| Pinot Gris/Grigio Tasting Report |
Our hard-working wine staff tasted ten different Pinot Grigio/Gris
wines ranging in price from $8.00 to $15.00. Hey, it's a tough job, but
someone's got to do it! Among our ten wines, we had seven Italian
Pinot Grigio's, two California Pinot Grigio's and one Oregon Pinot
Gris. Unfortunately, we did not have any French Pinot Gris's in our
tasting, however, they tend to be more expensive and part of our goal
is to find good wines for our club members at affordable prices.
We taste these winds "Blind", meaning we hide the identity of each
wine we are tasting from the staff members. This way we can be
completely fair with our judging. We score our wines on a 100 point
scale and then convert those numbers into a grading system, i.e. A,
B+, C-, etc...
Of the ten wines we tasted, one bottle had been corked, which is a
condition that a wine goes through when the cork is faulty and let's
bacteria into the wine. This creates some rather disturbing aromas
and flavors that spoil the wine. I believe the aroma we smelt was
"cat's pee". This typically happens in one out of every twenty bottles
of wine you open. This is one of the reasons that many wineries have
started using synthetic corks for all of their wine bottles. The wine
that had been corked was the Campanile and it did not receive a
rating, however, I did include my tasting notes from a previous bottle
of Campanile that I had tasted myself a month or two prior to our
formal tasting. All of these wines are from the 2002 vintage and
should be consumed now.
Here are the results of our Pinot Grigio/Gris tasting in order of
preference.
wines ranging in price from $8.00 to $15.00. Hey, it's a tough job, but
someone's got to do it! Among our ten wines, we had seven Italian
Pinot Grigio's, two California Pinot Grigio's and one Oregon Pinot
Gris. Unfortunately, we did not have any French Pinot Gris's in our
tasting, however, they tend to be more expensive and part of our goal
is to find good wines for our club members at affordable prices.
We taste these winds "Blind", meaning we hide the identity of each
wine we are tasting from the staff members. This way we can be
completely fair with our judging. We score our wines on a 100 point
scale and then convert those numbers into a grading system, i.e. A,
B+, C-, etc...
Of the ten wines we tasted, one bottle had been corked, which is a
condition that a wine goes through when the cork is faulty and let's
bacteria into the wine. This creates some rather disturbing aromas
and flavors that spoil the wine. I believe the aroma we smelt was
"cat's pee". This typically happens in one out of every twenty bottles
of wine you open. This is one of the reasons that many wineries have
started using synthetic corks for all of their wine bottles. The wine
that had been corked was the Campanile and it did not receive a
rating, however, I did include my tasting notes from a previous bottle
of Campanile that I had tasted myself a month or two prior to our
formal tasting. All of these wines are from the 2002 vintage and
should be consumed now.
Here are the results of our Pinot Grigio/Gris tasting in order of
preference.
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| Montevina Pinot Grigio - California |
Nose - Racy peach and apricot with exotic fruits and
spices.
Taste - Starts off sweet with honeyed peach and
melon fruits, but comes back dry on the finish.
A great wine for starting an evening off in the hot
summer or to match with shellfish and/or pasta with
spicy asian sauces.
spices.
Taste - Starts off sweet with honeyed peach and
melon fruits, but comes back dry on the finish.
A great wine for starting an evening off in the hot
summer or to match with shellfish and/or pasta with
spicy asian sauces.
| Score B+ |
| From $12.00 to $14.00 |
| Tiefenbrunner Pinot Grigio - Italy |
Nose - Butterscotch with kiwi and other tropical
fruits.
Taste - Old wood flavorings like the afformentioned
butterscotch with sweet citrus fruits and a nice long,
lingering finish.
Try it with Shellfish that has been prepared with a
cream sauce.
fruits.
Taste - Old wood flavorings like the afformentioned
butterscotch with sweet citrus fruits and a nice long,
lingering finish.
Try it with Shellfish that has been prepared with a
cream sauce.
| Score B+ |
| Around $12.00 |
| Meridian Pinot Grigio - California |
| Score B |
Nose - Interesting oak aromas that give way to a
pleasant scent of lemon meringue.
Taste - A big thick mouth-feel that translates into
creamy tropical flavors with hints of lemon meringue
and a nice oak finish that brings complexity to the
wine. ***The oak is not overdone in this wine.***
This would pair well with shellfish and food prepared
with lemon flavorings.
***Pinot Grigio's are not typically aged in oak
barrels, however, a lot of the ones we tasted have
been aged in oak. When this is overdone, in my
opinion, the wines start to loose their personality
and take on a "Woodsy Chardonnay" like personna,
much to the detriment of the wine.***
pleasant scent of lemon meringue.
