Alicante Bouschet
Also known as Garnacha Tintorera, Alicante Henri Bouschet
Languedoc, France
A very dark, red-fleshed grape bred in 1866 by crossing Petit Bouschet with Grenache, now a signature of Portugal's Alentejo.
Sensory profile
Characteristics
Flavor & aroma
At a glance
Production facts
Prevalence
Niche
Climate
Warm climate
Ripening
Mid season
Wine styles
Still
Where it's grown
Geography
Shaded areas are the state, province or département(s) containing each region, so they run wider than the appellations themselves.
Portugal
Spain
Almansa (Garnacha Tintorera)
As Garnacha Tintorera, for dense, inky reds.
United States of America
California
Widely shipped for home winemaking during Prohibition, and still grown in old vineyards.
Background
Origin & History
Alicante Bouschet was bred in 1866 by Henri Bouschet, who crossed his father's Petit Bouschet with Grenache. It has red flesh, so its juice is deeply coloured, and it was long used in France to darken thin wines. It carries four generations of French breeding in one vine: Gouais Blanc, Aramon, Petit Bouschet and Grenache.
During Prohibition in the United States its thick skins made it the favourite grape for shipping to home winemakers. Today its best wines come from Portugal's Alentejo, and in Spain, as Garnacha Tintorera, it is grown in Almansa and elsewhere.
Lineage
Family tree
Ancestry above, descendants below. Click a related grape to explore its own lineage.