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Carignan (; also known as Mazuelo, Bovale Grande, Cariñena, Carinyena, Samsó, Carignane, and Carignano) is a red grape variety of Spanish origin that is more commonly found in French wine but is widely planted throughout the western Mediterranean and around the globe. Along with Aramon, it was considered one of the main grapes responsible for France's wine lake and was a substantial producer in jug wine production in California's Central Valley but in recent years, it has been reborn as a flagship wine for many cellars in the south of France as well as in Catalan wine.Oz Clarke Encyclopedia of Grapes pg 58 Harcourt Books 2001
Ampelographers believe that the grape likely originated in Cariñena, Aragon and was later transplanted to Sardinia, elsewhere in Italy, France, Algeria, and much of the New World. The variety was historically a component of Rioja's red wine blend. The grape's prominence in France hit a high point in 1988 when it accounted for and was France's most widely planted grape variety. That year, in a drive to increase the overall quality of European wine and to reduce the growing wine lake phenomenon, the European Union started an aggressive vine pull scheme where vineyard owners were offered cash subsidies in exchange for pulling up their vines. Out of all the French wine varieties, Carignan was the most widely affected dropping by 2000 to 95,700 ha (236,000 ) and being surpassed by Merlot as the most widely planted grape.J. Robinson (ed) The Oxford Companion to Wine Third Edition pg 139 Oxford University Press 2006
The popularity of Carignan was largely tied to its ability to produce very large yields in the range of 200 hectoliter/hectare (11 /acre). The vine faces significant sensitivity to several viticultural hazards including rot, powdery mildew, downy mildew, and Lobesia botrana. Carignan is a late budding and ripening grape which requires a warm climate in order to achieve full physiological ripeness. The vine also develops very thick stalk around the grape clusters which makes mechanical harvesting difficult. It has an upright growth habit and can be grown without a trellis.J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours pgs 616-619 Allen Lane 2012
A white grape mutation known as Carignan blanc and a pink-berried Carignan gris also exists in Roussillon in small plantings of around and , respectively, reported in 2008.
Ampelographers do believe that Carignan is likely a very old variety due to its widespread plantings and the proliferation of numerous different synonyms that give testament to the grape's long history in different wine regions. The grape likely originated in the Aragon region of northeast Spain where it possibly named after the town of Cariñena in the province of Zaragoza. However, in Zaragoza and other parts of Catalonia, the grape is sometimes called Samsó which is also used as a synonym for the French wine grape Cinsault, adding to confusion over Carignan's history in the region. Another Spanish synonym, Mazuelo, which is used in the Rioja wine region, is believed by ampelographers and wine historians to come from the commune of Mazuela in the province of Burgos in the Castile and León region of northwest Spain.
In 2006, DNA profiling suggested a parent-offspring relationship between Carignan and the Rioja wine grape Graciano though it was not yet clear which variety is the parent and which is the offspring. However, some grape geneticist and ampelographers such as José Vouillamoz dispute the 2006 findings and believe that the DNA profiles of both grapes are too distinct to have a close parent-offspring relationship at all. It is more likely, Vouillamoz and others suggest, that Carignan and Graciano were the result of two separate spontaneous crossings of unknown Vitis vinifera parents that occurred somewhere in northeast Spain.
Carignan was likely introduced to Sardinia sometime between 1323 and 1720 when the island was under the Spanish influence of the Crown of Aragon. Here the grape developed in isolation to form distinct clones under the synonyms Bovale di Spagna and Bovale Grande. At some point the grape reached Algeria where it became a high yielding "workhorse" variety that was widely exported to France to add color and weight to French wine blends. After the phylloxera epidemic devastated French vineyards in the mid to late 19th century, plantings of Carignan grew in popularity on the French mainland. Plantings increased even more when Algeria gained independence in 1962. The grape's prominence in France hit a high point in 1988 when it accounted for 167,000 hectares (410,000 acres) and was France's most widely planted grape variety. However, as France's wine lake problem became more of a concern, authorities within the French government and European Union started an aggressive vine pull scheme where vineyard owners were offered cash subsidies in exchange for pulling up their vines.
Carignan's tendency to produce short shoots with clusters that grow closely to the trunk of the vine means that it is a difficult variety to harvest mechanically. However, the economy of scale for blending varieties or grapes destined for lower priced box and jug wines often do not work well with the expense and labor cost of hand-harvesting. Among the viticultural hazards that Carignan is susceptible to include powdery mildew and infestation of the vine from grape worms and the European Grapevine Moth. The vine has some slight resistance to the fungal disease of botrytis bunch rot, downy mildew, and phomopsis.
Other varieties sometimes confused with Carignan but have been conclusively proven by DNA analysis to be distinct include the Sardinian wine grape Nieddera that is related to the Pascale di Cagliari grape which also grown on the island, Cinsault which shares the synonym Samsó in Catalonia with Carignan, the Italian wine grape Tintilia del Molise that is grown in the Lazio and Molise wine regions of central Italy and the Spanish wine grape Parraleta that is grown in the Somontano DO of Aragon.
