Tempranillo

• Color: Red
• Grape Parentage: Albillo Mayor x Benedicto (announced August 2012)
• Place of Origin: Spain
• Origin of Grape Name: “Tempranillo” derives from the Spanish temprano, or “early”
• Major Countries of Production: 
  • Spain: 206,988 hectares (2007, Observatorio español del Mercado del Vino/OeMV)
  • Portugal: approx. 17,000 hectares (2010, Wine Grapes)
  • Argentina: 6,344 hectares (2015, Argentina Harvest Report, English Version)
• Synonyms: 
  • Spain: Cencibel (Valdepeñas), Tinto Fino (Ribera del Duero), Tinto del País (Ribera del Duero), Tinta de Toro (Toro), Ull de Llebre/Ojo de Liebre (Catalonia), Jacivera (Manchuela), Tinto Madrid, Grenache de Logrono (Rioja)
  • Portugal: Aragonez (Alentejo), Tinto Roriz (Douro Valley), Tinto de Santiago (Península de Setúbal)
  • Argentina: Tempranilla
• Viticultural Characteristics: Early-Budding, Early-Ripening, Susceptible to Rot and Disease
• Preferred Soil Type: Calcareous soils
• Common Blending Partners: Garnacha, Graciano, Carignan

Typical Descriptors and Structure for Rioja
(100% Tempranillo or Tempranillo-dominated blend) 

• Visual: Ruby, Moderate Minus to Moderate Concentration
• Aromas/Flavors: Moderate Plus Intensity
  • Fruit: Tart/Sweet Red Fruit (Red Cherry, Strawberry, Red Currant), Sour Asian Plum, Dried Plum
  • Significant Oxidation and Brettanomyces for Gran Reserva Styles
  • Floral: Red and Dried Flowers
  • Herbal: Tobacco, Dill
  • Other: Sweet and Sour Sauce, Iodine, Leather, Spice
  • Earth: Moderate to High Minerality, Baked Earth, Clay, Compost
  • Oak: Low to Moderate Use of New American or Mixed American/French Barrels (Long Aging in Oak for Reserva and Gran Reserva Styles), Vanilla, Coconut, Dill, Cumin, Curry, Fenugreek, Sandalwood
• Structure: Dry, Moderate Plus Body, Elevated Tannin, Moderate to Elevated Acidity, Moderate to Elevated Alcohol