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Carignan is a red-wine grape probably originating in the Aragón region of Spain, where it is known by the name of Mazuelo. Initially spread through and beyond the then-extensive kingdom of Aragón (shown at the right), it is today widely grown across the world, with especial emphasis in France, Italy, and California. In France, long its bastion, it is slowly diminishing in significance and acreage, because it was long regarded as a quantity-over-quality grape. In recent years, however, modern winemakers in several nations have revived interest in the variety by producing some excellent wines.
(It has long been a belief of ours that there is virtually no vitis vinifera grape that cannot produce excellent wines if enought care is taken in the vineyard and the vinifying—though often the cost of the effort needed will surpass the potential returns in what is, after all, a business.)
In France, plantings of Carignan are mostly limited to the warm Mediterranean climates of southern France, due to the grape’s inability to sufficiently ripen much further north in the continental climate of central France or in the damp maritime climate of Southwest France. In Spain, overall acreage has dropped considerably, but the Catalan wine region of Priorat has been home to much of the modern revival of the variety. Italy does not have major plantings, but there is some reportedly excellent work being done in Sardinia. The other Old-World Carignan center is north Africa, where Frence immigrants had great success with it despite the hot climate; today, they, too, are turning from quantity to quality, with some encouraging results. In the U.S. (where, for some reason, the grape is called Carignane), efforts also have turned the former cheapo jug-wine grape into some good-quality production. (Washington State also now has some plantings.)
A typical well-made Carignan—to the extent that there is such a thing as “typical”—
Factoid: Excess French production of Carignan was considered one of the main reasons for Europe’s “wine lake”; the unfortunate grape was also a substantial element of jug-wine production in California.
“Carignan can be a difficult variety for winemakers to work with being naturally high in acidity, tannins and astringency which requires a lot of skill to produce a wine of finesse and elegance.”
“Carignan is only rarely made as a varietal wine, but the best examples can show characteristics of dark and black fruits, pepper, licorice, and spicy and savory accents…In Spain the best Carinena wines are found in the acclaimed Priorat region…Other prominent growing areas are the island of Sardinia, where it is known as Carignano. The hot Mediterranean climate is perfect for the old vines planted here and the resulting wine is valued for its richness and spiciness.”
“The wine produced is typically high in rough tannins and acidity and in southern France the softening vinification method of carbonic maceration routinely has to be used to ensure that wines made from Carignan can be drunk reasonably young. I find a rank bitterness in many Languedoc red blends too dependent on high-yielding Carignan…The result of this varietal evolution is that much of the Carignan that remains tends to be relatively old. Old-vine Carignan grapes, fully ripened on infertile soils in a warm summer, produce by far the best Carignan wine. The key here is that yields have been restricted and there is enough ripe fruit character to mask the naturally high tannins and acidity…But perhaps the most delicious Carignan is not Carignan at all but Carignano, as the variety is called when planted, as it is to a limited extent, in the hot, dry south-western corner of Sardinia…if Carignan has a perfect spot, it seems to be here, although it may be partly because of the age of the Carignano bush vines here.”
“Carignan is known for developing a wealth of tannins, acidity and colour, so it has typically been used as an excellent blending partner for Grenache, which can be lacking in these qualities. If not made with care, however, it can also be prone to rampant reduction during vinification. So, while a beautiful grape on its own, the wine must still be made carefully…At their best, whether north or south of the Pyrenees, Carignan wines will usually display dark cherry fruit, blueberries, violet and other floral aromas along with notes of orange peel, black liquorice and cocoa. On the palate, the wines are very full-bodied with tannins that have a fine, dusty aspect and an acidity that presents a fresh and lively wine with excellent potential for ageing.”
