extensively in Spain, garnacha is overshadowed by the country’s No. 1 red grape, tempranillo, in export markets like the United States. However, it’s worth keeping an eye out for Spanish garnacha since these are some of Spain’s most interesting red wines nowadays. That’s the case with this surprising offering from the Rioja region, Spain’s most recognized and most widely exported wine appellation.

Rioja is almost synonymous with tempranillo, but other grapes are planted here, too. While garnacha has typically been a minor ingredient in Rioja’s tempranillo-based blends, a growing number of wineries there are branching out to bottle it separately in wines like this “limited edition” from one of Rioja’s largest wineries.

Garnacha makes lovely wines that are spicy in flavor profile and quite expressive — conveying different tastes depending on where they are grown. In Rioja, garnacha makes wines that are lighter in color, fruitier, and more delicate than the alternatives, which leads winemakers to scale back the use of oak barrels in maturation to preserve their freshness. Here, the wine has a delightful flavor of wild strawberries with hints of white pepper and balsamic glaze. This makes for a great choice with anything off the grill — from salmon or chicken to steaks and beyond.

Rioja, Spain; 14% ABV

PLCB Item # 100049341 — on sale through Aug. 2 for $16.99 (regularly $19.99)

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