Grapes that are also unrelated to Carignan but share synonyms include Carignan Boushet (a Petit Bouschet and Morrastel cross),Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) Carignan Bouschet Accessed: July 16th, 2013 Bobal (a Spanish wine grape that is also known as Carignan d'Espagne),Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) Bobal Accessed: July 16th, 2013 Aubun (a French wine grape that is also known as Carignan de Bedoin, Carignan de Bedouin, and Carignan de Gigondas),Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) Aubun Accessed: July 16th, 2013 Alicante Bouschet (French teinturier grape that is also known as Carignan jaune),Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) Alicante Bouschet Accessed: July 16th, 2013 and Grenache (which is also known as Carignan rouge, Carignane rosso, and Carignane rousse).Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) Garnacha Tinta Accessed: July 16th, 2013
Over the years Carignan has been crossed with several varieties to create new wine grapes including with Cabernet Sauvignon to give Ruby Cabernet and with the Portuguese wine grape Souzão to produce Argaman.
Like Carignan noir, both Carignan blanc and Carignan gris are late budding and late ripening varieties that are highly susceptible to powdery mildew. According to Master of Wine Jancis Robinson, Carignan blanc tends to produce full-bodied white wines that can have high acid and alcohol levels with very little aromatics. While the wines tend to be "shy" in the nose, Robinson notes that the palate can be "luscious" with light, citrus notes.
In the New World, Carignan is planted in several American Viticultural Areas (AVA)s of the United States, particularly in California and Washington State. Elsewhere in North America, plantings of the grape can be found in Mexico. In South America, Carignan is planted in Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay. In recent years, plantings of the grape have slowly increased in China as well as Australia.
Plantings of Carignan are mostly limited to the warm Mediterranean climates of southern France due to the grape's inability to sufficiently ripen much further north in the continental climate of central France or in the damp maritime climate of Southwest France. Other departments with significant plantings of Carignan include the Pyrénées-Orientales, Var, and Vaucluse.
The grape has found an increasing prominence in the Catalan wine region of Priorat, where it is the main variety in the schistous vineyard soils of the northern half of the appellation. Around the villages of Poboleda and Porrera in the province of Tarragona are bushvines of the grape that are more than 100 years old that are used to make varietal wines. The grape is also found in the DOPs of Costers del Segre, Montsant DO, Penedès, Tarragona, and Terra Alta. In Catalan language the grape is called Samsó or Carinyena, though it is not related to Cinsault which is also known as Samsó in Catalonia.
Outside of Catalonia, Mazuelo is mostly a secondary blending variety used to add acidity to the Tempranillo-based wines of Rioja though a few producers, such as Marqués de Murrieta, do make varietal examples of the grape. In 2008, there were of the grape in Rioja. In 2009, there were and of Carignan planted in the nearby wine regions of Castile-La Mancha and Navarra respectively.
The grape is still popular in North Africa in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. Carignan also played an important role in the early development of the Israeli wine industry. Though it is not as prominent today, it is still the country's third most widely planted red grape variety after Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot with in 2009. The first serious and consistent efforts to produce quality Carignan was at 2002 by Assaf Paz, the Bordeaux trained Enologist of Vitkin winery. His persistence to produce high quality old vine Carignan encourages other producers to follow and today Israel presents an impressive range of faire to excellent examples of this variety.
Other Old World wine producing countries with significant Carignan plantings include Croatia with in 2009, Cyprus with , Malta with and Turkey with in 2010. Chinese winemakers have also experimented with growing Carignan in some of their warmer wine regions.
Outside of California, plantings of the grape can be found in Washington State as well as in Missouri and Texas.Appellation American " Carignan", Accessed: August 14th, 2013
In Australia the grape was often confused with the Bonvedro vine, which is similarly prone to diseases, but in recent years Australian winemakers have been able to identify true Carignan. Most Australian plantings of Carignan are found in South Australia where the grape is primarily used for blending. In South Africa, there were of the grape planted in 2012 with the majority found on the shale vineyard soils of the Paardeberg region in Swartland.
In California it is spelled with an extra vowel on the end as Carignane. In Italy it is known as Gragnano while in Sardinia it is known as Bovale Grande and Carignano. In Portugal it is known as Pinot Evara even though it has no relation to the Pinot noir of grapes. Other French synonyms include Carignan noir, Bois Dur, Catalan, Roussillonen, Monestel, and Plant de Lédenon.
Other recognized synonyms for Carignan include: Axina de Spagna, Babonenc, Babounenc, Blaue Shopatna, Blaue Sopatna, Blauer Carignan, Blauer Carignant, Boi Dur, Bois de Fer, Bois dure, Bovale Grande di Spagna, Bovale Mannu, Bove Duro, Bove Duro di Spagna, Cafalan Cagnolaro, Cagnolaro tinto, Calignan, Carignan Crni, Carignan Frances, Carignan Mouillan, Carignan noir, Carignane Mouilla, Carignane noir, Carignane noire, Carignane violette, Carignanne, Carignano, Carignano di Carmignano, Carignena, Carinena, Carinena Mazuela, Carinena negra, Cencibel, Crignane, Crinana, Crusillo, Girard, Girarde, Grenache du Bois, Grenache du Bois Dur, Karinjan, Karinyan, Kek Carignan, Legno Duro, Legno Duro di Portoferraio, Manuelo Tinto, Manzuela (in Rioja), Marocain, Mazuela, Mollard (in Rioja), Mounesteou, Pinot d'Evora, Plant d'Espagne, Plant de Ledenon, Pokovec, Pokovez, Samso, Samso Crusillo, Sanso, Soptna blau, Tinto Mazuela, and Uva di Spagna.Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) Carignan Accessed: July 16th, 2013
Synonyms for the white-berried mutation Carignan blanc include: Feher Carignan and Karinjan.Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) Carignan blanc Accessed: July 16th, 2013
Synonyms for the pink-berried mutation Carignan gris include: Szuerke Carignan.Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) Carignan gris Accessed: July 16th, 2013
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