30 Second Wine Advisor: How is Pinot Gris like Starbucks?

Today's Sponsor

Try a California Wine Club shipment at one-half off!
During The California Wine Club's $1 Shipping Sale, you can also try one of our four clubs for half price! Click Here and use Promo Code: ADVISOR50 when you check out.
www.cawineclub.com

How is Pinot Gris like Starbucks?

Whether you call it Pinot Gris, as the French do, or go with the Italian Pinot Grigio, you're much more likely to call for this popular white wine today than you were even a decade ago.

The past decade has seen Pinot Gris plantings in California increase almost 300 percent, catching up fast on Sauvignon Blanc for second place after Chardonnay. It's hot, too, in Oregon, in Alsace, in Italy.

Pinot Gris (and Grigio) is easy to find on the wine list or in the wine shop. But, much like the world expansion of Starbucks, what was once a reliable artisanal product with a sense of place has turned into a mass-market commodity.

There's some very good Pinot Gris out there, but there's a lot more neutral, insipid stuff that serves primarily as an effective alcohol-delivery system.

It's a real pleasure, then, to run into the occasional Pinot Gris or Pinot Grigio or blend that reminds us of the way it ought to be.

Au Bon Climat, which despite the French name is an All-American winery based in Santa Barbara County on California's Central Coast, is one of my New World favorites. Owner Jim Clendenen makes the kind of wines I like, with elegance, structure and balance, consistently avoiding the overdone "blockbuster" style.

I had occasion to take a taste of his 2009 Pinot Gris/Pinot Blanc blend when Jim passed through here recently for a distributor's portfolio tasting. I liked it so much, as soon as it was available locally I grabbed a bottle to take home for more relaxed enjoyment.

A blend of about two-thirds Pinot Gris, one-third Pinot Blanc, it's rich, aromatic and textured, with a good acidic backbone and rational 13.5 percent alcohol. I bought it specifically to pair with locavore pastured pork, but it would work and play well at the table with a variety of richer white meats, poultry or seafood. My tasting notes are below.


Today's Sponsor

California Wine Club

Try a California Wine Club shipment at one-half off!

During The California Wine Club's $1 Shipping Sale, not only can you save up to 70 percent off retail prices for award-winning wine while paying only $1 for shipping on every case, you can also try one of our four clubs for half price!

Club Options:

Premier Club - Our most popular club features award-winning, limited production wines from California's best mom and pop wineries. Two-bottle shipments including our entertaining Uncorked Magazine are just $35.95 plus shipping and handling. Try it now for just $17.98 plus shipping and handling.

Signature Series - Collectors, connoisseurs and wine lovers looking to expand your palate, this club is for you. Two-bottle shipments average $128 plus shipping and handling. Try it now for just $64 plus shipping and handling.

International Selections - Go on a fun wine adventure featuring award-winning wines from mom and pop wineries around the world. Two-bottle shipments average $65-$80 plus shipping and handling. Try it now for just $39.50 plus shipping and handling.

The Aged Cabernet Series - Experience Napa Valley's most prestigious Cabernets aged 10 to 15 years and ready to drink now! Two-bottle shipments average $150-$235 including shipping and handling. Try it now for just $96 plus shipping and handling.

To try a club shipment at 50% off for the first month (with no obligation to continue), call 1-800-777-4443 or Click Here and use Promo Code: ADVISOR50 when you check out.

After the first month, subsequent shipments will be at normal club prices. No membership fees, no commitment: If you are not happy, you are not stuck.


Today's Tasting Report

Au Bon Climat 2009 Santa Barbara County Pinot Gris/Pinot Blanc

Au Bon Climat

This blend of 66 percent Pinot Gris with 34 percent Pinot Blanc is a clear light gold in color. Aromatic and complex, white fruit and a hint of musk, elusive whiffs of almond. Mouth-filling and textured, mouth-watering acidity gets your attention, but a pleasant richness keeps it comfortable. White-fruit flavors are complex and elusive, in the neighborhood of pears and melon on the aroma wheel, with lip-smacking acidity to provide a cleansing, food-friendly finish. (Sept. 13, 2010)

FOOD MATCH: Its richness, texture and aromatics make it a compatible pairing with heartier "white-meat" fare. It was fine with a locally pastured pork chop, pan-seared and oven-finished with fresh sage and cracked black pepper. It would also go well with roast chicken or turkey or lobster or shrimp dishes.

VALUE: Even my local price near $20 is fair for a white of this quality, but shop around if you're not stuck in a captive market, as Wine-Searcher.com shows it from many sources from $14.55 to the upper teens.

WEB LINKS: The winery Website offers information about the winery, the producer and the wines.

FIND THIS WINE ONLINE:
Look for sources and check prices for Au Bon Climat Pinot Gris/Pinot Blanc on Wine-Searcher.com.

You can buy it from the winery Website for $14.99 plus shipping, where the law allows.


Talk About Wine Online

If you have questions, comments or ideas to share about today's article or wine in general, you're always welcome to drop by our online WineLovers Discussion Group, the Internet's first and still the most civil online community. To find our forums, click:
http://www.wineloverspage.com/forum/village

Discussions are open for public viewing, but you must register to post. Registration is free and easy; we ask only that you join following our Real Names Real Format system, using your real name in the format "John Doe" or "John D". Anonymous, cryptic or first-name-only registrations are discarded without notice.

Once your registration has been approved, which usually happens quickly, you'll be able to participate in all our online wine, food and travel forums.

To contact me by E-mail, write wine@wineloverspage.com. I'll respond personally to the extent that time and volume permit.


Subscriptions and Administrivia

Unsubscribe:
We're sorry if you must leave us, but simply click the "unsubscribe"
link at the bottom of your Email edition to be instantly removed from the mailing list.

Change address:
With our new Email system, the easiest way to change your Email address is simply to register anew, using the link below. If you are keeping your old address, you may unsubscribe; if you are closing it, you needn't take any action, as our system will delete your old address as soon as the mail starts to "bounce."

Subscribe to this Email edition (free):
http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor

WineLoversPage.com RSS Feed (free):
http://www.wineloverspage.com/rss

Wine Advisor Archives:
http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor2/archives.php

Sponsorship Opportunities:
For information, E-mail wine@wineloverspage.com