All You Needed was a Glass ... for the 4th Annual International Grenache Day (#Grenacheday) Toasted around the World!

AVIGNON, France, Sept. 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The 4th Annual International Grenache Day 2013 (#GrenacheDay) has come and gone but the taste of this voluptuous wine lingers on with upcoming Grenache Association events around the world and anticipation for 2014's International Grenache Day on September 19.

"Anyone can become an honorary Grenachista by spreading the word and creating an International Grenache Day event for next year," says Marlene Angelloz, Executive Director of the non-profit Grenache Association.  "There is a groundswell of Grenache-lovers around the world who appreciate the remarkable versatility and smooth drinkability of the most widely planted red grape in the world.  Grenache frequently without even knowing it -- Grenache makes great wines greater and is becoming recognized as a fine wine in its own right. It's time to Taste... Talk... Tweet... about Grenache!"  

The 2013 Grenache Day was celebrated in 27 Countries, with over 11,000 visits to the MyGoogleMap cyber portal and tweets that generated more than 80,000 impressions on Twitter.  Celebrants toasted from coast-to-coast and glasses were raised around the world to revel in the deep lush flavours of single varietal Grenache and Grenache-based wines.

Winemakers, retailers, restaurants, importers and fans in Tunis, Mumbai, Jerusalem, Zurich, Lagos, Zanzibar, Buenos Aires, Capetown, Sydney, Shanghai, Barcelona, London and towns and cities in France and the Americas happily singing the praises of this "unsung hero."

In Australia, 25 McLaren Vale, Hunter Valley and Barossa Valley growers and producers embraced the day from cellar door to restaurant operators. According to Chester Osborne of d'Arenberg Wines, "People all over Australia joined the conversation and tweeted about their favourite Grenache wines."

In France, Grenache Day was ranked as one of the Top Ten Oenotourism events of the year on Winetourisminfrance.com while Domaine de Mourchon hosted the largest Grenache BYOB on record with over 150 people.

The Rhone Rangers organization, with nearly 200 winery members across America, organized regional Grenache Day celebrations throughout California "Grenache, in all its forms, is one of the most exciting grapes in America. New plantings of Grenache Noir have topped 1200 acres in California alone in the last decade, and Grenache Blanc is the fastest-growing white Rhone variety in America," according to David Gates, Rhone Rangers Board President.

In California's Central Coast Grenache hotbed, Bob Lindquist, of Qupe Winery and longtime winery partner Jim Clendenen of  Au Bon Climat spent Grenache Day leisurely dining over a mid-day Grenache-themed lunch and Santa Barbara's Doug Margerum of Margerum Wine Company and the Wine Cask restaurant fame hosted a dinner at Intermezzo, pairing Grenache wines with Umami-ish haute cuisine foods.

"One feature of great Grenache, like great Pinot, is the appeal of its seductive finish," says Grenache Association co-Founder Nicole Rolet and proprietor of Chene Bleu. "They say Grenache is the Pinot of the South, but that if Pinot is silk, Grenache is velvet." 

"The Grenache Association's goal, is to increase awareness of this under-appreciated grape," added Andy Abramson, long time Rhone wine advocate and the association's USA Ambassador. "With Grenache's approachability, recognition and popularity increasing, it's only a matter of time before people begin to request a glass of Grenache the same way they do Cabernets, Merlots, Chardonnays, Pinot Grigios and Shiraz/Syrahs."

To Join the Association and spread the word! Simply click here

Celebrate with us: www.grenacheday.com
Join us: www.grenache-association.com/join-us-2 
Friend us: www.facebook.com/GrenacheSymposium 
Follow us: www.twitter.com/grenache_global 

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130930/AQ88469LOGO)

 

 

SOURCE Grenache Association

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