Expert’s Choice: Spanish Garnacha

There’s a hint of the biblical about Garnacha’s renaissance. The variety that was once looked down on as too quick to oxidise, too alcoholic, too rustic, has become a prodigal child – celebrated for its originality, and often for its finesse.

The reason for this transformation? The quality of the old vines from isolated vineyards, abandoned for their lack of profitability and ease of handling. Important, too, are the dedicated growers and winemakers interpreting their terroir with sensitivity.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for 18 distinctive Spanish Garnacha wines

The Gredos mountains, in central Spain west of Madrid, were significant in drawing Spanish Garnacha to international attention. It’s easy to forget what a gunshot the wines of Daniel Landi (pictured) were, appearing from an unknown mountain region. And in Navarra, the likes of Domaines Lupier were recuperating a fine if diminishing heritage of old bush vines.

Garnacha’s ancient home of Aragón was slower to become known. It used to be seen as cheap and cheerful – in the supermarkets it still is – but at last there has been a rush of excellence. The DOs of Calatayud and Cariñena are becoming familiar to wine lovers.

Garnacha was often used for blending, for example in Priorat and in Rioja. Rioja remains the home of classic blending. La Rioja Alta, for instance, makes delicious use of Garnacha from Tudelilla in Rioja Oriental, blending it with its cooler, darker Tempranillos. Alvaro Palacios led the way for the return of Garnacha to Rioja Oriental and has been followed by others such as Lalomba from Ramón Bilbao.

Just a taster

Choosing just 18 wines is a great responsibility. I can hear Garnachistas yelling: ‘Why have you not chosen mine?’ It’s a sign of the enthusiasm for the variety. I don’t see Tempranillo eliciting the same passion from its fans. The wines here are diverse: Garnacha comes in all shapes and sizes.

I have chosen some classics, but I also wanted to highlight some trends, plus a few exciting wines with no distribution yet. This is an issue for newer producers. The past two years have been extremely difficult for export, so you will see a few wines here that currently have no UK importer. Keep an eye out – hopefully things will improve.

What have I left out? Plenty! Navarra old-vine Garnacha, Méntrida and Vinos de Madrid, too, but I could not find stockists. There should have been more wines from Gredos – and from Cebreros. Plus Montsant, including Vinyes Domènech.

A quick word on Terra Alta in Catalonia: it has an exceptional heritage of Garnacha, red, white and hairy (Garnacha Peluda) – look for Bàrbara Forés, Herència Altés and LaFou. And finally, a reminder about ‘Garnacha Tintorera’. It’s not Garnacha. It’s Alicante Bouschet, a dark-fleshed ‘teinturier’ grape useful for giving deep colour.

Sarah Jane Evans MW is a Co-Chair at the Decanter World Wine Awards

See tasting notes and scores for 18 distinctive Spanish Garnacha wines

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