Pinot Grigio Wine Tasting Notes
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2007 MacMurray Ranch, Sonoma Coast Pinot Gris $20 Score: 93.0 When I tasted this wine I thought it was an Oregon Pinot Gris, but it turns out it's from California's Sonoma Coast. It has in common with Oregon PG a white peach and citrus fruit profile, but then so do about half a dozen other white varieties. What makes this distinctively West Coast New World is the velvety texture. It's like getting a tongue massage with every sip. Light spice and mineral nuances carry the finish. A superb rendition. |
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2007 Mosby Winery & Vineyards Santa Barbara County, Pinot Grigio $18 Score: 88.0 This is a decent Pinot Grigio showing lots of minerality over lean citrus and pear fruit, and firm acidity. It's not the most complex wine, however, so the $18 price tag seems a bit steep despite its rarity (only 1150 cases produced). |
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2006 King Estate Oregon Pinot Gris $16 Score: 96.0 It's usual to describe and rate a wine by its aromas and flavors (which, in this case, call to mind orange blossom and white peach with a citrus edge), but what I love about this wine is its texture, its delicacy, and its minerality. It's a lovely wine -- light bodied, subtle, silky, persistent. As good as Oregon Pinot Noirs can be, Pinot Gris is Oregon's best wine. |
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2006 Mosby Winery & Vineyards Santa Barbara County Pinot Grigio $18 Score: 89.0 The brilliant Bill Mosby crafts small artistic statements with each vintage. This Pinot Grigio takes a road between the Italian and Alsatian versions of this versatile grape. It's fuller than its Italian cousins and has more intensity of flavor, yet retains it's crisp acidity. Bill's tasting notes are hard to improve on: "ripe pear and green apple, a dry finish with an element of wet stone." I'll add that it has hints of not quite ripe white peach. It's an easy wine to pair with food; it either works as a palate cleanser, or it finds like flavors in such dishes as roasted chicken, pasta primavera, or virtually any delicate fish or shellfish. Only 860 cases produced. |
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2006, Willamette Valley Vineyards Willamette Valley, Oregon, Pinot Gris $15 Score: 94.0 This is as close to an Alsatian style Pinot Gris as I've ever come across in the New World, and it's glorious. For the technically minded, it's a blend of 91% Pinot Gris, 7% Pinot Blanc and 1% Muscat (all fermented and aged sur lees in stainless), and 1% Auxerrois (fermented in one-year-old French oak). For those of you only concerned with flavor, you'll be well-rewarded with this superbly balanced, aromatic Pinot Gris. It displays bright honeydew and Bosc pear fruit, with minerality on the mid-palate and a subtle herbal note that's typical of the variety. It's silky, with crisp acidity and a lingering spicy finish. A great value and a tonic to those who are tired of fat Chardonnays and thin Pinot Grigios. |
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2005 Montevina Winery California Pinot Grigio $10 Score: 88.0 The nose grabs you by the lapels, pulls you close, and declares, "This is serious stuff; pay attention!" It makes a statement with tangerine, peach and just a touch of banana on the palate. Surprisingly soft despite its high acidity, it spans the gap between aperitif and table wine. Vibrant and balanced; buy some now. |
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2005 Brassfield Estate Winery High Serenity Ranch High Valley Pinot Grigio $15 Score: 88.0 A delightful vino with finty notes intermingled with passion fruit and citrus flavors. Understated and minerally, it's medium bodied and very well balanced, with a crisp, lingering finish. First rate. |
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2005 Brassfield Estate Winery Serenity High Valley [Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio and Gewurztraminer - not listed on label] $15 Score: 88.0 A delicious blend of 63% Sauvignon Blanc, 29% Pinot Grigio, and 6% Gewurztraminer from the small High Valley Appellation in Lake County (North of Napa, East of Mendocino). This is a dry wine on the palate (the barely perceptible residual sugar is balanced by good acidity and a hint of spritz). Each variety finds its expression in the blend, and together present an aromatic wine with hints of white peach, nectarine and citrus through to the tart finish. One of our consumer panel's favorites. |
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2005 Mosby Santa Barbara County Pinot Grigio $14 Score: 93.0 Pinot Gris/Grigio is so often innocuous, it's a real pleasure to find a complex rendition. This one shows grassy-herbal notes over white peach on the nose. These follow through to the palate with the addition of mineral notes and a pleasant bitterness and minerality through the extraordinarily long finish. It's light, dry and refreshing, with enough acid to work well with most foods. It is also a very good value. |
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1999 Navarro Vineyards estate bottled Anderson Valley Pinot Gris $15.00 Score: 90.0 "Peach and grapefruit flavors, dry, spritzy, intense, aromatic, with some mineral character in the finish. Excellent varietal definition." |
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1999 La Famiglia de Robert Mondavi California Pinot Grigio $16.00 Score: 87.88 "Dry and peachy, with crisp acidity, and a light undercurrent of bitter almonds. Good food wine to pair with such dishes as pork chops and pasta primavera." |
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1999 Banolis Grave del Friuli Pinot Grigio Score: 91.0 "The wines of Friuli are very distinctive and this Pinot Grigio is a fine example. It displays good varietal definition, yet it is also expressive of the place where its grown. Medium-bodied and aromatic, dry as a bone, the Banolis presents lean citrus and pear fruit, light earth, mineral and a hint of dried herbs from the nose through the finish. Quite complex and a steal at $13.00" |
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1997 Domaines Schlumberger Alsace Pinot Gris Grand Cru Kitterle Score: 88.0 "Pungent grapefruit, dried herb and smoke aromas, with the addition of a touch of earth, light vanilla and honey on the palate. Off-dry, a little heavy, but seriously complex, this is a wine that should be served well-chilled and paired with spicy foods." |
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1999 Hogue Columbia Valley Pinot Gris $10.00 Score: 90.0 "One great bargain. Honestly, Id never guess this is a Pinot Gris if I didnt already know its pedigree. It has a load of peachy, grapefruit, and pear fruit, some vanilla, and a tangy minerally character through the finish. Yeah, baby! Phone: 509-786-4557" |
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1999 Montevina California Pinot Grigio $10.00 Score: 90.0 "Seductive aromatics of orange flesh melon and lime follow through to the palate with the addition of some sweet spices. Creamy on the mid-palate, tart in the finish, this is a fine match for seafood or poultry, or pasta in cream sauce. " |
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