Caino blanco

Caíño blanco is a white Spanish and Portuguese wine grape variety that is grown in northwest Spain and northern Portugal in a stretch of area between Vinho Verde and the Denominación de Origen (DO) of Rías Baixas. The grape is often confused for Albariño and in Vinho Verde it is sometimes known under the name Alvarinhão (a synonym shared with another Portuguese grape, Fernão Pires). While DNA profiling conducted in the early 21st century has shown that the two grapes are distinct varieties, the evidence has suggested that Caíño blanco maybe an offspring of Albariño from a natural crossing with the red Portuguese wine grape Azal tinto (also known as Caíño Bravo).

Ampelographers believe that Caíño blanco is native to the northwest Iberian peninsula and was likely the result of a natural crossing between Albariño and Azal tinto. Caíño blanco has been growing in the Spanish wine region of Galicia and northern Portugal since at least 1722 when it was first mentioned so the crossing between Albariño and Azal tinto would have had to occur sometime before the 18th century. Swiss geneticist José Vouillamoz notes that the DNA evidence linking Caíño blanco to Albariño and Azal tinto is based on analysis of only 27 genetic markers and that the Caiño family of grapes (which includes Caiño tinto, Caiño Bravo/Azal tinto, Caiño Berzal, Caiño Frexio and Caiño Redondo) has a very complex genetic history which would require more analysis in order to confirm Caíño blanco's origins.

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