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Prieto Picudo is a red-wine grape possibly originating in the Tierra de Leon region of northern Spain, which remains its present-day home (though some say it might have been brought there from Portugal). It is often bottled as a monovarietal, but also appears in blends with one or both of the other two main red grapes of that region, Tempranillo and Mencía.
Prieto Picudo wines are typically deeply colored, with moderate tannins and significant acidity; they are frequently made with some oak exposure. Broadly speaking, it resembles its better-known stablemate Tempranillo; flavor elements usually mentioned for it are red currant, blackberry, and licorice (Jancis Robinson calls it “musky”). Prieto Picudo also often shows minerality, and—when oak has been used—the usual vanilla and toast.
For reasons not clear to us (or any wine writer we encountered researching this grape), Prieto Picudo remains a “secret wine” in both the U.S. and the U.K. It isn’t written up much, it isn’t offered for sale much, and its high quality (which those few critics who have sampled it attest to) seems ill represented by many, arguably most, of the inexpensive bottlings that reach the aforementioned markets.
Factoid: Prieto Picudo is not officially allowed to be sold as a varietal wine in a DO. As a wise man once observed, God must love idiots—he makes so many of them.
“Prieto Picudo is one of the major wine grapes from the Spanish denomination of origin (DO) Tierra de León. It is a varietal that delivers deeply colored wines, with a clean acidity and high levels of sugar and tannin. This concentration gives Prieto Picudo wines a unique character and taste…Varietal wines from this grape have similar characteristics to the tempranillo. Gives rise to personal and very aromatic wines, although rather light with respect to the color. With this grape occurs a ‘vino de aguja’, made with the ‘madreo method’. The process of this wine is to cause a slow second fermentation, which improves its quality, giving the typical spicy natural CO2 dissolved, without being sparkling.”
“A typical Prieto Picudo wine has moderate tannins, retains good acidity and may respond well to a judicious use of oak. The aromatic variety gives intense color to wine, more so than most other varieties grown in Castilla y León. It is sometimes likened to Tempranillo in this respect. Typical flavors include redcurrant, blackberry and licorice. These wines often have mineral notes (a trait common to many León wines), as well as vanilla and toast where oak has been used. Rosé wines tend to show aromas of strawberry and raspberry with touches of peach, citrus and flowers.”
“Known for its impressive bouquet and deep color, it is quite versatile. It has the acidity and tannic structure to do well with oak aging. Aging in oak softens tannins while helping concentrate the dark fruits flavors, but because it’s naturally high-acid it still retains the freshness to the finish…It also does well with little to no oak, making a more medium-bodied wine with bramble and red fruit flavors with hints of dry herbs. It has been compared to Tempranillo because of its versatility, but for me that is where the comparison ends. Unfortunately, there aren’t many Prieto Picudo wines that are widely available…”
“The grapes of this red wine variety have a good coloring texture, a good level of acidity along with sugar and tannins. Thus, this entire combination results in the wines that are special as well as different in terms of its taste. This red wine grape variety is considered as a highly aromatic variety of grapes, which provides an intense color to all the wines that are prepared out of it. It responds very well to the oak treatment…The wines prepared out of this red wine grape variety are considered to be very intense both in terms of their flavor as well as color. Most of the wines prepared out of this red wine grape variety are considered to be similar to the flavors of red currant, licorice as well as blackberry. These wines entertain the notes similar to mineral along with vanilla and toast, particularly in the wines that have been prepared out of oak treatment.”
“[Prieto Picudo] packs a lovely punch of hot black cherries, smoky dark chocolate and peppery dustbowl blackberries that all clip together with a tangy acidity. Bloody tasty and usually great value, this is rebel wine.”
