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Not so Plain in Spain

[Wed 30 September 2009]

Not so plain in Spain

Spanish grape varieties have rocketed to success in Australia, assisted by ideal climatic conditions and the increasingly sophisticated palates of Australian wine drinkers

BY Tyson Stelzer

If there is a single word to define consumer wine preferences of the noughties, it is ‘experimentation’. As our tastes embrace the cuisines of ever farther shores, so our wine tastes diversify to suit. So it’s not surprising that the indigenous varieties of countries such as Spain top the list of styles worth discovering this year.

“Spanish wines are certainly a strong growth sector”, says Scott Wasley of The Spanish Acquisition, the foremost importer of Spanish wines into Australia. “It’s historically one of the great wine producing countries, and is currently third-largest in the world on a volume basis. Australia is still catching up after a long Francophile history, boosted at the moment by a new wave of development in Spain.”

Spain’s best indigenous white grape variety, albariño, has rocketed to fame in recent years in Galicia (in the country’s far north-west) and Monção (northwest Portugal). In the Spanish region of Rías Baixas it now accounts for 90 per cent of all plantings, such is its popularity. Introduced to Australia in 1989, the variety rocketed rather to infamy when it became embroiled in identity fraud accusations. Australian samples of the white variety albariño were DNA tested by the CSIRO and found, instead, to be the rare variety savagnin blanc. Questions now remain as to whether there is any authentic albariño in the country, and further tests are underway to find out. Whatever the truth, some makers argue that their vines do look very much like albariño, as do the finished wines.

It's unfortunate timing, given that it's only recently that this grape has come to the front of the bunch as an alternative white varietal showing great potential in this country. The ability of the albariño vine to tolerate drought and heat makes it one of the most sustainable emerging varieties for the Australian climate, an increasingly important virtue that has also encouraged planting.

Think of albariño as a cross between the peachy, apricoty bouquet of viognier, the flowery, spicy palate of riesling and the citrus tang of sauvignon blanc. Its thick skins protect it from climatic extremes on the vine and it can produce wines of high alcohol, acidity and flavour. With better ageing potential than most light-skinned Spanish grapes, it’s sometimes matured in oak or held back in tank for several years before release. Not unlike riesling, it can make a delightful partner to any seafood, from delicate crustacea to rich ocean fish.

Brown Brothers winemaker Geoff Alexander reports that the 2008 vintage sold out within months. The company first planted it in 2004 in Heathcote and subsequently in 2007 at its Banksdale vineyard in the King Valley. The 500m altitude of the Banksdale vineyard produces a finer, more delicate style with better acid retention.

“It’s a bit warm for it in Heathcote”, Alexander explains. “King Valley better represents the growing conditions in Spain. In fact, we think it’s probably as close as we can manage to the climate of Spain. Our production of this variety is very small, until now released only through the Cellar Door.

If albariño is Spain’s most popular indigenous white variety, tempranillo is its most popular red. It is to Spain what cabernet is to Bordeaux, the backbone of its most prized red wines. Tempranillo is at home in the slightly cooler climates in Rioja in North Central Spain, slightly further south in Ribera del Duero, as well as virtually all other Spanish red wine regions, where it forms the main ingredient in their reds.
Tempranillo can be consumed young but the most expensive are aged for many years in oak barrels. In a lighter guise, it tends to carry flavours of strawberry, raspberry, cherry and vanilla. Full-bodied, deep-coloured styles add blackberry and other black fruit flavours and, importantly, they are not notably high in alcohol.

While it was once thought to be related to pinot noir, recent genetic studies tend to debunk this suggestion. Nonetheless, tempranillo behaves rather like pinot noir when matched with food, and partners well with beef and lamb. Its thick-skinned black grapes grow best at relatively cool, high altitudes, where it achieves elegance and acidity. However, deep colour and sugar ripeness require heat, and Tempranillo can tolerate a warmer climate. It is the continental climate and high altitude of the Ribera del Duero in Spain that reconcile these two opposites.

