Variety versus Varietal

Variety or Varietal are two terms frequently confused in the “WORLD OF WINE”. 

The key to understand the differences is to think  about  WHAT these two terms refer to:

VARIETY refers to grapes – {grape variety} – :  Sauvignon Blanc, Viura, Godello, Tempranillo, Grenache, Grüner Veltliner… 

VARIETAL refers to wine – {Varietal wine} -. This means:

• A wine that is produced by a 100% of a single grape variety 

or 

• A wine made with more than *80%- 85% from the main grape variety which is, generally, labelled in the bottle. The remaining percentage (20%-15%) is blended with other authorised grape varieties.

*NOTE: It is important to know that wine’s law regulations determine the amount of the percentage to consider a wine as a varietal. For example, some wines must comprise 100% of the grape listed on the label like Godello wines from D.O. Valdeorras in Galicia – Spain –  (in this case, the wines are a single-varietal wines), and others just require 85% such as Pinot Noir wines from Bourgogne.

This can be confusing but in general to consider a wine as a “varietal wine”, the percentage of the MAIN grape variety cannot be less than 80%-85%.

” I hope that now when you taste some of these wines from D.O.Valdeorras, Galicia (for example), you can confirm that you are drinking a SINGLE-VARIETAL WINES made with 100% Godello GRAPE VARIETY”