🍇 Tempranillo
Spain's main red grape, the backbone of Rioja and Ribera del Duero wines.
Tempranillo is Spain's main red grape. It makes the wines of Rioja and Ribera del Duero, the best-known Spanish reds. The name comes from the word "temprano", meaning "early": the variety ripens earlier than many others.
The berries are medium-sized with thick skins. The wine is dark, with moderate acidity and soft tannins. The aroma recalls cherry, plum, leather and tobacco. Tempranillo works well with oak: it is often aged in barrels for many years, hence the labels crianza, reserva and gran reserva.
The variety is spread across Spain: Rioja, Ribera del Duero, Toro, La Mancha, Navarra, Penedès, Valdepeñas and others. In Portugal it is known as Tinta Roriz or Aragonez and it also grows in the Douro. Tempranillo is tied to Spanish wine as its main red grape and is in the list of grape varieties. Related varieties include Albillo Mayor and Benedicto. Wines from it go well with meat and ham.
Links
- Part of
- 🍇 Grape varieties
- Origin
- 🗺️ Spanish wine
- Where it grows
- Spain: 📍 Rioja, 📍 Ribera del Duero, 📍 Toro, 📍 La Mancha, 📍 Rioja Alta, 📍 Rioja Alavesa, 📍 Rioja Oriental, 📍 Navarre, 📍 Tierra Estella, 📍 Valdizarbe, 📍 Ribera Alta (Navarre), 📍 Cigales, 📍 Costers del Segre, 📍 Aragon, 📍 Somontano and 6 more
Portugal: 📍 Douro, 📍 Alentejo, 📍 Portalegre, 📍 Borba, 📍 Redondo, 📍 Reguengos, 📍 Évora - Main grape in
- Spain: 📍 Somontano, 📍 Valdepeñas, 📍 Cariñena, 📍 Cigales, 📍 Penedès, 📍 Ribera del Duero, 📍 Rioja, 📍 Toro, 📍 Castile and León, 📍 La Mancha, 📍 Navarre, 📜 Arlanza, 📜 Pago de Otazu, 📜 Tierra del Vino de Zamora, 📜 Uclés and 7 more
Portugal: 📍 Alentejo, 📜 Alentejano - Parents
- 🍇 Albillo Mayor, 🍇 Benedicto
Frequently asked questions
What is Tempranillo?
Spain's main red grape, the basis of Rioja and Ribera del Duero wines.
Why is it called Tempranillo?
From the Spanish word "temprano", "early": the variety ripens earlier than many.
Where else is Tempranillo grown?
In Toro, La Mancha, Navarra, Penedès, and in Portugal in the Douro and Alentejo.
Similar
🍇 Tinta Amarela · 🍇 Macabeo · 🍇 Malvar · 🍇 Airén · 🍇 Graciano · 🍇 Albillo