“ It is a common belief that old vine Carignan tastes much better than young Carignan wine. Priorat in particular grows and vinifies very fine Carignan from vines that now exceed 80 years of age…Characteristically, Carignan wine in the glass, as it exists in single varietal form (which is somewhat rare), is a richly colored, acidic and tannic wine that some have criticized as being too bitter and rustic…In the glass, carignan is a deep and dark colored wine, with a deep purple hue and often crimson rustic attributes around the edges. This is especially true for old vine Carignan. Carignan wine is almost always dry and tends to pack a bigger flavoric punch on the opening palate than on the close. It tends to have bright acid, gritty tannins, bitter spice and dry herb notes over red and black fruit. Because of its tannic content, expect to get a nice astringent mouth-feel with this grape…You can expect medium to lengthy finishes, backed by leather saddle, olive, dry forest floor, tobacco and burnt smokey brown sugar notes.”
“When it comes to taste and aroma, Carignan offers a pleasing combination of fruit-forward flavors and a delicate salty umami quality. The wine is rich, balanced and extremely quaffable—an almost perfect everyday wine. Carignan has a medium body and only a medium amount of tannins, making it a perfect drink for those put off by the bitterness of darker reds. The medium body and tannins perfectly complement the high acidity, resulting in a wine that’s flavourful and refreshing in equal measure. The most dominant flavors in Carignan are undoubtably cranberries and raspberries. Along with the red berry flavors, there are strong notes of liquorice and baking spices such as nutmeg and cinnamon. Finally, to a lesser extent, there is a notable taste of cured and salted meats.”
“Carignan is typically a fruity wine, with flavors like cranberry, strawberry and raspberry detectable on the palate. The more subtle floral notes contain hints of rose petal and violet. Different methods of processing this wine produce different aromas. For instance, carbonic maceration, in which whole grapes are fermented without the typical crushing method, produces lower tannins and higher fruit notes. Because the tannins are found in the skin, the whole-fruit nature of carbonic maceration does not allow them to be fully released. Due to the yeasts present during this stage, carbonic maceration often produces aromas of banana, bubblegum and even cotton candy. However, if you were to taste Carignan that had been aged in a light oak barrel, you would likely notice vanilla, fragrant sweet wood and even coconut on the nose. Heavy oak would impart even more dramatic scents, such as smoke, anise and even tar.”
“[W]when farmed and vinified carefully, carignan can produce wines that can be intriguing and delicious, particularly when the grapes come from old, low-yielding vines. At the high end, excellent carignan-based reds have come from Priorat and Sardinia, and I’ve had carignans from Languedoc that have been quite good…In recent years, a small number of winemakers, particularly those without vineyards or resources to buy higher-end grapes, have been seeking out old-vine carignan in California and turning it into very good wines.”
“Rich in colour, acid and astringent tannins, carignan may disappoint drinkers looking for the mellow smoothness of, say, California merlot or Australian shiraz. But it can thrill when it’s good and when you put your mind – and the right food – to it. Usually full-bodied, it tends to suggest dark berries, Mediterranean herbs and even, oddly, hints of citrus (flavours typically associated with white wines).”
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Some Descriptions of Carignan Wines
“Carignan can be a difficult variety for winemakers to work with being naturally high in acidity, tannins and astringency which requires a lot of skill to produce a wine of finesse and elegance.”
“Carignan is only rarely made as a varietal wine, but the best examples can show characteristics of dark and black fruits, pepper, licorice, and spicy and savory accents…In Spain the best Carinena wines are found in the acclaimed Priorat region…Other prominent growing areas are the island of Sardinia, where it is known as Carignano. The hot Mediterranean climate is perfect for the old vines planted here and the resulting wine is valued for its richness and spiciness.”
“The wine produced is typically high in rough tannins and acidity and in southern France the softening vinification method of carbonic maceration routinely has to be used to ensure that wines made from Carignan can be drunk reasonably young. I find a rank bitterness in many Languedoc red blends too dependent on high-yielding Carignan…The result of this varietal evolution is that much of the Carignan that remains tends to be relatively old. Old-vine Carignan grapes, fully ripened on infertile soils in a warm summer, produce by far the best Carignan wine. The key here is that yields have been restricted and there is enough ripe fruit character to mask the naturally high tannins and acidity…But perhaps the most delicious Carignan is not Carignan at all but Carignano, as the variety is called when planted, as it is to a limited extent, in the hot, dry south-western corner of Sardinia…if Carignan has a perfect spot, it seems to be here, although it may be partly because of the age of the Carignano bush vines here.”
