Marsanne & blends

Overview

Marsanne is a vigorous and productive vine best suited to poor stony soils, which may help hold back the vine’s vigour a little.  Marsanne produces medium to full-bodied wines of weighty texture, moderate acidity, and with an earthy minerality on the nose, along with honeysuckle, melon, and almond notes.

Marsanne is best known for its role in white Hermitage, where it is often blended with the more aromatic Roussanne. There are relatively smaller plantings of the grape in California, Australia, and Switzerland (in the latter known under the synonym Ermitage).

Typical Blends and Winemaking 

Marsanne is made both as a varietal wine and as a blend, the latter most commonly along with Roussanne. Most commonly fermented and matured in inert vessels, such as concrete, old oak, or stainless steel, Marsanne occasionally sees small proportions of new oak.

• Marsanne (100%)
• Marsanne-Rousanne

Typical aromas and flavours

Honeysuckle, apricot, beeswax, acacia, mandarin orange, quince, melon.

Food matching

Velvety textured Marsanne tends to complete rich and creamy dishes well, such as for example white fish cooked in butter, Paella, risottos, pasta, but also a variety of white meats, including chicken, pork, and turkey. A variety of Asian cuisines, including salads, sushi, and duck goes well with Marsanne, as does a rather large selection of cheese, including the most characterful ones.