Mourvèdre / Monastrell

VIVC records Mourvèdre under the prime name Monastrell, variety number 7915, with Spain as its country of origin. In Jancis Robinson's words, "the vine’s origins are almost certainly Spanish, probably in the Levante". Its parentage is unknown: both parent fields in its passport are blank, and no full pedigree is recorded.

• Prime name: Monastrell; variety number 7915; country of origin: Spain
• Place of origin: probably the Levante, in Spain
• Parents: none recorded (parentage unknown)

Although it now travels most commonly under its French name, Mourvèdre may take that name from the Spanish city of Murviedro. The first mention of Monastrell is credited to Francesc Eiximenis, in Empordà, Catalunya, in 1381. Mourvèdre was Provence's most planted vine before phylloxera decimated France's vineyards, and it was then largely replaced by varieties that were easier to graft on to the available rootstocks. It has remained Bandol's signature vine, and Bandol was first recognised as an appellation by decree on 11 November 1941. Domaine Tempier's own account of its history recalls Lucien and Lulu taking part in the birth of the great wines of Bandol. Many Monastrell wines are pie franco, made from ungrafted, old, pre-phylloxera vines.

• 1381: first mention of Monastrell, credited to Francesc Eiximenis in Empordà, Catalunya
• Australia and California long had old plantings of a vine regarded as rather rustic, called Mataro; in the early 1990s it began to be renamed Mourvèdre and blended with Grenache and Shiraz

In Bandol, Mourvèdre gives small quantities of intensely coloured juice high in tannin, and wines that are extremely deep purple, pretty tough and notably potent in youth, with a very strong gamey, almost animal scent. Its character is funky and meaty, with brambly, blackberry-like fruit. Mourvèdre buds late and is very late ripening, so it needs a hot, dry climate. In sommelier Louella Mathews's view, Monastrell from Yecla or Jumilla, which have warmer, arid, continental climates, shows bolder blueberries and boysenberries, a silky-supple palate and fuller body.

Mourvèdre is very late ripening and needs a hot, dry climate. In Decanter's view it is at its intense, blackberryish best where it gets lots of sunshine, often close to the sea, hence its ascendancy in Bandol on Provence's Mediterranean shoreline. Within Europe, it is typically planted within 50 miles of the Mediterranean, where winters are mild and summers long and hot. In the New World, the old plantings of Grenache and Mourvèdre in the dry heat of the Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale were re-evaluated as demand for GSM blends grew, and Mourvèdre is now being grown in Washington state too.

• Bandol, Provence: an amphitheatre of hillsides closed to the north and open to the Mediterranean, sheltered from the cold Mistral, with a Mediterranean climate under maritime influence, stony clay-limestone soils and dry-stone terraces (restanques)
• Jumilla and Yecla, southeast Spain: warmer, arid, continental climates
• Barossa Valley: Mataro, as it is known in Australia, is usually blended with Grenache and Shiraz; Rockford and Charles Melton, who named his blend Nine Popes, pioneered the style in the late 1980s, and sommelier Louella Mathews names Torbreck among the Barossa producers championing bigger, bolder styles

Mourvèdre is brambly and blackberry-like, with an animal, funky and meaty character. It has a tendency to reduction, a propensity to produce an odour of bad eggs if it is not exposed to enough oxygen during winemaking; aerating the wine or copper fining remedies it. Provence reds made from it can show lavender and herbes de Provence, in the view of sommelier Louella Mathews. Monastrell from the hotter climate of southern Spain has the reputation of being relatively soft and early developing.

Bandol's red wines must spend at least 18 months ageing in casks or foudres. Bandol's winemakers take particular pains when vinifying Mourvèdre, which there may be blended with a bit of Grenache and Cinsault.

• Bandol AOC rules: minimum 18 months' ageing in casks or foudres for red wines; yield set at 40 hl/ha

Domaine Tempier and Château de Pibarnon, both in Bandol, have wines on Jancis Robinson's list of some distinguished Mourvèdres, alongside Casa Castillo Pie Franco from Jumilla and Hewitson's Old Garden Mourvedre from South Australia. In Spain, Juan Gil and Casa Castillo are among the producers she credits with showing that truly fine wines can also be made from Monastrell.

• Domaine Tempier, Bandol: single-parcel cuvées named for the terroirs La Tourtine, La Migoua and Cabassaou
• Casa Castillo Pie Franco, Jumilla: pie franco is the Spanish term for wines made from ungrafted vines

Mourvèdre in general needs time to soften its tannins and develop more interesting flavours. Red Bandol has a structure that supports long ageing in wood, and so a strong aptitude for ageing.

Primary sources: https://www.vivc.de/index.php?r=passport%2Fview&id=7915 ; https://extranet.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/PNO2024AOPBandol.pdf ; https://www.domainetempier.com/ ; https://www.domainetempier.com/les-terroirs/ ; https://www.domainetempier.com/lhistoire-tempier/ Reference sources: https://www.jancisrobinson.com/learn/grape-varieties/red/mourvedre ; https://www.decanter.com/wine/grape-varieties/mourvedre-red-52443/ ; https://www.decanter.com/learn/the-sommelier-suggests-mourvedre-mataro-monastrell-by-louella-mathews-495875/ ; https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2025/11/monastrell-the-ancient-spanish-grape-that-was-built-to-last/ Last verified 2026-10-19