Albariņo

Albariņo (also seen as Alvarinho) [ahl-vah-REE-nyoh].  Low-yielding, high-quality white wine grape grown in Portugal's VINHO VERDE, as well as in Spain's Galicia region, where it's called Albariņo. Although reasonably productive, these grapes are so thick skinned that only a small amount of juice can be extracted from them. Alvarinho grapes can produce CREAMY, rich wines with complex flavors of apricots, peaches, and citrus. Although Alvariho wines are some of the most expensive and highly prized white wines in both Portugal and Spain, this variety is rarely cultivated elsewhere.

Here's a link to some notes from the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, one of the country's largest retailers of Albariņo, forwarded to us by our knowledgeable friend, Bob Robertson, at Barrel Builders, Inc., in St. Helena, California.