🍷 Rancio
Also known as: rancio wine
Wine aged for a long time with access to air, which gives it an oxidised taste of walnut and dried fruit.
Rancio is a wine that has aged for a long time with access to air and has gained a characteristic oxidised taste with notes of walnut and dried fruit. In France and Spain the word is an official term on the labels of some wines.
How does it come about? The wine, often fortified, ages for years in contact with air. In Spain the traditional term "Rancio" is used for wines and liqueur wines that have gone through markedly oxidative ageing, with sharp changes in temperature in the presence of air, in wooden or glass containers. It is a deliberate style, not a fault.
In France "rancio" is added to the name of some vins doux naturels, such as Banyuls and Rivesaltes. After long ageing these wines take on a tawny or amber colour and the "rancio" taste, in which walnut stands out.
As with any alcohol, it should be drunk in moderation.
How it connects to Wine
🍷 Rancio → kind of → 🍷 Fortified wine → kind of → 🍷 Types of wine → kind of → 🍷 Wine
Links
- Part of
- 🍷 Fortified wine
- Where it is made
- 🗺️ French wine, 🗺️ Spanish wine
- Similar and different
- 🍷 Vin doux naturel, 🍷 Oloroso, 🍷 Fondillón, 🍷 Flor wines
Frequently asked questions
Is it true that "rancio" simply means the wine has gone off?
Not quite. It is a deliberate style of long oxidative ageing, not a fault, and in France and Spain the word is an official label term.
In Spain, which wines does the traditional term "Rancio" describe?
Wines and liqueur wines with markedly oxidative ageing, with sharp temperature changes, in wooden or glass containers.
What colour and flavour should I expect from a long-aged rancio?
A tawny or amber colour, with walnut standing out among dried-fruit notes.
What to read next
- 🗺️ French wine — The country's wine and winemaking: regions, grapes and appellations.
- 🍷 Oloroso — Dry sherry of exclusively oxidative ageing, without flor; 17–22 % vol.
- 🍷 Flor wines — Wines aged under a film of yeast: fino and manzanilla sherry, Montilla-Moriles, vin jaune and Château-Chalon.
- 🗺️ Spanish wine — The country's wine and winemaking: regions, grapes and appellations.
- 🍷 Fondillón — A rare old sweet wine from overripe Monastrell in Alicante.
Similar
🍷 Mutage · 🍷 Mistelle · 🍷 Rutherglen Muscat · 🍷 Carcavelos · 🍷 Málaga · 🍷 Liqueur wine
⚠️ Wine contains alcohol: adults only, drink in moderation. Wine usually contains sulphites; egg white or milk proteins are sometimes used for fining — important for allergies and for vegans.
Sources
- Wikidata
- INAO: Banyuls grand cru rancio (AOP)
- INAO: Rivesaltes rancio (AOP)
- MAPA (Spain): Pliego de condiciones DOP Alicante, término tradicional «Rancio»