There is a lot of bad Grenache around. The grape is originally from Spain, but people associate it with France. However, until very recently, Spain had more acreage than the entire rest of the world. Most of it went to rosado and sangria. In France, a lot of it went to rosé and jug wine. Rayas is a fine example, but it’s become kind of a cult wine and it shouldn’t be. One of the problems is that the grape needs sun, but you have to watch it so it doesn’t over produce and over ripen.
In Spain, there are a few producers who are champions of the grape, and in Priorat especially there are some versions that people love, but Clos Erasmus, loved by many, is to me very sweet and ripe and I can’t remember the specific vintage but a few years ago one critic gave it 100 points and I found it almost undrinkable, and I like Grenache. So it’s always a matter of personal taste. A better example IMHO is Espectacle del Montsant, from Monstant, made by René Barbier. A cheaper one would be from Bodegas Borsao, coming from Campo de Borja, in Aragón. They are aiming to be the benchmark for the grape. The basic bottle usually has some earthy notes to balance out the bright fruit.
From the US, a shockingly good version is Joel Gott’s Alkai, which is almost a textbook example of a wine made from that grape and which you can find in supermarkets. Ridge does one but I’ve never particularly cared for it, and Qupe also does one that unfortunately I never found compelling. Beckmen, in Santa Ynez, used to do a very nice one but I haven’t had it in a few years.
From France, a relatively expensive version is Domaine Pierre Usseglio’s Cuvée Mon Aïeul, which is usually mostly, if not all Grenache. Another CdP that’s almost entirely Grenache is Domaine de Marcoux Vieilles Vignes, which is usually a nice version.
A really great value from Australia is from Yangarra, both their OV version and their more expensive High Sands bottling. They do a few others but I can’t remember the names. McLaren Vale is becoming known for Grenache in Australia, particularly the Blewitt Springs region. But don’t overlook Barossa, for Yaluma, d’Arenberg, and John Duval.
We did blind tastings yearly for a long time and at home we drank a lot of Grenache, so it’s hard to come up with a short list but these are a few off the top.