Öküzgözü
Also known as Ox Eye, Bull's Eye
Elazığ, Eastern Anatolia, Turkey
Turkey's most widely planted red grape, from the high country around Elazığ, making juicy, fresh reds with soft tannins and flavours of black mulberry and sour cherry.
Sensory profile
Characteristics
Flavor & aroma
At a glance
Production facts
Prevalence
Niche
Climate
Moderate 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.
Turkey
Elazığ and Malatya, Eastern Anatolia
The heartland: high-altitude vineyards on the upper Euphrates give fresh, fruity reds with soft tannins.
Turkey
Cappadocia, Central Anatolia
Grown on volcanic soils at altitude, alongside Emir, with a distinctive mineral edge.
Turkey
Aegean
In the warmer Aegean the wines are softer, with subtler aromas and lower acidity.
Background
Origin & History
Öküzgözü means ox eye, a reference to its large, round, dark berries. It comes from Elazığ in Eastern Anatolia, where vineyards lie at 1,000 to 1,200 metres, with winters that can fall below −20 degrees Celsius and big swings between day and night. Those conditions keep its acidity high and its aromas intense, and sugar levels stay modest as it ripens.
It was traditionally blended with Boğazkere, the two making up for each other: Öküzgözü brings fruit and freshness, and Boğazkere brings tannin and structure. In recent years it has become the most widely planted red grape in Turkey, and is made as a varietal red and as a rosé. Grown in the warmer Aegean and Mediterranean, it gives subtler aromas and lower acidity.
Lineage
Family tree
Parentage not recorded — Öküzgözü is an old variety of unknown origin.
No crossings involving Öküzgözü are documented in the collection yet.