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Cariñena)
Carignan (in French; Spanish Cariñena, Italian Carignano, American English Carignane) is a Spanish variety of grape that originated in Cariñena, Aragon and was later transplanted to Sardinia, elsewhere in Italy, France, Algeria, and much of the New World.
Carignan is responsible for huge quantities of mediocre or poor wine; nevertheless, when it is grown on a slope, to lower the yield, as is done in Sardinia, or grown on very old, low-yielding vines, as in parts of California, it can produce a wine with good body, color, and character with a characeristic harshness and astringency that diminishes with age.
It is often blended with Cinsaut, Grenache, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Mourvèdre, Merlot, and/or many other grapes, especially in the Languedoc region of France, where it is very widely planted but now on the decline. It has an upright growth habit and can be grown without a trellis. It was crossed to Cabernet Sauvignon to give Ruby Cabernet.
Carignan is also the name of a commune of the Ardennes département, in France.