Rare Red Wine Varietals You Might never heard of...!

"You are looking for a way to expand your wine knowledge,hunting for the unusual...!

There are thousands of wine varieties, if you tasted a new wine variety each week, it would take you 40 years to try them all. They are regional varieties that may not be that well known outside of their place of origin, but are worth mentioning and tasting."

St. Laurent

In Austria, St. Laurent is the third most popular red grape variety and is primarily grown in Lower Austria and Burgenland. Is the most widely planted red grape variety in the Czech Republic.

St. Laurent variety is believed that belongs to the Pinot family ( technically is not related).

Tasting Notes:Raspberry, Blackberry, Mushroom, Baking Spices, Cocoa.

Wine:St. Laurent delivers dark, sturdy,fruity and piquant red wines with Morello cherry and bodacious notes . They are of high quality and have good age ability.

Where to Look For it..! WINECASE Wine Shop

Some recommendations: MAGLOCK-NAGEL ST. LAURENT 2016, (€15)

Perricone

Perricone variety was hit hard by phylloxera,Now a little-cultivated red wine grape variety grown in western Sicily. Perricone is often described as being quite similar to Barbera.

Tasting Notes: Tart Cherry,Blackberry, Dried Herbs, Black Pepper

Wine:High acidity and characteristics of red berries, earth and herbs. However, Perricone has strong, noticeable tannins.

Where to Look For it..! PHIALE Wine shop

Some recommendations: Caruso & Minini Naturalmente Bio Perricone 2018, IGP ( €16 )

Lagrein

Lagreinis an ancient red grape variety to the valleys of South Tyrol, in northeastern Italy.

One of theories is that Lagrein has a Greek origin, suggesting that it is closely related to wines that were once made around the city of Lagaria in Greece.

Tasting Notes: Wild cherry, Plum, Cocoa, Spices,Tobacco

Wine: Strong and full bodied,fresh, acidic structure and a slightly astringent finish, making it best paired with food.

Where to Look For it..! VINOCULTURA Wine shop

Some recommendations: Elena Walch Lagrein Alto Adige 2017 ( €16,50)

Nerello Mascalese

Nerello Mascalese is the undisputed prince of the vine varieties growing on the mystic Mungibeddu, the Etna volcano on the eastern coast of Sicily.

DNA testing has suggested that the variety is quite probably the offspring of Italy's famous Sangiovese grape variety, and a connection to Carricante has also been mooted.

Recent studies have however proved that this local red vine variety made its first appearance during the Greek colonization in the VII century B.C. on the coasts of Calabria, moving then to Naxos and later to Catania in 728 B.C., when Greeks introduced, on the eastern part of Sicily, the cutting cultivation technique and the cult of Dionysus, the god of wine. At that time, many Greeks were growing vines in the eastern part of Sicily and on the slopes of Mount Etna.

Tasting Notes: Dried Cherry, Orange Zest, Dried Thyme, Allspice, Crushed Gravel,Tobacco

Wine: Dry, tannic, harmonic taste, with a strong body.Strong fruity scent of red berry fruits,herbaceous flavors, excellent minerality and earthy notes.

Where to Look For it..! PHIALE Wine shop.

Some recommendations: Pietradolce Etna Rosso '2017 DOC ( € 20 )