Tag Archives: pinot gris

Wine of the week: Westmount Pinot Gris 2021

Westmount pinot gris bottle
Westmount Pinot Gris 2021/$13-$20

Quality Oregon pinot gris for less than $15 – a fine way to start the new year

Few wines have suffered as much from premiumization as Oregon pinot gris. Not that long ago, there were a variety of quality brands selling the white for $15 or less. Now, those wine are almost all gone, and what’s left at that price is sweet or boring or both.

So when I saw the Westmount Pinot Gris 2021 ($13, purchased, 13.5%) on a local retailer’s shelf, I took the chance. And I’m glad I did.

This is a delightful, almost subtle Oregon pinot gris – all in all, much more than I dared hope for. It reminded me of the quality wines I used to buy at this price, before all those brands went over to the dark side (and since they know who they are, there’s no need to name them).

It’s not exactly classic Oregon pinot gris; there’s more pear than bright lime fruit and more minerality than most. Some of the tasting noteseven  mention spice, which may be on hand if you’re looking for it. Regardless, a surprisingly complex wine for the price.

Chill this and drink it on its own or pair it with grilled chicken breasts. Now, sadly, the caveats: prices are all over the place (as much as $20), and the wine may be difficult to find (even though I bought it just a couple of months ago). But that’s the wine business for you.

Thanksgiving wine 2022

turkey holding a wine glassFour Thanksgiving wine 2022 suggestions

How about another Shakespeare quote this year? Or, more exactly, not quite a Shakespeare quote? “Gnarly, dude.” Because, after the past couple of years, it’s time for a good laugh.

So enjoy the holiday, and especially these Thanksgiving wine 2022 suggestions. The blog’s guidelines for holiday wine buying are here.

• McManis Pinot Noir 2020 ($12, sample, 13,5%): Lots of nits to pick with this California red — too much oak, it doesn’t need all that vanilla, and the acidity seems a bit out of whack. Having said that that, this is about as close to legitimate pinot noir from California at this price as you’re going to find. It’s fruity (berries and cherry), but not overblown, and the tannins are soft. It is wine, and not smoooth.

• Anne Amie Pinot Gris 2021 ($20, purchased, 13.9%): Would that all wine at this price was this well made and this true to its variety and terroir. This Oregon white has lots of lime, but is also balanced — a bit of mineral and some zippy acidity. Highly recommended from one of the WC’s favorite producers.

• Veuve du Vernay Brut NV ($9, purchased, 11%): There are, apparently, warehouses and warehouses jammed with inexpensive French sparkling wine, made with methode Champenoise for $10 or so and that are well worth drinking. This is one of them, soft but more than just fizzy, with some lemon and apple fruit and a longish finish. Imported by Patriarche USA

• Les Maitres Vignerons de la Vidaubanaise Le Provencal Rose 2021 ($15, purchased, 13%): Well-made and spot on Provencal rose, so there is garrigue, barely ripe berry fruit, and oh so stony. If you can find it for $13, buy a couple of bottles. Imported by Michael Corso Selections

More about Thanksgiving wine:
• Thanksgiving wine 2021
• Thanksgiving wine 2020
• Thanksgiving wine 2019
• Wine of the week: Cantina Cellaro Luma 2019
• Wine review: Patricia Green Dollar Bills Only Pinot Noir 2020

Wine review: Elk Cove Pinot Gris 2020

Elk Cove Pinot Gris 2002/$15-$20

This Oregon white wine takes the state’s pinot gris in a different – but equally enjoyable – direction

Oregon pinot gris, though not as popular as the state’s pinot noir, has long been one of the best styles of wine that not enough people know about. It’s fresh, much more interesting than the tonic water pinot grigios from Italy and California, and sometimes can be layered and complex.

In fact, until premiumization took hold, the blog regularly touted affordable Oregon pinot gris.

Sadly, that’s no longer the case – even ordinary, supermarket-quality wines cost more than $15. So when I find something like the Elk Cove Pinot Gris 2020 ($18, purchased, 13%), it’s worth writing about, even though it costs more than I usually spend.

That’s because the Elk Cove is a lovely, fresh, and appealing Oregon pinot gris that shows how diverse the grape can be. Many of the state’s pinot gris feature crisp lime fruit, sometimes venturing into lemon and lime. But the Elk Cove is made in a softer style (melon, tangerine and papaya, maybe, if we’re going to be geeky) that is as welcome as it is different.

Having said that, the wine isn’t cloying or chardonnay-rich in its approach; then it wouldn’t be pinot gris. The grape’s appealing minerality is still there on the finish, and it’s still a terrific food wine as pinot gris almost always is.

Highly recommended – not only for quality, but because it is a fine value at this price.

Expensive wine 134: Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Gris 2017

eyrie pinot grisThe Eyrie pinot gris shows why this family producer is one of the best wineries in the U.S.

No, the Eyrie pinot gris is not the most expensive wine in the world, and most of the Winestream Media would probably consider it popularly priced. But for those of us who consider value more important than anything else, a wine that costs this much and delivers value is rare and worth noting — and a wine to buy over and over.

