12 Red Wine Varietals You Should Know About
Do you know your Malbec from your Merlot?
Maybe you've sat down at dinner and heard someone say they only drink red wine. Maybe you've asked a friend what they'd like for you to pick up on your way to their party, and they've given you "a red" as the sole descriptor. The world of red wines is vast and complicated, whether you're enjoying a tried-and-true glass of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, a glass of Sangiovese that bursts with red cherry, tobacco, and leather notes, or a splash of spicy, tannin-forward Syrah, it's hard to think of a category less easily summarized by just one word. While there are several red wine grapes from France, Spain, Germany, Italy, and beyond that we don't touch on in this guide, we've distilled the most important points about 12 key red wine grapes you're most likely to come across in your local bottle shop or restaurant menu.
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the most widely planted and beloved grape varieties in the world, providing the backbone for wines from Bordeaux, Napa Valley, and beyond.
Merlot
Merlot is a red wine that is produced from the grape variety of the same name. Stylistically, it runs the gamut from fruit-forward and sweet with oak to more structured and nuanced, capable of aging for decades. Merlot is one of the key components in the classic blends of Bordeaux. On the Right Bank, in Pomerol in particular, it is often crafted into wines (or incorporated into blends, typically with Cabernet Franc) that rank among the most profound in the world.
Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir is a wine made from the grape variety of the same name. The majority of Pinot Noir wines are red, but can also be leveraged to produce fantastic rosé (look for the Inman Family "Endless Crush" OGV Estate Rosé for a joyous and complex example). Pinot Noir is also one of the three main grape varieties in Champagne, alongside Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay.
Syrah
Syrah is a wine that's produced from the grape of the same name. It's most frequently crafted as a red wine, which makes sense given the thicker skins, tannins, and phenolic compounds that can be extracted from them during maceration and fermentation. But Syrah is also an important player in the world of rosé. Examples from the Rhône Valley, Provence, Languedoc, and beyond are wildly popular with consumers around the world.
Zinfandel
Zinfandel is a red wine produced from the grape variety of the same name. Because it reaches its peak of quality and expressiveness in the United States, it is almost always labeled with the name of that grape on the bottle. The overwhelming majority of Zinfandel wines are red, dry, and still, though rosé and sweet late-harvest examples can certainly be found, along with the occasional sparkling.
Grenache
Grenache wine is produced in many countries and in a range of styles. Its most well-known versions are red, but Grenache also plays an important role in rosés. In most of the world it is referred to as Grenache (or, less frequently, Grenache Noir) but in Spain and other Spanish-speaking wine-producing countries, it's known as Garnacha.
Malbec
Malbec is a wine produced from the grape of the same name. It is most often a red wine, but like all other red varieties, it can be made into white and rosé. Historically, white Malbec was a rarity, and while it still is, there are a handful of examples notably being produced in Argentina. Malbec rosé is far more commonly seen, but the grape really shines most brightly as a red wine, whether bottled on its own or as a component of a blend.
Sangiovese
Sangiovese is the most widely planted grape variety in Italy, though given the naming conventions of Italian wines, it's unlikely that you'll find a bottle labeled as such. Rather, you'll have to know beforehand that Sangiovese is the dominant grape variety in Chianti blends and the only one permitted in Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Outside of Italy, Sangiovese has some success in parts of Australia, particularly McLaren Vale, and in Oregon, Arizona, and pockets of California. Sangiovese is, however, primarily grown throughout Italy.
Cabernet Franc
From France’s Loire Valley to Napa Valley, Canada, Argentina, and beyond, Cabernet Franc shines on its own and in blends. A cooler glass of Cabernet Franc will place the focus more squarely on the herbal and bell pepper notes, whereas a less-cool glass will allow the brambly berries, wild strawberries, and plums to emerge more assertively. In either case, the best examples will showcase bell peppers, spice, and herbal flavors and aromas, along with hints of minerality and tobacco. If the wine has been aged in new oak, sweet spices and suggestions of chocolate may arise.
Nebbiolo
Nebbiolo is most famously grown in the Piedmont (or, in Italian, Piemonte) region of Italy, which is located in the northwest of the country. The two most famous wines from Piedmont are both crafted entirely from Nebbiolo: Barolo and Barbaresco.
Tempranillo
Tempranillo is a red wine produced from the grape of the same name. In the so-called New World, it’s likely to be labeled as such, while on labels from its classic growing regions of Spain, the name of the region is more likely to appear. Just know that the vast majority of red wines from Rioja are blends that are based on Tempranillo, and most of the great reds of Ribera del Duero are entirely Tempranillo.
Montepulciano
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Red wine in a decanterMontepulciano wine is a typically red wine crafted from the grape variety of the same name, though it also makes excellent rosé. It is most frequently associated with Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, which is grown in Abruzzo, in east-central Italy.
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