Grape unknown in France and Spain close to sensational (9)
I believe the answer is:
zinfandel
'grape' is the definition.
(I know that Zinfandel is a type of vinifera grape)
'unknown in france and spain close to sensational' is the wordplay.
'unknown' becomes 'z' (algebra).
'france' becomes 'f'.
'spain' becomes 'e' (abbreviation for Espana).
'close to' indicates one should take the final letters (the close/ending of).
The final letter of 'sensational' is 'l'.
'z'+'in'+'f'+'and'+'e'+'l'='ZINFANDEL'
(Other definitions for zinfandel that I've seen before include "blush" , "Californian grape variety" , "Black grape grown in California" , "Dry wine" , "Californian wine grape" .)