Taste - A big thick mouth-feel that translates into
creamy tropical flavors with hints of lemon meringue
and a nice oak finish that brings complexity to the
wine. ***The oak is not overdone in this wine.***
This would pair well with shellfish and food prepared
with lemon flavorings.
***Pinot Grigio's are not typically aged in oak
barrels, however, a lot of the ones we tasted have
been aged in oak. When this is overdone, in my
opinion, the wines start to loose their personality
and take on a "Woodsy Chardonnay" like personna,
much to the detriment of the wine.***
| Between $9.00 & $11.00 |
| King Estate Pinot Gris - Oregon |
| Score B |
Nose - Peach and citrus with buttery vanilla and
nutty flavors.
Taste - Peach upfront turning to strong apricot
accents and a touch of honey on the finish. Starts
off dry, but finishes sweet, which I find unusual.
Very lush for a Pinot and it tends to lean towards a
Chardonnay style of wine.
Try this with a roasted chicken.
nutty flavors.
Taste - Peach upfront turning to strong apricot
accents and a touch of honey on the finish. Starts
off dry, but finishes sweet, which I find unusual.
Very lush for a Pinot and it tends to lean towards a
Chardonnay style of wine.
Try this with a roasted chicken.
| Around $14.00 |
| Sortesele Pinot Grigio - Italy |
| Score B- |
Nose - A touch of buttery vanilla and nutmeg with
grapefruit and citrus spice.
Taste - Bold oak shadings with only a hint of citrus
flavors like grapefruit and peach coming through.
Less Pinot like and more Chardonnay in style.
Have with shellfish and asian style cuisine.
grapefruit and citrus spice.
Taste - Bold oak shadings with only a hint of citrus
flavors like grapefruit and peach coming through.
Less Pinot like and more Chardonnay in style.
Have with shellfish and asian style cuisine.
| Around $10.00 |
| Praedium Pinot Grigio - Italy |
| Score B- |
Nose - Peach, citrus fruits and a little flintstone.
Taste - Dry with a touch of lemon peel and other
citrus flavors with a nice creamy finish.
Try with delicate broiled fish, clams and oysters or
ceasar/green salads with light to medium dressings.
Taste - Dry with a touch of lemon peel and other
citrus flavors with a nice creamy finish.
Try with delicate broiled fish, clams and oysters or
ceasar/green salads with light to medium dressings.
| Around $15.00 |
| San Angelo Pinot Grigio - Italy |
Nose - Lemon and citrus fruits like apricot and
peach.
Taste - Creamy and zesty with tart citrus,
grapefruit and lemon flavors that turn neutral on
the finish with a hint of ginger.
This is an excellent food wine and I would
recommend it with a variety of seafood and salads
as well as light pasta dishes. If you feel really
crazy, have some with sushi, you won't be
dissappointed.
Note - I liked this much better the second time I
tasted it.
peach.
Taste - Creamy and zesty with tart citrus,
grapefruit and lemon flavors that turn neutral on
the finish with a hint of ginger.
This is an excellent food wine and I would
recommend it with a variety of seafood and salads
as well as light pasta dishes. If you feel really
crazy, have some with sushi, you won't be
dissappointed.
Note - I liked this much better the second time I
tasted it.
| Score C+ |
| Around $15.00 |
| Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio - Italy |
Nose - Very closed (not having much of a smell)
with feint traces of citrus and bread dough.
Taste - Very neutral in flavor with nuances of
grapefruit and other citrus.
Light dishes or summer afternoon sipping.
***It was my mom's favorite. Of course, that
could have just been the price point.***
with feint traces of citrus and bread dough.
Taste - Very neutral in flavor with nuances of
grapefruit and other citrus.
Light dishes or summer afternoon sipping.
***It was my mom's favorite. Of course, that
could have just been the price point.***
| Score C |
| Around $8.00 |
| Ca' del Sarto Pinot Grigio - Italy |
| Score C- |
Nose - Gooseberry and lemon custard with other
pungent aromas.
Taste - Very dry and very acidic with biting citrus
flavors like lemon and grapefruit.
Try with salads or fish prepared with lemon flavors.
pungent aromas.
Taste - Very dry and very acidic with biting citrus
flavors like lemon and grapefruit.
Try with salads or fish prepared with lemon flavors.
| Around $8.00 |
| Campanile Pinot Grigio - Italy |
| Not Rated |
Nose - Citrus, lemon and ginger notes.
Taste - It has a creamy neutral character that is
followed by a bit of a floral bouquet and a vibrant
citrus finish.
I think this would compliment most lightly
prepared seafood dishes and light salads.
Taste - It has a creamy neutral character that is
followed by a bit of a floral bouquet and a vibrant
citrus finish.
I think this would compliment most lightly
prepared seafood dishes and light salads.
| Between $9.00 & $11.00 |
