Carménère
Also known as Grande Vidure
Bordeaux, France
A deep, spicy red from Bordeaux, a cross of Cabernet Franc and Gros Cabernet, almost lost in France but now Chile's signature grape.
Sensory profile
Characteristics
Flavor & aroma
At a glance
Production facts
Prevalence
Niche
Climate
Warm climate
Ripening
Late 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.
Chile
Colchagua and Maipo
Ripe, spicy, herb-edged reds that made Chile's name for the grape.
Background
Origin & History
Carménère was one of the main grapes of the Médoc before phylloxera in the 1860s, but it was not widely replanted because it flowers unreliably. Its name comes from carmin, the crimson of its autumn leaves. A 2009 DNA study found that its parents are Cabernet Franc and Gros Cabernet.
Cuttings reached Chile in the 1850s, where for over a century it was mistaken for Merlot. In 1994 the ampelographer Jean-Michel Boursiquot recognised it as a separate variety, and Chile's agriculture ministry officially recognised it in 1998. It has since become Chile's signature red.
Lineage
Family tree
Ancestry above, descendants below. Click a related grape to explore its own lineage.