Albariño
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Alvarinho () or Albariño () is a variety of white
wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented grapes. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different ...
grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus '' Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years a ...
grown in Northwest Portugal (Monção and Melgaço) and
Galicia Galicia may refer to: Geographic regions * Galicia (Spain), a region and autonomous community of northwestern Spain ** Gallaecia, a Roman province ** The post-Roman Kingdom of the Suebi, also called the Kingdom of Gallaecia ** The medieval King ...
(northwest Spain) where it is also used to make
varietal A varietal wine is a wine made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label.The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2000.winepros.com.au. ...
white wines. In Portugal it is known as Alvarinho, and sometimes as Cainho Branco, Albariño is the Galician name for the grape. It was presumably brought to
Iberia The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese language, Aragonese and Occitan language, Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a pe ...
by
Cluny Cluny () is a commune in the eastern French department of Saône-et-Loire, in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. It is northwest of Mâcon. The town grew up around the Benedictine Abbey of Cluny, founded by Duke William I of Aquitaine in ...
monks in the twelfth century but recent studies point to Alvarinho/albariño being native to Portugal/Galicia. Both the Portuguese "Alvarinho" and Galician name "Albariño", derive from ''albo''<''albus'', meaning "white, whitish". It has locally been thought to be a
Riesling Riesling (, ; ) is a white grape variety that originated in the Rhine region. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet, and sparkling wh ...
clone originating from the
Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...
region of
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, although earliest known records of Riesling as a grape variety date from the 15th, rather than the 12th, century. It is also theorized that the grape is a close relative of the French grape
Petit Manseng Petit Manseng (sometimes translated: Small Manseng, rarely "Little Manseng") is a white wine grape variety that is grown primarily in South West France. It produces the highest quality wine of any grape in the Manseng family. The name is deriv ...
.Oz Clarke ''Encyclopedia of Grapes'' pg 167 Harcourt Books 2001 It should not be confused with the Alvarinho Lilás grape of
Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...
.


Major regions

Spain produces Albariño to a significant degree in the
Rías Baixas The Rías Baixas (Galician language, Galician for "Lower Rias") are a series of four estuarine inlets located on the southwestern coast of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Spain. They are the Ría de Muros e Noia, the Ría de Arousa, the Ria de Ponteved ...
DO, especially in the town of
Cambados Cambados is a municipality in Galicia, Spain in the province of Pontevedra. It is known for its historical monuments, its seafood and the famous white wine, Albariño Alvarinho () or Albariño () is a variety of white wine grape grown in ...
, Condado do Tea and in Barbanza e Iria.Oz Clarke ''Encyclopedia of Grapes'' pg 36 Harcourt Books 2001 In Portugal it is common in the
Vinho Verde Vinho Verde () (literally 'green wine') refers to Portuguese wine that originated in the historic Minho province in the far north of the country. The modern-day 'Vinho Verde' region, originally designated in 1908, includes the old Minho provi ...
region, but it is only authorized to be grown in Monção and Melgaço. In other locations such as Ribeiro, Lima,
Braga Braga ( , ; cel-x-proto, Bracara) is a city and a municipality, capital of the northwestern Portuguese district of Braga and of the historical and cultural Minho Province. Braga Municipality has a resident population of 193,333 inhabitants (in ...
or
Valdeorras Valdeorras is a comarca in the Galician Province of Ourense. The overall population of this local region is 25,500 (2019). Municipalities * O Barco de Valdeorras, capital of the comarca * O Bolo * Carballeda de Valdeorras * Larouco * Petín ...
it is often mixed with other grapes such as Loureiro, Godelho, Cainho or Borraçal,
Arinto Arinto or Arinto de Bucelas is a white Portuguese wine grape planted primarily in the Bucelas, Tejo and Vinho Verde regions. It can produce high acid wines with lemon notes. Synonyms Arinto is also known by the synonyms Arintho, Arintho du Dao, ...
or
Treixadura Treixadura or Trajadura is white Portuguese wine grape variety grown primarily in the Vinho Verde wine region of northeast Portugal and the Galician wine regions of Ribeiro and Rías Baixas in Spain where the variety is known as ''Treixad ...
to produce blended wines. Such blends were common throughout Galicia too until about 1985; when the Rías Baixas DO was established on an experimental basis in 1986, Albariño began to emerge as a variety, both locally and internationally. Split Personality
, a December 2002 ''
Wine Spectator ''Wine Spectator'' is an American lifestyle magazine that focuses on wine and wine culture, and gives out ratings to certain types of wine. It publishes 15 issues per year with content that includes news, articles, profiles, and general enterta ...
'' article (registration required to read archived article)
Its recent emergence as a variety led the wines to be "crafted for the palates of Europe, America and beyond and for wine drinkers who wanted clean flavors and rich, ripe fruit" and led to wines completely different from those produced across the river in Portugal. Albariño is now produced in several California regions including the Santa Ynez Valley, Clarksburg, Napa, Edna Valley and
Los Carneros Los Carneros AVA (also known as Carneros AVA) is an American Viticultural Area which includes parts of both Sonoma and Napa counties in California, U.S.A. It is located north of San Pablo Bay. The proximity to the cool fog and breezes from ...
AVAs. Albariño is also produced in Oregon, first by
Abacela Abacela is an American winery estate owned by Earl and Hilda Jones that is located in the Umpqua Valley AVA (American Viticultural Area). It was the first winery to commercially grow and produce wine from Spain's Noble Tempranillo grape in Ameri ...
Winery in the
Umpqua Valley AVA The Umpqua Valley AVA is one of the first American Viticultural Area (AVA) in Oregon and located entirely within Douglas County, Oregon. It became a sub-appellation within the larger Southern Oregon AVA when it was established in 2004. Its bound ...
, and in Washington state. Albariño is also grown in Uruguay and is produced as a varietal by Bodegas Garzon. In recent years Albariño attracted the attention of Australian winemakers, several of whom are now producing varietal wines. However, it has recently been discovered that grape growers and wine makers in Australia have been supplying and selling wrongly labelled Albarino for over a decade. They thought they were pouring money into the market for the Spanish grape, but a French expert visiting Australia raised questions in 2008. DNA testing confirmed that the grapes are in fact French Savagnin, and almost all wine in Australia labelled as Albarino is Savagnin.


