Getting to Know
Albarino Wine
Albarino (alba-reen-yo) is a light-bodied yet high quality white grape that originated in Northwest Spain (Galicia). Today it is mainly grown in Spain and Portugal.
Flavors include stone and tropical fruits like white peach, apricot, melon, and pineapple.
Fun Fact
Albariño vines are some of the world's oldest at 300+ years old. That's not too far off the world's oldest cultivated grape in North Carolin - the 400-year-old Mothervine on Roanke Island.
The Albarino grape produces extremely mouth-watering fruit-forward wine with high acid. As a result it is very aromatic and has a higher level of terpenes and thoils. Thoils are found in cooler climate growing regions and provide an intense melon or ruby red grapefruit aroma. The nose has aromas of lemons, limes, pear, grapefruit, honeysuckle, nectarine, occasionally orange zest, beeswax, wet gravel and Thai basil.
WHERE TO FIND THE Albarino Grape
Well known regions for Albarino include Rias Baixas, (Spain) and Minho (Portugal). More Albarino is coming out of the Central Coast in California since the varietal is well-suited for maritime climates and is always planted near the ocean. (Watch for Albarino from Southern Oregon and Washington State.)
SPAIN
Rías Baixas, Spain is known as the capital of Albariño production where 90% of the vineyards are Albarino grapes.
portugal
In Minho, Portugal the “Alvarinho” is used to make Vinho Verde (slightly green-tinted spitzy white wine).
Other Names to Look for When Exploring Albarino Wine
- Albarina
- Alvarinho
- Galeguinho
- Alvarin Blanco
- Azal Blanco
- Alvarinha
- Galego
When is the Right Mood for Albarino Wine?
HOW TO ENJOY albarino WINE
albarino food pairing
Practical Tips for Albarino Wine
Glassware: White wine glasses.
Shelf life: Consume Albarino within about one year after harvest but does have a shelf-life of two-years. I personally would not hold on to this wine – consume it when purchased as it does not typically process well in the bottle and can fall apart and taste stale. However, there are some wineries producing Albarino with great aging potential. So, it can and does happen, it’s just not the norm.
Bottle Prices: The average bottle cost is $20.
Albarino WINE RECOMMENDATIONS
Looking for Albarino recommendations? Here are a few suggested sips.
Maia Parish
Carpe Travel collaborated with Maia Parish to compile the grape varietal overviews. Maia Parish is an award-winning events producer, sommelier, wine judge, and media consultant. She lives in Denver, Colorado and likes to eat copious amounts of food. You can find her here www.linktr.ee/thewinemistress.
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Valerie Quintanilla is an American expat in Alba, Italy. Val was an original Carpe Travel contributor before packing up her American life to chase her Italian dreams.
Today she runs a custom travel / wine tour planning business while moonlighting as a marketing consultant for wine and travel business in Europe. She has been featured in Wine Enthusiast, Food & Wine Magazine, Open Skies (Emirate Airlines inflight magazine), and more.