“The rosés [of León D.O.] are almost exclusively also of the Prieto Picudo variety…The Prieto Picudo are very aromatic and fresh, with a wide range of fruit and a marked acidity in the mouth that gives them elegance and refinement. In addition to being one of the lesser known vines in the national panorama, in the D.O. León uses in its production a little known technique called madreo, which consists in adding a certain quantity of whole bunches of grapes, stalks and berries to the fermentation tank of the must, so that all together carry out the fermentation process. Eventually, the set of added grapes, the mother, is discarded. This technique gives the wines a high color and aromatic intensity, in addition to the precious aguja, natural carbon dioxide that originates inside the whole grape during the fermentation process. The reds, also predominantly from Prieto Picudo, are tremendously powerful, expressive and burly. A great balance in the mouth between acidity, bitterness, astringency and alcohol content must be added to the aromatic intensity of the variety. It is a variety of great aptitude and versatility for oenology, which allows it to produce young wines, but also short, long and even very long aging.”
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Some Descriptions of Prieto Picudo Wines
“Prieto Picudo is one of the major wine grapes from the Spanish denomination of origin (DO) Tierra de León. It is a varietal that delivers deeply colored wines, with a clean acidity and high levels of sugar and tannin. This concentration gives Prieto Picudo wines a unique character and taste…Varietal wines from this grape have similar characteristics to the tempranillo. Gives rise to personal and very aromatic wines, although rather light with respect to the color. With this grape occurs a ‘vino de aguja’, made with the ‘madreo method’. The process of this wine is to cause a slow second fermentation, which improves its quality, giving the typical spicy natural CO2 dissolved, without being sparkling.”
“A typical Prieto Picudo wine has moderate tannins, retains good acidity and may respond well to a judicious use of oak. The aromatic variety gives intense color to wine, more so than most other varieties grown in Castilla y León. It is sometimes likened to Tempranillo in this respect. Typical flavors include redcurrant, blackberry and licorice. These wines often have mineral notes (a trait common to many León wines), as well as vanilla and toast where oak has been used. Rosé wines tend to show aromas of strawberry and raspberry with touches of peach, citrus and flowers.”
“Known for its impressive bouquet and deep color, it is quite versatile. It has the acidity and tannic structure to do well with oak aging. Aging in oak softens tannins while helping concentrate the dark fruits flavors, but because it’s naturally high-acid it still retains the freshness to the finish…It also does well with little to no oak, making a more medium-bodied wine with bramble and red fruit flavors with hints of dry herbs. It has been compared to Tempranillo because of its versatility, but for me that is where the comparison ends. Unfortunately, there aren’t many Prieto Picudo wines that are widely available…”
“The grapes of this red wine variety have a good coloring texture, a good level of acidity along with sugar and tannins. Thus, this entire combination results in the wines that are special as well as different in terms of its taste. This red wine grape variety is considered as a highly aromatic variety of grapes, which provides an intense color to all the wines that are prepared out of it. It responds very well to the oak treatment…The wines prepared out of this red wine grape variety are considered to be very intense both in terms of their flavor as well as color. Most of the wines prepared out of this red wine grape variety are considered to be similar to the flavors of red currant, licorice as well as blackberry. These wines entertain the notes similar to mineral along with vanilla and toast, particularly in the wines that have been prepared out of oak treatment.”
“[Prieto Picudo] packs a lovely punch of hot black cherries, smoky dark chocolate and peppery dustbowl blackberries that all clip together with a tangy acidity. Bloody tasty and usually great value, this is rebel wine.”
“The rosés [of León D.O.] are almost exclusively also of the Prieto Picudo variety…The Prieto Picudo are very aromatic and fresh, with a wide range of fruit and a marked acidity in the mouth that gives them elegance and refinement. In addition to being one of the lesser known vines in the national panorama, in the D.O. León uses in its production a little known technique called madreo, which consists in adding a certain quantity of whole bunches of grapes, stalks and berries to the fermentation tank of the must, so that all together carry out the fermentation process. Eventually, the set of added grapes, the mother, is discarded. This technique gives the wines a high color and aromatic intensity, in addition to the precious aguja, natural carbon dioxide that originates inside the whole grape during the fermentation process. The reds, also predominantly from Prieto Picudo, are tremendously powerful, expressive and burly. A great balance in the mouth between acidity, bitterness, astringency and alcohol content must be added to the aromatic intensity of the variety. It is a variety of great aptitude and versatility for oenology, which allows it to produce young wines, but also short, long and even very long aging.”