white grape · regional staple
Macabeo
Catalonia, Spain
Say it
mah·kah·bay·oh
Catalan form is Macabeu (mah-kah-BAY-oo); in Rioja the same grape is called Viura (vee-OO-rah)
On the palate
Body
light medium
Acidity
medium
Aromatics
medium
green applepearlemongrapefruitwhite peachalmond
How you spot it blind: crisp citrus early-harvested; turns nutty and honeyed under oxidative aging
The story
First written down · 1617, Vilafranca del Penedès, Catalonia
After phylloxera devastated Rioja in the late 19th century, Macabeo was replanted at scale and largely replaced Malvasia and Garnacha Blanca, eventually becoming Spain's second-most-planted white grape.
Family tree: HEBEN × BRUSTIANO FAUX
Where it lives
Rioja, Spain · Penedès, Spain · Languedoc-Roussillon, France
Shows up as
still whitesparklingCava
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Also answers to Viura, Macabeu, Macabeau.
Shop our Macabeo bottles