red grape · regional staple
Carignan
Cariñena, Aragon, Spain
Say it
kah·ree·nyahn
Adapted from the Spanish toponym Cariñena; stressed on the final nasal syllable; the 'gn' is a palatal nasal, like 'ny' in 'canyon'.
On the palate
How you spot it blind: high tannin and acidity rising through a garrigue-herb aromatic lift
The story
First written down · 15th century, Aragon, Spain
Once France's most planted variety at 167,000 ha in 1988, Carignan was sharply cut by EU vine-pull programs through the 1990s; its oldest low-yield bushvines on schist simultaneously gained recognition as Languedoc's most age-worthy material.
Family tree: Castellana Blanca × ?
Where it lives
Languedoc-Roussillon, France · Priorat and Rioja, Spain · Carignano del Sulcis DOC, Sardinia, Italy · California, USA
Shows up as
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Also answers to Carignane, Carignano, Mazuelo, Manzuelo, Samsó, Cariñena.
Shop our Carignan bottles