Less Common Grape Types

Wine grape varieties are a bit like brands - the big ones are everywhere and everyone knows them. The little guys rely on word of mouth from passionate and noisy 'early adopters' to spread their word. On the whole though, the world of wine buying can be an oddly conservative place.

As a result, certain grape types and wine styles have grown to have a monopoly on some corners of the wine market; with our local wine stores flooded with ‘safe’ options, heralded by familiar names printed in big, bold letters on the carefully designed wine labels that face us from the shelves.

While there’s nothing wrong with knowing what you like, wine is such an exciting universe to explore, with a staggering array of different bottles to try and experiment with that it would be a shame not to test out some lesser-known varietals. So next time you’re out shopping for a bottle, consider these underdogs of the wine world, and expand your horizons a little and broaden your palates!

Whites

Furmint--vegan

If you were to travel back in time five hundred years or so, and visit the Royal Courts of England, Germany and Austria, you might expect to find the goblets of the landed gentry and crowned heads of Europe to be overflowing with the finer wines of France or Spain.

This, however, would not have been the case. Particularly in the 16th and 17th centuries, the European aristocracy was simply crazy about Hungarian wines, particularly the wines of the Royal Tokaji region in the west of Hungary, which are made from the Furmint grape varietal.

The Furmint grape is a round, golden fruit which can be found across much of Germany, as well as Central and Eastern Europe.

It is regaining popularity around the world once more, after the traditional wineries of Hungary were suppressed by the USSR for decades during the twentieth century, and much traditional knowledge and technique was lost.

The reason the Furmint grape was so popular in the past and is having something of a renaissance today is due to the dessert wines made from it.

The Tokaj wines have undergone a process known as ‘Noble Rot’, wherein the grapes wither and rot on the vine, allowing the flavours within the grape to intensify enormously.

The result is some of the finest sweet wine available anywhere in the world, held in a gloriously golden, viscous liquid, packed full of the flavours of candied fruit, dark honey and roasted nuts.

Pecorino--racy

Not just the name of a great cheese, Pecorino is an Italian white grape that makes for some lovely crisp and minerally white wine of real freshness. Interestingly, pecora is Italian for sheep, and Pecorino is thought to be a domesticated version of a wild grape. There’s a herbal, spicy edge to the delightfully nutty and lemony Pecorino wines, too, just to amp up the wildness. Typically found on the Marche coast of eastern Italy, Pecorino was reduced to just 87ha twenty-five years ago, but in the last two decades, it has stormed back into popularity, with its vibrant and seafood-friendly personality winning friends all over the world. Light to medium-bodied and always lemony, it actually pairs very well with hard cheeses.. like pecorino, for the ultimate pecorino pair.

Torrontes--lavender

This grape is most commonly associated with Argentina, where vintners have been growing high-quality grapes in the foothills of the Andes for three hundred years. Torrontes is a real white wine lover’s grape - fascinatingly aromatic, and packed full of floral and herbal notes.

It manages to be both sweet and bitter at once, and is generally regarded as the best wine for pairing with ‘difficult’ cuisines such as Mexican food and spicy, south Asian dishes.

Rarely seen outside of its home country, it has nonetheless managed to make a small imprint on the international wine scene due to its unique characters. Most easily comparable to Gewurztraminer, it is leaner than that grape, with less oiliness.

Verdicchio--lemon

Verdicchio vines have been grown in the central Italian Marche region for almost a thousand years and were prized for their golden-green grapes, which hang in long bunches when fully ripened.

The grapes produce a wine of extraordinary character - strongly acidic and punchy, with fresh, bright citrus flavours and a touch of almond roundness in the mouth.

It's fantastically versatile, and thanks to its stringency, is a perfect base for some of Italy’s finest sparkling wines, as well as for several of the region’s unique and characterful ‘straw’ wines...

