Grape of the week

The house grapes · red

Mourvèdre: the grape with three names that lives on sunshine

Mourvèdre is a thick-skinned red grape with deep color, firm tannin and ripe dark fruit. In Spain, where it was born, it's called Monastrell; in Australia, Mataro. It ripens late and needs lots of sun, so it lives near the Mediterranean. It's the main grape of Jumilla, the star of the reds of Bandol, in Provence, and the M in the GSM trio.

Where it comes from

Mourvèdre is Spanish. In VIVC, the international grape catalog, its main name is Monastrell, with Spain as its country of origin. The Alicante denomination says the grape appears in records from the 15th century on and is believed to have come from the area of Sagunto, near Valencia. According to the same denomination, the French name, Mourvèdre, would come from Morvedre, a town in Valencia; and Mataro, from Mataró, a Catalan town near Barcelona.

Southeastern Spain is its heartland. As early as 1975, the rules of the Yecla denomination, in Murcia, named Monastrell as the main grape. In neighboring Jumilla, the current rules say the same and note that more than 70% of the vineyard is Monastrell: a rustic, hardy plant that withstands drought, fierce summer heat and spring frost. It's the grape that best adapted to the region's arid, sunny climate, says the denomination's council.

What it's like in the glass

Small bunches, small dark berries, thick skin full of color: that's how the Jumilla rules describe the grape. In the glass, that becomes a deep-colored, full-bodied red with generous alcohol, ripe fruit and noticeable tannin. Tannin is that grip on your gums; here it's firm but, according to the same rules, well integrated. The Alicante denomination speaks of blackberry, and of a taste that changes a lot depending on the place.

It's an age-worthy grape. The Côtes de Provence rules say Mourvèdre gives the blend good aging potential, and Bandol reds spend at least 18 months in wood before release. But it's not all heft: in Jumilla, the same grape makes broad, very fruity rosés with fresh acidity, and also liqueur wine, with high tannin and an almost opaque color.

What it pairs with

Firm tannin and dark fruit call for hearty food. Think roast lamb, cupim (beef hump), costela no bafo (slow-cooked beef ribs), pot roast, ossobuco, wild boar, pork-leg sausage and aged cheese. A younger, fruitier Monastrell red stands up well to feijoada and Sunday barbecue. Bandol rosé, more serious than the usual rosé, goes with grilled fish, moqueca and octopus. All suggestions: liked another pairing? Go with that one.

Where it shines today

In Spain there were 43,000 hectares in 2015, the country's sixth most planted grape, according to the OIV. The Alicante denomination points out where it shows up most: in the Murcia denominations, like Jumilla, Yecla and Bullas, and in Alicante. In Jumilla, a wine with Monastrell on the label must have at least 85% of it, and the Viña Vieja term requires 85% of grapes from vines at least 30 years old. And the ground helped: the rules note that the zone's sandy and clay soils held back the spread of phylloxera, the pest that ravaged much of Europe in the mid-19th century.

In France, its capital is Bandol, in Provence: the rules require 50% to 95% Mourvèdre in the reds and 20% to 95% in the rosés. In the Rhône Valley it plays a supporting role, with 2,871 hectares in the appellations in 2023, according to Inter Rhône, and it's among the 18 grapes of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. In Corbières, in Languedoc, the rules explain that Mourvèdre, which ripens later, goes in the warmest soils, near the sea and in sheltered spots.

In Australia, under the name Mataro, it goes into GSM: Grenache, Shiraz and Mataro, the classic Barossa blend, according to Wine Australia. The Alicante denomination sums up the map: the grape grows in warm-climate places, like the south of France, Australia, California and the Spanish Levante. It's the same lesson as the Bandol rules: a grape that ripens late needs sun to spare.

Its other names

VIVC lists 131 synonyms. Three show up on labels: Monastrell in Spain, Mourvèdre in France and Mataro in Australia. The list also includes Morastell, Monastrel, Garrut and Murviedro, close to the Morvedre that may have given the French name. A curiosity from Bandol's own specification: among the place names it cites as marks of the vine's history there is one called la Mourvèdrière.

Sunshine in a bottle, since 1787

Bandol is an amphitheater of hills facing the sea, sheltered from the Mistral, the cold north wind. The appellation rules count about 3,000 hours of sun a year, 650 millimeters of rain and slopes terraced with dry-stone walls, the restanques. That's where Mourvèdre, a late-ripening black grape, finds its perfect little corner, says the official text.

The fame is old. In 1787, Achard, in a geography book on Provence, was already describing Bandol's sheltered climate and strong sun, and told how Provençal poets called those wines sunshine in a bottle. In 1827, Tolozan, in a treatise on the wines of Lower Provence, wrote that the grape that dominates everywhere and makes the essence of Bandol wines is Mourvèdre, a very dark black grape.

Top rated with Mourvèdre

Average rating from the people who drank it (X-Wines), from 1 to 5. Tap to see the wine's page.

• Waterford Estate The JemSouth Africa · red · Mourvèdre, Barberarating ★ 4.7
• La Grange des Pères Vin de Pays de l'HéraultFrance · red · Mourvèdre, Counoiserating ★ 4.6
• Gérard Bertrand Clos d'OraFrance · red · Mourvèdre, Syrah/Shirazrating ★ 4.6
• Penfolds Grandfather Rare TawnyAustralia · dessert/port · Mourvèdre, Tinta Barrocarating ★ 4.5
• Bodegas El Nido ClioSpain · red · Mourvèdrerating ★ 4.5
• Juan Gil BrutoSpain · red · Monastrellrating ★ 4.5
• Sadie Family ColumellaSouth Africa · red · Mourvèdre, Syrah/Shirazrating ★ 4.5
• Château Maucoil Privilège Châteauneuf-du-PapeFrance · red · Mourvèdre, Syrah/Shirazrating ★ 4.5

See all 589 labels with Mourvèdre in the search →