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Why

This is called “Why” because if it was called “Why Grenache” the chances are that very few readers would have got this far, but even if you are not a fan of Grenache, please read a bit further.

Arguably, Australia has some of the best old bush vine Grenache material in the world, much of it surviving the vine-pull scheme, but does Grenache make interesting wine. Generally speaking, and I have tried numerous Australian examples, the answer is an unequivocal no, so why do wineries keep on insisting on making the stuff.

Firstly, there is a large export demand, especially from US wine lovers who enjoy the huge, sweet, in your face porty style this grape so often produces. Tony Delisio of Classic McLaren Wines is besotted with Grenache and it is his personal favourite grape variety. Tony claims it is the perfect pasta wine and to some extent, he is correct, it can go well with food. From where my taste buds sit I have finally worked out why that may be the case.

Australian Grenache would have to be the worlds more boring grape varieties and as it is so boring, it would not dare say boo to goose, let alone stick its head above the parapet and argue with a bowl of pasta that may have mafia connections. Possibly, that is its attraction as a food wine.

Admittedly the quality of Grenache produced in Australia is getting better and we are seeing some wines with more complexity and character than the big dry porty reds, to name just two, the Classic McLaren 2001 La Testa Grenache and Magpie Estate 2002 Gomersal Grenache, the latter having a flag fall of $40 but how many people in Australia will pay $40 for an Australian Grenache, no matter how good? Not many I would suspect, however overseas may be a different story.

During my last trip to SA, I was fortunate enough to have tried the Rockford 1993 Dry Country Grenache, violet in colour, the wine is starting to show some bricking. The bouquet is clean, smoky and shows aged leathery characteristics. Medium-weight, the acid is still remarkably refreshing and the dusty tannins are supple. Very savoury, pure fruit flavours with milk chocolate, seamlessly build incredibly slowly across the palate and sedately finishes dry. Add to that a harmonious, sophisticated complexity that can only come with age, and you have a Grenache that is about as good as I have tasted. Rated as Highly Recommended, it is drinking at its peak but should hold for years.

Now as good as this wine was, and it was good, it was not great. Yes it was great for Grenache and that is the whole point. Australian Grenache that is produced today will never be great wine. Shiraz or Cabernet Sauvignon often wind up being great wines with age but Grenache as we know it in Australia today, no way.

These derogatory comments don’t mean that Grenache is a bad grape variety, far from it. Blended, it can be fantastic. There are many really interesting Grenache blends on the market and more than just a few in my cellar. Two names that are well known for quality GSM blends are Charles Melton with his Nine Popes and Grant Burge with his Holy Trinity. Not to be overlooked, and a maker of very fine Grenache blends is Rick Burge with Burge Family Wines. The G3 and Olive Hill are both excellent wines. Many of the Grenache blends also offer fantastic value with the majority of them being under $30. The good ones will also benefit from mid-term ageing.

Most of what has been stated about Australian Grenache also applies to Australian Merlot. The vast majority of straight Merlot is equally as boring as Grenache but it has a few things in its favour. For new wine drinkers, it is smooth and easy to drink and has the added benefit of being a lot easier to pronounce than Cabernet Sauvignon or “Cabinet Frank”. Unlike Grenache, which can make a very credible and good wine with a minor infusion of other grape varieties, for “serious” wine, Merlot is best utilised as the junior blending variety with Cabernet Sauvignon.

How many great straight Australian Merlots are there produced? There are some that lay claim to producing “serious” Merlot but once again, most are pretty boring and not exactly great value.

We are all free to choose our own wine styles but for my money, the Grenache and Merlot I will buy will be blends as I am not into boring wine.