Next up in our "world of" series was our comparison of six bottles of Pinot Gris from six different countries.
The winner was a bright, fun inexpensive bottle from New Zealand, with the Oregon entry getting plenty of praise in second place, as well as also being a great value. None of the wines were expensive.
First Place: Peter Yealands Pinot Gris 2014 (Marlborough). Tasters found notes of guava, tropical fruit salad, and grass on the nose. Tastes like it smells, with nice acidity, plus flavors of kiwi, strawberry, and citrus. Almost salty. David described it as "fun to drink". A touch of white pepper on the finish. We guessed that this was the New Zealand bottle pretty confidently. Kristin Crane, David, Andy, and Kristin Amico's favorite of the night. Received 32 points. David's bottle. About $12.
Second Place: Acrobat Pinot Gris 2013 (Oregon). Scents of white peach, a bit of funk (like white mushrooms), grapefruit, and cut grass/straw. Refreshing and showing minerality, plus flavors of apricots, white peach, pink grapefruit, green guava, and bubble gum. Maybe slightly effervescent. Pleasant and happy. Suzanne's favorite of the night. Received 22 points. Andy's bottle. About $15.
Third Place: Trimbach Pinot Gris Reserve 2011 (Alsace). We picked this out pretty easily as the French bottle, showing the darkest color, along with notions of red apple, cinnamon, nutmeg, smoke, pencils, and apple cider on the nose. Musty, but not off-putting. With air it develops a liqueur quality. Tastes like apple cider, having some wood and vanilla notes. Silky, richer texture. Ali's favorite entry. Received 17 points. Kristin Amico's bottle. About $20.
Pulenta Estate Pinot Gris 2014 (Mendoza). A bit skunky, plus scents of bologna, citrus, butter, licorice, and weeds. Flat on the palate, with cranberry and orange rind flavors. Andy felt that it "tastes like burning hair", while Kristin Amico detected "shrimp shells". Received 6 points. Kristin Crane's bottle. About $15.
MacMurray Estate Pinot Gris 2014 (Russian River Valley). A bit darker in color. Smelled of socks, apple juice, pudding, and funky cheese. Kristin Amico found "concrete after the rain", with "a bit of Yankee Candle on top of funk". Brighter in the mouth, and almost effervescent. Received 6 points. Ali's bottle. About $16.
Maso Canali Pinot Grigio 2014 (Trentino). Tasters detected scents of white flowers, bread dough, minerals, Ajax, and old lemons. Lots of texture, but very acidic, with only lemon flavors. Kristin Amico felt that it "would be good with strawberries". Received one point. Suzanne's bottle. About $22.
AUGUST 2015: WORLD OF PINOT GRIS
