A friend of ours loves Rioja but, when we invited her and her husband to dinner one evening recently, we decided to cook them a rich warming venison casserole. Perfect for a bleak January day but not ideal for pairing with the subtle fruitiness of a good Rioja. So, what could I find that would be robust enough for the food, yet still offer the flavour and character of her favourite wine?
Most red Rioja is made from a blend of grapes including Tempranillo, which gives the wine its perfumed fruit and floral aromas, and Garnacha (known in France as Grenache) which adds alcohol, body and depth to the wine. It seemed to me that, by focussing just on the Garnacha, I could find something right for the dish and for our friends who, hopefully, would enjoy both food and wine. I settled on a bottle from the Cariñena DO, barely 50 miles down river from Rioja, close to the town of Zaragosa. Here, with more of a Mediterranean influence, temperatures are rather warmer and the Garnacha grapes are harvested riper and yield a chunkier, more powerful wine.
Mancuso’s Garnacha (Wine Society, £13.95) is produced by a small, family run company from 50 year old vines, giving a lovely depth of flavour. Although clearly a big wine, this had freshness and even some elegance, too. Ripe blackberry flavours combined with subtle spicy oak notes led on to a long clean finish with well-integrated tannins. The label showed 14.5% alcohol but this was barely noticeable as everything about the wine was beautifully balanced. It did, as I had hoped, go really well with the venison, but I actually enjoyed the little that was left in my glass after the meal on its own later in the evening.
Garnacha often goes under the radar, but it’s a variety that, in my opinion, wine lovers looking for a big, yet fresh wine should always bear in mind.