Wine characteristics

The grape is noted for its distinctive botanical aroma with a citrous undertone, very similar to that of
Viognier Viognier () is a white wine grape variety. It is the only permitted grape for the French wine Condrieu in the Rhône Valley.J. Robinson ''"The Oxford Companion to Wine"'' Third Edition pg 754 Oxford University Press 2006 Outside of the Rhô ...
, Gewurztraminer, and
Petit Manseng Petit Manseng (sometimes translated: Small Manseng, rarely "Little Manseng") is a white wine grape variety that is grown primarily in South West France. It produces the highest quality wine of any grape in the Manseng family. The name is deriv ...
, suggesting
apricot An apricot (, ) is a fruit, or the tree that bears the fruit, of several species in the genus '' Prunus''. Usually, an apricot is from the species '' P. armeniaca'', but the fruits of the other species in ''Prunus'' sect. ''Armeniaca'' are al ...
and
peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, n ...
. The wine produced is unusually light, and generally high in acidity with alcohol levels of 11.5–12.5%. Its thick skins and large number of pips can cause residual bitterness.


Viticulture

For hundreds of years, Albariño vines could be found growing around the trunks of
poplar trees ''Populus'' is a genus of 25–30 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar (), aspen, and cottonwood. The we ...
and in bushes along the outside margins of fields — a practice which some growers still use in Portugal's
Vinho Verde Vinho Verde () (literally 'green wine') refers to Portuguese wine that originated in the historic Minho province in the far north of the country. The modern-day 'Vinho Verde' region, originally designated in 1908, includes the old Minho provi ...
region. In the middle of the century, however, growers made big investments and became professional grape growers. In Vinho Verde, the vines are typically trained on high pergolas, which encourages over-cropping, often leading to grapes that are unable to exceed more than 8.5% potential alcohol. When grown in a vineyard, the vines need to be wire trained with large canopies to accommodate the 30 to 40 buds per vine that is typical. The grape responds well to the heat and humidity though the high yields and bunching of clusters usually keep the grapes within the margins of ripeness.


Synonyms

Albariño is also known under the synonyms Albarina, Alvarin Blanco, Alvarinha, Alvarinho, Azal Blanco, Galego and Galeguinho.Alvharinho
,
Vitis International Variety Catalogue The Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) is a database of various species and varieties/ cultivars of grapevine, the genus ''Vitis''. VIVC is administered by the Geilweilerhof Institute for Grape Breeding (''Institut für Rebenzüchtung ...
, accessed 2010-11-23


See also

*
List of Portuguese grape varieties Portugal's history of viticulture and vinification covers many centuries and has included the use of an extensive number native varieties. In addition, through experimentation and field trials a number of new varieties have emerged and are now pl ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Albarino Galicia (Spain) White wine grape varieties Grape varieties of Spain Spanish wine