Blaufränkisch
This is a wonderful grape capable of making wines that range from simply delicious to profound and contemplative. The key from the production standpoint is to treat the grapes gently — the best don’t try to make a powerful, tannic wine or load it up with oak. At its finest it’s graceful yet intense, more pinot noir than cabernet sauvignon. Great producers abound in astern Austria — look for Moric, Meinklang, Gut Oggau, Markus Altenburger, Heinrich, Judith Beck, Rosi Schuster and Straka in Burgenland and Dorli Muhr in Carnuntum. From time to time, I see blaufränkisch from elsewhere, like Germany, where it’s often called Lemberger, and the Finger Lakes of New York, where Red Tail Ridge makes an excellent version.
Carignan
For years, carignan was maligned as incapable of producing good wines. But, as has often been the case, when farmed with care and made with intent, poor old carignan demonstrates how good it can be. It’s a Mediterranean grape and was once ubiquitous in southern France and Catalonia in Spain, but I’ve grown to admire the carignans of California. Often, it’s part of a blend, including California’s classic old field blends. But I see it increasingly as a varietal wine. Among the producers whose carignans I’ve enjoyed are Porter Creek, Sandlands, Lioco, Ridge and Broc Cellars.
Carricante
Like assyrtiko, carricante, the foremost white grape of the Mount Etna region of Sicily, is a saline treat. But where the salinity is subtext in assyrtiko, carricante is for salt fiends. Count me in. The wines, generally labeled Etna Bianco, range from simple and refreshing to among Italy’s finest whites. They are dry and herbal with that salty edge leading the way. The Etna producers will say the saltiness blows in off the Mediterranean. I won’t argue the point, I just love the wines. Some of the best producers include Benanti, I Vigneri (Salvo Foti), Ciro Biondi, Graci, Federico Curtaz, Tenuta Delle Terre Nere and Palmento Costanzo. Kevin Harvey of Rhys Vineyards in California was so impressed with carricante and other Sicilian varieties that he planted a vineyard in northern Sonoma County. His Centennial Mountain carricante is excellent.
Cinsault
Like carignan, with which cinsault was often blended, this red grape is from southern France and the Mediterranean, and like carignan, it’s often been derided and dismissed. Luckily, it’s had its proponents like Randall Grahm, late of Bonny Doon and now of Popelouchum, who believes in its untapped elegance, and the winemakers of the Itata Valley in Chile, who’ve proved the elegance is there. Chilean producers like Rogue Vine, Pedro Parra, Leonardo Erazo, Gustavo Riffo, A Los Viñateros Bravos and De Martino have made lovely, elegant cinsaults, primarily from old vineyards planted on granite soils.
Fiano
I wrote about fiano, an excellent white grape from the Campania region of Italy, early on, just as the region was emerging in the early 2000s with stellar wines. I promptly moved onto other things and am only now rediscovering it. A 2022 Ciro Picariello from the Avellino region of Campania did the trick. I can’t think of the last white wine I had that tasted so thoroughly of almonds. It was also textured, refreshing and delicious, and it reminded me that I had loved fiano and could again. Other producers to try include Mastroberardino, Colli di Lapio-Clelia Romano, Cantina Giardino, Pietracupa, Terredora di Paolo, Antonio Caggiano and Villa Raiano.
