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By Manos Angelakis
The Empire of Garnacha
Garnacha (Spain), or Grenache (France), or Cannonau (Sardinia) are the same grape; a grape that grows throughout the Western Mediterranean. A native of Aragón, Spain, it was transplanted to the areas that the Renaissance Aragonese had either conquered, or used as trading bases. This grape is now experiencing a revival, so much so, that a new Spanish DO, Campo de Borja in the province of Zaragoza, was recently established based on Garnacha.
The region is influenced by the Atlantic in the winter and the Mediterranean during the summer. The landscape is a succession of plateaus, with limestone- and clay- dominated soil. The day-night and seasonal temperature contrasts are very high with considerably low rainfall. The terroir and climatic extremes makes the area very suitable for high quality wine-grape growing.
More than 2,000 of the 7,414 hectares of Garnacha planted in the DO are between 30 and 50 years old. Yields are low, and that gives the wines better structure and aromas. The altitude that also varies in the production area from 350 to 700 meters above sea level, influence the resulting wines, ranging from powerful and highly aromatic at the lower altitudes to delicate and subtle at the higher.
A Regulatory Council guarantees the quality of the wines as indicated on the back label, proof that the wine has passed all the controls established by the DO regulations. The back label also indicates the aging of the wine, set in 4 categories: Joven (young), Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva.
Exports represent about 66% of the production, with the US, Germany, United Kingdom, and Scandinavia purchasing a large number of bottles.
Grupo Peñin presented a selection of single-grape Garnacha wines. The wines are all currently available in the US market, and the wineries featured were Bodegas Aragonesas, Bodegas Borejé, Bodegas Borsao, Crianzas y Viñedos Santo Cristo and Bodegas Alto Moncayo. Most ferment in stainless and epoxi-coated concrete tanks and age in American and French oak barriques. Some also use Hungarian and other Central European barriques.
During a hosted lunch we tasted a Cave Bordejé Rosado de Garnacha from Bodegas Bordejé, a subtle, sparkling non-vintage rosé wine that was lovely and beautifully aromatic. The Quo Blanco 2008, from Crianzas y Viñedos Santo Cristo, was an interesting blanc-de-noir wine, spicy with a slightly acidic undertone, which paired very well with the rich second course. The third course, Atlantic Salmon and Crab Cake also paired well with the Borsao Tres Picos 2007, a mid-bodied red from Bodegas Borsao. The fourth course, Flat Iron Stake with onion risotto, was accompanied by two powerful reds, Fegus 2006 from Bodegas Aragonesas and Aquilón 2006 from Bodegas Alto Moncayo. Both these wines, though very young – they could have used at least another couple years in cellar – were excellent foils to the flavorful steak and very aromatic risotto.
To your health!
© August 2009 LuxuryWeb Magazine. All rights reserved.
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