Grape variety
Albariño
Albariño, called Alvarinho in Portugal: the white grape of Galicia and the Minho. Origin, Rías Baixas, style, vineyards and pairings.
- Colour
- White
- Origin
- Galicia and northern Portugal; parentage not established
- Main regions
- Rías Baixas (Galicia); Vinho Verde, above all Monção e Melgaço (Portugal); smaller amounts in California, Oregon and Uruguay
- Typical aromas
- Peach, apricot, lemon zest, grapefruit, orange blossom, saline freshness
- Classic pairing
- Seafood, oysters, scallops, octopus, grilled fish
- Synonyms
- Alvarinho (Portugal)
Albariño is the white grape of the wet, Atlantic north-west of the Iberian Peninsula and the reason Galicia is on the wine list. On the Portuguese side of the border river, the Minho, it is called Alvarinho. In the Rías Baixas denomination it makes up well over 90 per cent of the vines, and few grapes are so closely tied to a single appellation.
Where it comes from has not been settled for good. The story that monks from Cluny brought it from the Rhine in the Middle Ages, which would make it a Riesling, does not stand up to scrutiny; the variety is now regarded as native to Galicia and northern Portugal. Nothing certain is known about its parents. Australia shows how easily one can be misled: from the late 20th century growers there planted vines believing them to be Albariño. In the late 2000s it emerged that they were Savagnin, the grape that Valais calls Heida.
In the vineyard Albariño is a grape made for damp sites. The berries are small with thick skins, which protects against rot but can leave a slight bitterness in the wine. In Galicia the vines are traditionally trained on pergolas, on granite posts high above the ground, so that air circulates and the bunches dry after rain. The soil is mostly granite. Cool, coastal Val do Salnés and the warmer, inland Condado do Tea are two of the denomination’s five subzones.
In the glass Albariño is pale, dry and lively in acidity, with moderate alcohol, usually around 12 per cent. The aromas recall peach and apricot, lemon zest, grapefruit and orange blossom, often with a saline, stony edge. It is mostly made in stainless steel; a few months on the lees give texture, and oak is rare. Most wines are best young and well chilled, and the finest gain depth over a few years.
On the Portuguese side Alvarinho’s home is Monção e Melgaço, the northernmost sub-region of Vinho Verde, where Alvarinho covers more than 1,000 hectares. The wines there are often fuller and stronger than the light, lively Vinho Verde one usually meets. Beyond the Iberian Peninsula Albariño is grown in smaller amounts, for example in California, Oregon and Uruguay. At the table it belongs with seafood: oysters, scallops, grilled squid or octopus, but also sushi and pan-fried fish.