“Carignan is known for developing a wealth of tannins, acidity and colour, so it has typically been used as an excellent blending partner for Grenache, which can be lacking in these qualities. If not made with care, however, it can also be prone to rampant reduction during vinification. So, while a beautiful grape on its own, the wine must still be made carefully…At their best, whether north or south of the Pyrenees, Carignan wines will usually display dark cherry fruit, blueberries, violet and other floral aromas along with notes of orange peel, black liquorice and cocoa. On the palate, the wines are very full-bodied with tannins that have a fine, dusty aspect and an acidity that presents a fresh and lively wine with excellent potential for ageing.”
“ It is a common belief that old vine Carignan tastes much better than young Carignan wine. Priorat in particular grows and vinifies very fine Carignan from vines that now exceed 80 years of age…Characteristically, Carignan wine in the glass, as it exists in single varietal form (which is somewhat rare), is a richly colored, acidic and tannic wine that some have criticized as being too bitter and rustic…In the glass, carignan is a deep and dark colored wine, with a deep purple hue and often crimson rustic attributes around the edges. This is especially true for old vine Carignan. Carignan wine is almost always dry and tends to pack a bigger flavoric punch on the opening palate than on the close. It tends to have bright acid, gritty tannins, bitter spice and dry herb notes over red and black fruit. Because of its tannic content, expect to get a nice astringent mouth-feel with this grape…You can expect medium to lengthy finishes, backed by leather saddle, olive, dry forest floor, tobacco and burnt smokey brown sugar notes.”
“When it comes to taste and aroma, Carignan offers a pleasing combination of fruit-forward flavors and a delicate salty umami quality. The wine is rich, balanced and extremely quaffable—an almost perfect everyday wine. Carignan has a medium body and only a medium amount of tannins, making it a perfect drink for those put off by the bitterness of darker reds. The medium body and tannins perfectly complement the high acidity, resulting in a wine that’s flavourful and refreshing in equal measure. The most dominant flavors in Carignan are undoubtably cranberries and raspberries. Along with the red berry flavors, there are strong notes of liquorice and baking spices such as nutmeg and cinnamon. Finally, to a lesser extent, there is a notable taste of cured and salted meats.”
“Carignan is typically a fruity wine, with flavors like cranberry, strawberry and raspberry detectable on the palate. The more subtle floral notes contain hints of rose petal and violet. Different methods of processing this wine produce different aromas. For instance, carbonic maceration, in which whole grapes are fermented without the typical crushing method, produces lower tannins and higher fruit notes. Because the tannins are found in the skin, the whole-fruit nature of carbonic maceration does not allow them to be fully released. Due to the yeasts present during this stage, carbonic maceration often produces aromas of banana, bubblegum and even cotton candy. However, if you were to taste Carignan that had been aged in a light oak barrel, you would likely notice vanilla, fragrant sweet wood and even coconut on the nose. Heavy oak would impart even more dramatic scents, such as smoke, anise and even tar.”
“[W]when farmed and vinified carefully, carignan can produce wines that can be intriguing and delicious, particularly when the grapes come from old, low-yielding vines. At the high end, excellent carignan-based reds have come from Priorat and Sardinia, and I’ve had carignans from Languedoc that have been quite good…In recent years, a small number of winemakers, particularly those without vineyards or resources to buy higher-end grapes, have been seeking out old-vine carignan in California and turning it into very good wines.”
“Rich in colour, acid and astringent tannins, carignan may disappoint drinkers looking for the mellow smoothness of, say, California merlot or Australian shiraz. But it can thrill when it’s good and when you put your mind – and the right food – to it. Usually full-bodied, it tends to suggest dark berries, Mediterranean herbs and even, oddly, hints of citrus (flavours typically associated with white wines).”