The Eyrie pinot gris ($23, purchased, 12.5%) comes from one of my favorite producers, the second-generation Oregon winery that did so much to bring pinot noir to that state (and the U.S.). The pinot gris, if less well-known, is equally worth drinking.

This is still a very young wine, and the pear fruit (and maybe some peach) really isn’t showing the way it should in a few years. It’s sort of hiding in the background, so that when you taste it, you’re not quite sure if it’s there, but you know something is. And, of course, that’s far from the only quality — lots of flint and minerality, maybe some spice, and a clean mouth feel.

Highly recommended. Pair this with grilled seafood or roasted chicken, and be glad such value still exists in a wine costing more than $20.

Mini-reviews 127: Black Friday wine 2019

black friday wine 2019Reviews of wines that don’t need their own post, but are worth noting for one reason or another. Look for it on the fourth Friday of each month. This month: a terrific red Burgundy for Black Friday 2019

• Joel Gott Pinot Gris 2018 ($12, purchased, 13.2%): This Oregon white is mostly OK for what it is, with some lime fruit and what tastes like a little fizziness. But there are better made wines at this price.

• Toad Hollow Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 ($17, sample, 14.1%): This California red from Lodi is $12 or $13 worth of cabernet, which is not a bad thing. It’s reasonably well made, with with brambly berry fruit and almost cabernet tannins (though the oak is out of balance). But $17? Only in the premiumization universe.

• Domaine Thenard Givry Les Bois Chevaux 2012 ($20, purchased, 13%): A Premier Cru red Burgundy, the second highest classification, that actually tastes like red Burgundy (French pinot noir) at a tremendous price. It’s getting a touch thin, but still has earth, some forest floor, and telltale lovely red fruit. Imported by Beverly Imports

• Joseph Drouhin Beaujolais Nouveau 2019 ($13, purchased, 13%): This French red, made from gamay, is a November tradition. The 2019 version from Drouhin is a little thin, but mostly Beaujolais in style and taste (berry fruit). Which means it’s missing the horrible ripe banana fruit that too many nouveaus have had in the past decade. Imported by Dreyfus, Ashby & Co.

Expensive wine 110: Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Gris Dundee Hills 2016

Eyrie Vineyards pinot grisThe Eyrie Vineyards pinot gris is substantial, age-worthy, and delicious – who cares what score it got?

How useless are scores? The Eyrie Vineyards pinot gris got 88 points on Cellar Tracker (the blog’s unofficial wine inventory software). Just 88 points for one of the best-made wines I’ve tasted in my life? So yes, past useless.

The Eyrie Vineyards pinot gris ($22, purchased, 12.5%) is a dazzling Oregon white that doesn’t rely on showy limeade fruit to make its point. Rather, it’s about spice and white pepper, a full and complex mouth feel, and layers and layers of subtlety. In this, what fruit there is (lime peel?) is just one of its many attributes.

But why not? The Lett family behind Eyrie has been making Oregon wine for as long as there has been Oregon wine, and every Eyrie wine I’ve ever tasted reflects their history and passion. This is a substantial wine, as “important” as any chardonnay is in the foolish hierarchy that is part of how wines are scored. Or, as a nationally known expert once told a judging panel I was on: “If it isn’t cabernet, chardonnay, or pinot noir, it doesn’t get a gold medal.”

Highly recommended – not only one of the pinot gris I’ve ever tasted, but a steal at this price. This is a substantial wine that will age for maybe a decade, but is delicious now. Pair this with roasted or grilled seafood and chicken dishes (no heavy sauces), and marvel at what second-generation owner Jason Lett has accomplished.

Wine of the week: Wine by Joe Pinot Gris 2015

wine by joe pinot grisThe Wine by Joe pinot gris is quality cheap wine and a candidate for the 2018 $10 Hall of Fame

Sometimes, even the most cynical among us can be given a reason to believe. That’s what the Wine by Joe pinot gris did for the Wine Curmudgeon.

I’ve spent the past year tasting junk, plonk, and even worse, much of it costing as much as $20 – boring, dull, one-sided, syrupy wines that not even a winemaker could love. So that the Wine by Joe pinot gris ($10, purchased, 13.5%) was none of those things made dinner that much more enjoyable.

The Joe in Wine by Joe is the legendary Joe Dobbes, who has been making wine in Oregon for almost as long as there has been wine in Oregon. I waxed poetic about his pinot noir in February; this wine is just as impressive – perhaps even more so, given that it’s a previous vintage. The 2016 should be even fresher and more delicious.

Look for that wonderfully Oregon lime aroma, plus barely ripe pear mingling with citrus zest flavors. It’s not too fruity, but balanced and interesting. The finish is clean with a bit of minerality, and not as short as I expected given it’s an older wine. Most telling? The last three wines I’ve had with dinner, all samples and that cost as much as $17, were so annoying that I didn’t finish them. This one was gone before dinner was over.

Highly recommended, and a candidate for the 2018 $10 Hall of Fame.