Pronunciations – “care-in-yen”
Carignan is planted in many notable regions in the world but it originated in Spain under the name of Cariñena . It is widely planted in South France, Sardegna, Spain and it is produced as a single varietal wine and often used in blends. It has many synonyms, being called Carignano in Italy, Mazuelo or Cariñena in Spain and Carignan in France.
Grown all over the world, it is produced as a still dry red wine and a still dry rose. The red wines tend to have a medium intensity, ruby red color with lots of fruit aromas. Roses have a salmon pink color, with a slightly deeper intensity in comparison to lighter roses.
Carignan Tasting Notes
Primary Notes – Red fruit (Cherry, Raspberry, Cranberry), Umami, Meat
Secondary Notes – Oak (baking spice, cinnamon, star anise, smoke, cloves)
Tertiary Notes – with age it shows leather, earth, tobacco.
Body – light, medium, dark/heavy (light to bold)
Palate – Sweetness – Dry; Acidity – Medium to High; Tannins – Medium;
Typical ABV% -13-15%
Carignan Styles
Carignan is often used as a blending grape variety although it is produced as a single varietal wine as well. It produces still dry red wines and also still dry roses.
When produced as a red wine it is almost always aged in oak to soften the wine and add complexity. Roses tend to be unoaked.
Carignan Classifications
Carignan is planted in a lot of regions around the world but the most notable ones are definitely in France and Spain.
Some of the French Appellation Origine Controlee are:
-Minervois AOC
-Corbieres AOC
-Fitou AOC
-Côtes du Roussillon AOC and Côtes du Roussillon Village AOC
Some of Spanish Denominacion de Origen are:
-Catalunya DO
-Penedes DO
-Priorat DO
-Tarragona DO
-Rioja DO
When To Drink Carignan
Carignan is ideal with rich white meats such as turkey and duck, pork and even beef. It has a naturally spicy aroma with lots of red fruit and meat flavors which can enhance the meat dishes. It works well with stronger cheeses as well, such as parmesan, gouda and aged spanish cheese. With age it develops from ripe fruit towards dried fruit aromas and it develops more gamey aromas, such as leather, meat, game.
Carignan Serving Temperature – 60- 64 degrees F (15-18 ºC)
Best Years To Drink Carignan
Carignan can age well but it is not a wine that will benefit from cellaring for decades. Keep it for ten years maximum and it may well go downhill from there. It all depends on the producer but having it after 7 to 10 years of cellaring will make your wine more complex.
Carignan Average Prices
When it comes to the price of Carignan it all depends where it is produced and who is the producer. In general, French Carignan tends to be more expensive than other regions in the world since French AOCs have more prestige. Spanish are a tad lower in price and new world Carignan will be slightly cheaper than the Spanish ones, however this is not a set rule.
It can be anywhere between 10$ up to 200$.
Carignan Nutrition Facts
Carignan usually has around 109 calories per glass of 125ml or 5 ounces.
When it comes to carbohydrates it is roughly around 4g per glass.
A bottle has around 650 calories and 24g of carbs.
Fun Facts About Carignan
Carignan was once the most planted grape variety in Languedoc-Roussillon.
Carignan can withstand a lot of heat and survive with really low water levels, which led to it being planted a lot in really hot regions.
Carignan is also known as Samso in Catalonia.