'Straw' wines are sticky, sweet dessert wines, full of rich, apricot and honey flavours, made by drying the grapes on straw mats under the Mediterranean sunshine. The slow drying process shrivels the fruit, and concentrates the sugars in the grape, resulting in an astonishing range of oily, sumptuous characteristics.

Reds

Agiorgitiko--red

Greece is arguably one of the true spiritual homes of wine. With an oenological history that goes back over two thousand years, the ancient Greeks were amongst the first wine pioneers, experimenting with different varietals and production techniques to achieve the first examples of wine as we know it today.

Perhaps because of this, the modern Greeks are fiercely protective of their native grape species and have been remarkably resistant to the introduction of popular French grapes, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, which is now grown in every wine producing country in the world.

The classic Greek red grape is Agiorgitiko, which takes its name from Saint George, and which produces highly perfumed red wines of strong body and fullness.

A versatile grape, Agiorgitiko is also used for rosé wines and has great ageing potential, and the blending and ageing the juice of this grape results in highly complex and sophisticated wines which are a world away from the cheap Retsina you might’ve tried at your local Greek restaurant.

Carmenere--strawberry

When you think of Chilean wine, you probably think of Merlot, which absolutely dominates the low-cost side of this country’s wine industry.

However, the rising star of Chile is undoubtedly Carmenere, which actually died out in Europe during the 19th century. If you’re looking for spicy berry flavours, deep colours and fantastic softness and smoothness, then grab a bottle of Carmenere and drink it with your next barbeque. It’s a joy, and slips down the throat a little too easily.

Castelão--plum

Castelão is the grape of many names! The most planted red grape in Portugal, it is sometimes known as Periquita, João de Santarém or Bastardo Castico. Whatever you want to call it, this ancient red variety is grown all over that, from the wet coastal regions to the roasted hills of the Douro (the home of port). Castelão is one of those ‘why have I never heard of this’ discovery grapes, and the more Portuguese wines we see escape from its homeland, the more Castelão wines we see out in the wild. Typically, Castelão produces a wine that can be harshly tannic in its youth but softens as it ages. Also, we’re seeing more and more fizz and rather juicy rosé made from this Portuguese champion, but full-bodied reds are still the mainstay. Look for dark red fruit characters with brown spices, a tarry edge and plenty of character.

Pineau d’aunis--burger

This grape varietal is set to take off over the next few years, thanks to an unexpected enthusiasm within millennial circles for the wines made from it.

Indeed, Pineau D’Aunis wines are popping up at hipster bars across the globe, appreciated by those looking for something that combines excellence in flavour and aroma with an underdog quality and strong sense of authenticity and originality.

The Pineau D’Aunis grape is grown in the world-beating French region of the Loire Valley, but unlike the other better-known whites hailing from the region, it doesn’t have the several centuries of success and prestige.

Personally, we think it has been taken for granted!

Pineau D’Aunis produces red wines full of soft fruit flavours and a deep, savoury spiciness that pairs beautifully with a range of meaty dishes.

Zweigelt--pizza

The most planted red grape in Austria, now with a few vines in Australia, Canada and even Japan(!?), Zweigelt not only sounds fun but makes some seriously delicious red wines.

A descendant of Pinot Noir & the long-forgotten Gouais Blanc, Zweigelt makes the most purple-berried wines you can think of - it’s like a dark cherry riot, and everyone’s invited! Most Austrian Zweigelt is medium-bodied and rather silky, though sometimes it can get big and rather tannic, or even made into dry, full-flavoured rosé.

For anyone after a cool and joyously purple red wine, Zweigelt is your grape.

About the Author

Andrew Graham is a master winemaker and viticulturist (aka a grape guy) who fell into the wine industry as a teenager and never looked back! Voted the 23rd most trusted wine critic on the planet, Andrew judges at wine shows across the globe and runs foolishly long ultramarathons in his spare time (swiftly followed by a recuperative glass of wine or a frosty beer).