Increasingly popular as the world wakes up to its qualities, this robust, thick-skinned Mediterranean variety with its funky, animal-like character is most widely planted in Spain where it's known as Monastrell.

It’s at its intense, blackberryish best where it gets lots of sunshine, often close to the sea, hence its ascendancy in Bandol on Provence’s Mediterranean shoreline. On the back of the Rhône revival in California and Australia, it performs well in blends with other Mediterranean varieties, especially Grenache and Syrah.

  • brambly and blackberry-like
  • animal, funky and meaty

Written by

Decanter Staff
Decanter Staff
Decanter Team

Content written and compiled by the Decanter Team