The Cinsaut Grape

(Synonyms: Black Malvoisie, Black Prince, Blue Imperial, Cinqsaut, Cinq-saou, Cinsault, Grecau, Grecu Masculinu, Hermitage, Marrouquin, Ottavianello, Picardan Noir, Piquepoul D’Uzes, Prunelat, Prunelas, Samsó, Sinsóo, Sinsóon, Sinseur, Uva Spina)

Background

Cinsaut (often rendered as Cinsault) is a red-wine grape apparently originating in the Hérault area of the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France, though it could ultimately have come from farther away (the eastern Mediterranean). Nowadays, it is grown primarily (but not exclusively) in the Languedoc-Roussillon area of France, northern Africa (notably Algeria), South Africa, Chile, and the U.S. (particularly around Lodi). Its growth habit is such that it is especially well suited for hot, dry climates (hence its use in North Africa and even Lebanon).

Cinsaut wines tend to be quite fruit-forward, strongly aromatic, lightly tinted, and of medium body and weight: “pretty”, as Jancis Robinson describes them. The usual taste descriptors involve the lighter-red berry family. It tends to be low in tannins, and is usually best drunk while young.

Factoid: Cinsaut was formerly known in South Africa as “Hermitage”; under that name, it became one of the two parent grapes (the other being Pinot Noir) of that country’s now well-known Pinotage varietal.

Some Descriptions of Cinsaut Wines

Wikipedia
“Cinsaut or Cinsault is a red wine grape, whose heat tolerance and productivity make it important in Languedoc-Roussillon and the former French colonies of Algeria and Morocco. It is often blended with grapes such as Grenache and Carignan to add softness and bouquet.”
Wine Searcher
“Cinsaut (often spelled Cinsault) is a dark-skinned grape variety traditionally used as a blending partner for Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre as part of the classic ‘southern Rhone blend’. It is fairly unusual to see Cinsaut produced as a varietal wine, except as a rosé…Cinsaut vines have been grown for centuries in southern France, where it is one of the permitted minor grape varieties in the Chateauneuf-du-Pape blend…Cinsaut brings wines are generally low in tannin and generally used in blends for its perfume. It shares much in common with Grenache and at one time was grown for its generous yields. Light red berries are the most commonly associated flavor descriptors.”
Forgotten Grapes
“[T]his particular grape is posh, feminine, hearty and produces some awfully good single varietal wine, even if she very rarely given the chance to strut her stuff solo. . . Which is a shame, because she truly does make a remarkable wine on its own - soft, supple, richly perfumed, and highly feminine yet still exceptionally drinkable. It sometimes makes you wonder what the wine world has against Cinsault, why it continues to sell the grape short again and again. . . The very first thing you’re going to notice on a Cinsault is just how soft the wine is. It has a particularly velvety mouth feel and very little tannic pull to dry out your mouth. It is a feminine wine in just about every way, shape, and form. Flavor-wise, you’ll get the same strawberries from the nose, but also some slightly darker red fruits: raspberries, currents, and Bing cherries moving from red into black. In older Cinsault and those from more drought-ridden Mediterranean climates, the flavors may be completely different – drier, hardly any fruit, a much meatier, saltier flavor to the wine with a darker cocoa or coffee-esque aftertaste. But those are generally rarer exceptions. From the more Old-World style Cinsault, it will be bright, light red berries and super softness along the tongue and mouth.”
Professional Friends of Wine
“Cinsaut is one of those ‘grower’ varieties that easily produces a very large crop of 6 to 10 tons per acre. At this crop level, it offers little sensory interest and imperceptible flavor distinction. So much cinsaut is overcropped and used as "filler" that it is difficult for many wine critics to issue it any respect. When properly managed to a crop load of just 2 to 4 tons per acre, it can produce quite flavorful wines with penetrating aroma and soft tannins, easily quaffable in their youth…Wine made from cinsaut grapes can be very aromatic with a vaporous perfume that assails the nostrils and supple texture that soothes the palate. Fairly low in tannin, it is often made into rosé by itself or blended, to brighten the fruit and tone down the harsher edges of carignan, in particular.”
Serious Eats
“In other parts of the world, Cinsault is treated today mostly as a blending grape. But Cinsault can be tasted on its own terms, alone in a bottle of wine, most readily from California. The Bechthold Vineyard might be the oldest living planting of Cinsault on the planet, and it certainly is in North America. Cinsault’s spice, reminiscent of peppercorn and cardamom, and its bright red fruit does well with grilled vegetables, or grilled light meats like pork and chicken. But the wine also loves the creamy, distinctive flavors of a mild Thai curry, or the fried dough and potato-love-fest of samosa. After all, the grape is a world traveler. It likes to complement foods of many cultures.”
Vin de France
“Cinsault is also a charmer through its non-aggressive, soft, fruity aromas. The main notes encountered are peach, raspberry, gooseberry, pomegranate, strawberry and nectarine. By limiting Cinsault’s yield, wine growers obtain wonderful wines of great personality that are rich, full-bodied and lush. Behind its brilliant, rose-petal color lie fruity notes. Wines made from Cinsault are at their most seductive when young. They are lively and full-bodied on the palate. When blended with Grenache, the strength of Cinsault’s alcohol is tempered. When blended with Carignan, its [Carignan’s] bitterness is attenuated.”
The Wine Cellar Insider
“When growers work with the variety and reduce yields, Cinsaut delivers floral and ripe strawberry notes.”
Winery Sage
“Cinsault is lighter in color than many of the other Rhone Varietals and in warmer temperatures can turn brick red not unlike Nebbiolo rather than the burgundy to purple color of most other Red wines. Its flavor, which is low in tannins, is often described as ‘soft’. Cinsault is highly fragrant for a Red wine, which is why it is popular component in blends or added as a flavoring agent in Varietals. It’s often made into a Rose wine. Because it is lighter in tannins, Cinsault is not suited for long bottle aging so it should be enjoyed between 5 and 7 years after vintage.”
Rhone Rangers
“A high-yielding, early-ripening, hot-weather red grape, generally used in blends. Cinsault tends to be low in tannin, and is often added to blends to add a spicy component. Not often found as a varietal bottling.”

Some Cinsauts to Try

While there are many bottlings of Cinsaut available in the U.S., when we filter by a reasonable quality level and then by reasonable availability at retail, the list shrinks considerably. Here are those we could find of acceptable quality with reasonable availability.

For a Splurge

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This page was last modified on Saturday, 30 October 2021, at 11:26 pm Pacific Time.

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