The Monastrell Grape

(Synonyms: Alcayata, Balzac Noir, Catalan, Espagnen, Espar, Garrut, Gayata, Mataro, Pyrénées-Orientales, Mourvede, Mourvedon, Mourvèdre, Negria, Ros)

Background

Monastrell—also commonly known as Mourvèdre and Mataro—is a red-wine grape most likely originating in Spain, where it is still very widely grown, but also now planted and vinified pretty much throughout the wine-producing world. It was commonly used as a major ingredient of certain blended reds, but is increasingly being bottled as a premium monovarietal.

The wines can vary a lot, depending on vineyard location and winemaker style, but the common elements are high acids and tannins over surprisingly soft flavors of red fruit (strawberry, raspberry, cherry); especially when young, it can also exhibit so-called “earthy” overtones (sometimes called, by those who fancy them less, “barnyard” qualities). When not so well grown as it might be, its wines can show pronounced (many would say excessive) jam-like or herbaceous qualities, qualities that are good in moderation but not in excess.

The name by which the grape and its wines is called is chiefly regional: Monastrell in Spain (which produces the largest quantity; Mourvèdre in France (where it is an important grape in Rhône blends); and Mataro in Australia (and often in the U.S. as well, where it is also widely called Mourvèdre). But the careful buyer will also discover Monastrell hiding under several regional blend names, in which blends it is often either the sole or dominating grape; in Spain, those include the appellations of Alicante, Almansa, Jumilla, Valencia, and Yecla. In France, many Rhône reds include significant amounts of Mourvèdre; reds of the Bandol appellation must be at least 50% Mourvèdre. A common blend will feature Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre (the so-called “GSM” blends, in which the Mourvèdre notably contributes color, fruitiness, and some tannins). When grown in the U.S., as it is from California up through Washington State, it produces wines with somewhat less tannin and a smoke/spice/game quality overlaying a cherry-like fruit nature.

Monastrell does not seem to take to oak as much as many comparable red wines, and so is commonly vinified in neutral or large barrels.

Factoid: Monastrell is thought by some to have been introduced into the Iberian peninsula by Phoenician traders as early as half a millennium BC.

