There are over 10,000 wine grape varieties in the world, so you can never stop exploring new ones. In some cases new ones are often old ones that just got lost in the shuffle after the phylloxera outbreak. That’s the case with the Sumoll grape. This is my first time trying it.
Sumoll is a rare grape from Penedes, Catalonia. It was once planted widely in the region, but it’s a difficult late-ripening grape that never regained its prominence in the region after phylloxera. Instead, white grapes for Cava were planted. Only around 200 hectares of this grape are left in the world today, which is up from earlier reports I had read which had it at less than 100 hectares not too long ago. Honestly, there’s not a lot information out there on the grape and there doesn’t seem to be complete agreement on it either.
This producer is one of the first of a handful of producers who make a single varietal Sumoll cuvee attempting to revive its popularity. Montrubi is about 60km west of Barcelona. This Sumoll is grown on clay and limestone soil at high elevation. The producer also makes a sparkling, rose, and sweet Sumoll. There’s another Sumoll red called Vertical with longer aging in oak and amphora. All their Sumoll have the label “Gaintus.” The Gaintus Radical sees only 6 months in 300-liter barrels giving it a purer expression of the varietal.
Tasting Note:
Breathed in glass for around 30 minutes. The nose shows bright red fruit along with floral and mineral notes. The palate is high in acid with raspberry and cherry notes along with some savory and spice notes. Light and transparent in color and rather light bodied too. Low alcohol. Soft dry tannins that give it structure with the acidity. It’s definitely more of an Old World food wine. It sort of reminds me of some Cinsault/Carignan from the Maule/Itata Valley in Chile or classic Loire Valley reds. It also feels more rustic Italian in style. This particular bare-bones pure Sumoll bottling is probably not something New World wine lovers would like, but it’s nice with food. Found it for $20 in the US. 89 pts AC.
Have you tried Sumoll? What is the most obscure grape varietal you’ve tried?
