Incredible acidity, overpowering even. It craved for food from the moment that I opened it.
WINE DETAILS:
- Grape: Grenache Blanc
- Alcohol: 13.5%
- Wine: La Maldita
- Vintage: 2019
- Winery: Vivanco
- Location: Rioja, Spain
- Date: 2/19/21
- Distributor: Almacén del Vino
Curious Synonyms: Alicante Blanca, Belan, Silla Blanc, Vernatxa Blanca
Nerd Alert: Mostly found in Rhône wine blends and in northeast Spain. Since the 1980s, it has been the fifth most widely planted white wine grape in France. In 2008 there were about 2100 hectares (5200 acres) of Garnacha Blanca in Spain. It is permitted in the white wines of Rioja but is not widely used due to the tendency of the must to oxidize easily.
Personal Note: It’s funny. I’ve had this wine in my fridge for a while. The same day I decided to open it, last friday, I saw like three other people posting a picture of it on my Ig feed. Now that’s some sort of wine induced happenstance. I’ve never tried white grenache before. I’ve seen the wine but nothing called me to go grab it. This one is a pretty inexpensive wine, but that label is wicked. Then for the list I started reading and I’ll be honest, one of the things that got my attention was a wine fact for the grape that called its texture “fat”. I needed to know what that was. The first gulp, an incredible acidity, very overpowering. Fortunately I got something to eat before the second glass and then it was tamed. The thing yelled for food and I didn’t listened. With the fridge test I have to tell you guys that the day after I opened it I didn’t even touch it, but the day after that, that wine was still all there. It was on that third day that I felt something remotely possible to that definition of the texture. And then again I could have been forcing myself to see something that maybe wasn’t there. We humans do have a track record of overcomplicating things. This is the second white grape from Rioja I’ve tried for the list (#19) and there’s a very palpable difference between these two. I’m missing Viura and I build a trilogy.
Thoughts?
#roadto500grapes #wines #winelovers #singlevarietal #singlevarietalwines #grenacheblanc #winetime #winestagram #whitewine #spanishwines #spainwines #vivanco #lamaldita #rioja #riojablanco #alicanteblanca #belan #sillablanc #vernatxablanca
*Sources for the wine facts are from: Wine Searcher, Wikipedia, Vivino, wine.com, and the wineries websites.
