The Revival of Australian Grenache

How a once-overlooked grape is helping to shape one of the new world’s most exciting wine cultures.

Written by Spencer Fox

Illustration by Cerise Zelenetz

It's easy to make generalizations about wine and the regions from which they hail––Napa only makes oaky Cabs, Germany is all sugary Rieslings, New World wines are unsophisticated. But these assumptions completely overlook the nuance and inventive winemaking that exists outside of antiquated stereotypes. 

When I arrived in Australia a few months back for a friend’s wedding, I had the chance to explore the country’s wine scene and watch my own assumptions dissipate in real time. Prior to this trip, all I knew of Australian wines were the muscular cuvées of monolithic producers like Penfolds and Henschke. There is nothing wrong with a rich, full-bodied wine, of course, but when I fantasized about this long-awaited beachside excursion, heavily oaked reds were not part of the equation. It wasn’t long before I realized just how wrong I was about Australian wine and the forward thinking winemakers who are driving the culture. 

All of the bottle shops and wine bars I frequented in Australia provided ready access to the silky Shiraz and Cabernet-focused wines that some might associate with the country, however, it was lifted, fresh and often low-intervention wines that stole the spotlight. Among these, one grape proved to be more ubiquitous and celebrated than any other—Grenache.

I was shocked to see this variety, one I had long associated with the heady wines of the Southern Rhône and Rioja, so widely used in Australia. But as I became more acquainted with how this new wave of Australian producers were approaching Grenache, it all came into focus. These wines—diametrically opposed to the broad, high ABV Grenaches of the Old World—burst with freshness, juicy fruit and razor sharp acidity. How bizarre it was that this torrent of Grenache-based wines had flown completely under my radar! Even more shocking to me was the fact that, at a time when gluggable, chillable reds are the style du jour, why was Australian Grenache not being poured at every chic bistro on American soil? 

As I began inspecting the lineage of Australian Grenache, a more intricate story began to emerge. While it is currently the darling of BTG (by-the-glass) lists from Perth to Coolangatta, it took close to 150 years to pull this grape from the brink of obscurity. 

Grenache first made its way onto Australian soil thanks to the intrepid “Father of Australian Wine,” James Busby—a Scottish born viticulture professor who sought to bring vine cuttings from the great wine regions of Europe back to his home of New South Wales. In 1831, he set sail for Spain and France, only to return to Australia with 363 cuttings stowed away in an amalgam of soil, moss, and sand below deck. These vines were planted in Sydney’s botanical gardens, setting in motion the foundation for Australia’s wine culture as we know it today.

By 1862, Grenache was revered as one of Busby’s greatest triumphs, particularly for its ability to retain acidity even under Australia’s arid, warm climate. This unique capacity for ripening without going flabby made it a favorite among fortified winemakers, and for decades, Grenache-based dessert wines dominated the Australian market. 

However, in the 1970s, these sickly sweet, concentrated bottlings fell out of vogue as dry table wines took their place. This meant Grenache’s last real vestige of relevance in Australia was as an unassuming blending grape which simply wasn’t enough to elevate it to the status of its bolder, more braggadocious older brothers––Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. Grenache was being left by the wayside altogether in favor of varieties that could produce wines of a fuller, more tannic style. When 1980s Aussie producer Wirra Wirra removed it from their touchstone red blend, Church Block, and replaced it with Cab Sauv and Merlot, it felt like the end of the road. 

Could it be? Would this humble grape––so integral to the profound wines of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Rioja and Catalonia–– be left out of Australia’s wine canon altogether? That might very well have been the case if it weren’t for visionary vigneron Charles Melton and his like-minded colleagues. This new wave of winemakers, primarily based in the Barossa region, took advantage of the surplus of old-vine Shiraz and Grenache plantings by focusing on Rhône Valley-inspired GSM (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre) blends.

In an effort to approximate the level of finesse and quality attained by the French winemakers he so deeply admired, Melton drastically reduced yields in his vineyards—a tactic that would reframe how the Australian wine drinking public perceived Grenache. Lower yields and dry farming, particularly in Grenache’s case, ensure that the grapes develop greater concentration and complexity than overly irrigated, high yield fruit. 

The first cuvée of Melton’s to really take off was his Nine Popes––a charming mistranslation of Châteauneuf-du-Pape––and to this day, it is viewed as one of Australia’s definitive wines. 

This new wave of quality-over-quantity oriented winemaking, with an emphasis on French technique, not only elevated Grenache’s profile but also helped Australia stake its claim as one of the New World’s most forward-thinking and exciting regions.

Today, Grenache-driven wines ––both single varietal and blends, are among Australia’s most coveted exports. A $22 GSM from McLaren Vale was one of 50 bottles to receive the Best in Show designation at this year’s Decanter Wine Awards in London, signaling that these budget-friendly and accessible cuvées may be where contemporary winemakers are making the greatest strides. Sure, there are plenty of high-end Grenaches coming out of McLaren Vale and Barossa that can reach Burgundian heights, but for my dollar, Australian wines under the $35 mark are the ones worth writing home about. They may not be reinventing the wheel, but more often than not, they are delicious, fresh, and emblematic of a paradigm shift in Australia’s drinking culture. These light, quaffable wines stand in stark contrast to the burly, oak driven, fruit bombs that I once foolishly believed defined Australia's wine culture. Whether intentional or not, they signal that wine drinkers and producers alike are prioritizing innovation over tradition.   

Delivering unctuous, pulpy fruit, chalky texture and crunchy acidity, Barossa Valley’s own Small Fry Wines offers up their Jellyfish Grenache, providing all of this and more at an astounding budget. While the Jellyfish gives insight into the deeper, darker- fruited side of Grenache, the density of red clay soils in the Adelaide Hills help to cultivate buoyant acidity and aromatic quality. 

Jauma’s Like Raindrops cuvée showcases this region’s ability to produce ethereal, polished low-intervention wines––practically a thesis statement on the Adelaide Hills’ stylistic identity—fun, fresh, and expressive of the terroir. Arguably Australia’s greatest asset when it comes to Grenache are its 100+ year- old vines. Cirillo Estates offers a glimpse into just how profound these wines can be––at a price that’s lower than mediocre takeout. 

The Vincent Grenache is a plush expression of the grape, imbued with white pepper and slightly desiccated red fruit on the nose. The palate is beyond generous, with just a dash of residual sugar to help round things out.