Some Descriptions of Monastrell Wines

Wikipedia
“Mourvèdre tends to produce tannic wines that can be high in alcohol. . . According to wine expert Jancis Robinson, in favorable vintages Mourvèdre can produce highly perfumed wines with intense fruit flavors and notes of blackberries and gamy or meaty flavors. Oz Clarke notes that some examples of Mourvèdre may come across as faulted in their youth with "farmyard-y" and strong herbal flavors. As the wine ages, more earthy tertiary aromas may develop before becoming more leather and gingerbread aroma notes.”
Tablas Creek
“Wines made from Mourvèdre are intensely colored, rich and velvety with aromas of red fruit, chocolate/mocha, mint, leather, earth and game. They tend to be high in mid-palate tannin, and are well-suited to aging, although they are also often more approachable when young than the more overtly-tannic Grenache or Syrah. In middle-age (anywhere from two to five years after bottling) Mourvèdre-heavy wines often close down and become tight and unyielding. This closed period can last for as little as a year, or in extraordinary vintages as long as a decade. When the wines reopen, the meaty flavors present in youth resolve into aromas of forest floor, leather and truffles. The more intense a Mourvèdre-based wine is, the longer it stays open at the beginning, the longer it stays closed, and the longer it will drink well after it reopens.”
Wine Searcher
“Mourvedre's meaty, herby aromas are very distinctive, as are its strong tannins. These qualities make it a potent ingredient for blending, most often with vibrant, rich Grenache and structured, spicy Syrah…Today, Mourvedre vines still line the coastal hillsides of Bandol, and the variety constitutes at least one half of the region's tannic, meaty red wines and its gently spicy rosés – some of the finest in the world.…Spanish Monastrell wines tend to be rich, dark affairs, frequently showing flavors of blackberry and black cherry.…Australian and Californian examples of the variety are typically richer and more fruit-driven than those produced around the Mediterranean.”
Wine Folly
“Mourvedre is a meaty and full-bodied red wine. The smell of Mourvedre is an explosion of dark fruit, flowers like violet and herbaceous aromas of black pepper, thyme, and red meat. In regions such as Bandol, France and Jumilla, Spain, Mourvedre wine can have a very gamey taste. Some believe the unctuous aromas in many Mourvedre wines are in part due to a wine fault called reduction. Because of this, Mourvedre benefits from decanting.”
i-winereview
“Monastrell presents several challenges to the winemaker. First and foremost, because of the region’s high temperatures, care must be taken in the vineyard to harvest fruit that is optimally ripe phenolically but not overly ripe and jammy. Secondly, because Monastrell produces hard tannic wines there is need to reduce harsh tannin extraction by handling fruit as gently as possible, carefully controlling the temperature and speed of fermentation, and mascerating grapes with skins. In addition, because Monastrell is highly reductive, winemakers need to do more frequent pumpovers and racking during fermentation and barrel aging. Also, the better winemakers of Murcia are quickly learning how to tame the wild character of the grape through blending and other means in order to produce more fruit forward and accessible wines while still retaining some of the earthy characteristics that make Monastrell wines unique. ”
winegeeks
“High in tannins Monastrell has lots of black fruit flavors as well as spices, leather, and in less-ripe conditions, herbal nuances.”
Eric Asimov, The New York Times
“Naturally, we found a few in the thick-and-jammy style, but they were far and away the exceptions. Many more of the wines seemed to possess an earthy, distinctly Spanish point of view. That is to say, they were full of dark flavors reminiscent, perhaps, of plums and licorice, but without the brooding, sometimes savage character of Bandol. Another way of putting that, I suppose, is that they distinguish what makes monastrell different from mourvèdre.…On one side were more traditionally inspired wines, which seemed a little rougher in character, with evident tannins and, to my mind at least, a greater sense of distinctiveness. On the other were sleeker, more polished wines that seemed to have been constructed with modern, international markets in mind. A third style also emerged, juicy picnic-style wines that were softer than is typical of this grape, maybe with dark shadings but uncharacteristically exuberant.”
Wine Access
“A sparsely planted variety found predominantly in the southern Rhone, Provence, and elsewhere near the Mediterranean coast, Mourvedre is best known for its place in powerful game and earth-scented reds. One is mostly likely to encounter the grape in wines from the southern Rhone. Here, Mourvedre takes its place blended with Grenache and Syrah, notably in the wines of Chateauneuf-du-Pape. If you want to discover what the grape offers on its own, head to the appellation of Bandol, in Provence. Provence may be best known for the widespread production of rose wines, but for serious wines in the region, Bandol is the first (and for many, the only) stop. Here, wines are dominated by Mourvedre, and in some examples, this grape is the sole variety. Because of the high percentage of Mourvedre, wines from Bandol can be fiercely tannic upon release, and often demand at least six to eight years of cellaring. After this time, this wines will gain nuance and grace, complementing their underlying savory and musky characteristics.…In Spain, Mourvedre is known as Monastrell or Mataro, and it is planted heavily on the southeastern Mediterranean coast, including the appellations of Jumila and Yecla.”
Mike Steinberger, Slate
“Mourvèdre does not suit everyone's taste. More to the point, its smell can be a turn-off: One of the grape's signature aromas is a certain gaminess—what the French call animale. Some people, confronted with this distinctive odor, will wonder what fell into the glass and died. Mourvèdre also tends to display a leathery quality and a degree of earthiness, and while the wines it yields do not lack for fruit—they are usually marked by plum, raspberry, or blackberry flavors or various combinations thereof—they can be a bit austere.”
Professional Friends of Wine
“Wine makers frequently use mourvèdre's dark, thick-skinned berries in blends to boost color and tannin, but often bemoan its absence of distinct flavors and proclivity to oxidation, which co-fermentation with other varieties can help to avoid. Beginning in the early 1980s, several Australian wineries popularized various blends of Grenache, Shiraz, and Mataro as “GSM” wines; the combination has also become common in California. Unblended Mourvèdre wines tend to be deep-colored, quite tannic, although somewhat moderate in acid and alcohol, and have generally "earthy-spicy" aromas in their youth. The “gamey” aroma often found in mourvèdre may be accentuated by this variety's inclination to become contaminated with brettanomyces.…In California, mourvèdre was historically called mataro and was losing ground literally until the demand for Rhône-type varietals began to surge in the late 1980s. Even today, more than 60% of the 800+ acres planted statewide are in Madera, Contra Costa, and San Luis Obispo Counties.”

Some Monastrells to Try

For a Splurge

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