Tempranillo is currently in the midst of a renaissance in worldwide production, sparked in part by a new wave of Spanish growers in cooler regions outside of Rioja. Over the last decade, the USA and South Africa have embarked on significant planting regimes, as has Australia. More than 180 Australian wineries are currently bottling the variety, from the Granite Belt to McLaren Vale and Margaret River. Most of these vines were planted in the past five years, so it will be some years before we see the varietal definition, structure and length afforded by mature vines.

“It’s a fairly new variety for us”, says Alexander.

Brown Brothers planted it in Heathcote in 2001 and 2002, and at Banksdale in 2004. “Heathcote is a fairly warm region and has been warmer than usual in the last few years. We’ve been getting good flavours but sugar ripeness tends to come before physiological ripeness. At Banksdale we’re getting more cooler climate flavours, better matched to Rioja. It holds its acid better and has stronger colour.” Alexander favours the King Valley fruit in the heat of recent vintages, but hopes that both regions will perform well in average years. “It will be interesting to see what happens in a normal year”, he says.

Initially using more American than French oak with tempranillo, Alexander now believes that French oak is better suited. “In Spain they use a lot more French oak”, he says. “I’ll still use some American, but more French in the future. Oak can really dominate tempranillo and we want to avoid that.” Alexander used just 10 per cent of new oak. In his words, he’s not aiming for a style that needs to sit for years. “It can handle a little ageing but it’s something that you can drink straight away.”

Tempranillo tends to be a medium-bodied style, approachable and easy-drinking but still displaying good structure and colour. “It’s not as savoury as barbera or nebbiolo, which I think makes it more familiar to the Australian consumer”, Alexander says. He employs a range of techniques to enhance complexity. “I use cold soaking for four to five days pre-ferment and extended maceration for a week after ferment”, he explains. He achieves lifted, floral aromas by destemming without crushing.

Graciano is a deep red, delicately perfumed grape once used widely as a blending component with tempranillo in Rioja, but it has fallen from favour in modern times due to its inconveniently low yields. Where it is still used it contributes spice, acidity, structure and ageing potential to a blend. Brown Brothers has been a pioneer of this variety in Australia, first planting it at Milawa at the northern end of the King Valley right back in the 1920s. About a dozen wineries in Australia have since followed, producing graciano either in a blend with tempranillo or as a varietal wine.

Alexander describes it as a very characteristic wine with a marzipan almond character, distinctive aromas, deep colour and quite tannic structure. “I’d like to try to add a little graciano to our Tempranillo”, he says. “We’re one of the few producers in Australia, if not the world, who makes a straight Graciano. “It’s a unique wine and we’ll continue to make it for that reason.”

A visit to Spain last year aroused Alexander’s enthusiasm for Spanish varieties. In Australia, there is perhaps no better place for these styles than in Brown Brothers country, where the hot plains of north-eastern Victoria rise to meet cool alpine peaks. As vine age and viticultural experience continue to develop, it is not implausible that this region could become a national benchmark for these styles.•

Tyson Stelzer is a freelance wine writer.


Albariño or Savagnin Blanc?

The identity of Australian albariño was first called into question late last year, when French ampelographer (grape identification expert) Jean-Michel Boursiquot suspected that the vines appeared to be savagnin blanc, an obscure variety cultivated almost exclusively in the Jura in eastern France, where it produces the sherry-like vin jaune [yellow wine].

Subsequent DNA testing by the CSIRO has confirmed that most, if not all, albariño planted in Australia is, in fact, savagnin blanc. This means that wines made from this fruit may no longer be labelled albariño. There are an estimated dozen examples of the variety made in the country, and its recent popularity has sparked more growers to plant albariño. Or, at least, what they thought was albariño.

At the time of writing, producers from across Australia were meeting to decide on the way forward, particularly in terms of ensuring consistency in labelling. It seems most likely that they will opt to label the wine simply as “Savagnin” (not to be confused with sauvignon), as indeed Brown Brothers have decided to do. Whatever it’s called, the wine you’re familiar with will change in name only.