Spain’s third most important black grape variety, known in France as mourvèdre, grown on 48,116 ha/118,847 acres, mainly in Murcia and Castilla-La Mancha.
The origins of the variety are almost certainly Spanish. Murviedro is a town near Valencia (Mataro, another name for the variety, is another near Barcelona). It is certainly easier to grow in Spain than in the cooler reaches of southern France for it buds and ripens extremely late, later even than carignan. Provided the climate is warm, the upright, vigorous Monastrell adapts well to a wide range of soils and recovers well from spring frost. (It is sensitive to low winter temperatures, however.)
