Hello Everyone,
Let’s talk about red wines, before the weather gets much warmer, with a global look at what is likely the world’s most passionately-loved wine.
Try a new wine this week!
Bruce
One of the most passionately loved wines in the country is pinot noir. It isn’t always easy to be a pinot fan, as good ones tend to cost more than wines made from other grape varieties. But it’s a very food-friendly wine, and one of the few reds that really pairs well with some seafood dishes (salmon for instance, and tuna), and it has become a mainstay on most restaurant wine lists. Let’s look at some of the places where the best ones are grown.
Block Nine Pinot Noir, a new arrival to the Arkansas market, combines grapes from Napa Valley with grapes from other parts of California for balance and complexity. It retails for around $15-$16.
Pinot noir grows best in cool climates, so places that are farther north, or near a mountain range or a cold body of water are usually where you’ll find the good ones. The grape’s original home is the Burgundy region of east-central France. That’s about as far north as Oregon’s Willamette River Valley. Because of their success (and the extraordinarily high prices of many French Burgundies), some people think of Oregon as pinot’s new home.
But people in California would disagree. While many parts of California might not be well suited to pinot noir, other places rank among the world’s best. Here are a few of them:
North of San Francisco, the Russian River Valley is one of my favorite pinot places. It’s in the westernmost part of Sonoma County, where the Russian River meets the Pacific Ocean. Early fogs persist well into the morning, sometimes even longer, reducing temperatures in the vineyard and allowing grapes to ripen slowly and completely.
Nearby is a place that’s been home to fine pinot noir for years, called the Carneros District. It stretches across the southern ends of both Sonoma and Napa valleys. Lying next to an offshoot of San Francisco Bay, it, too, enjoys cool, foggy mornings and sunny afternoons.
Southern Mendocino County’s Anderson Valley is another region to put on your pinot map. If you prefer to visit less-touristed wine regions this might be the place for you. Beautiful, not difficult to get to, great wines, and oftentimes you can still meet the winemaker in Anderson Valley wineries.
Along California’s Central Coast are some of the state’s newest yet finest pinot places, particularly areas where the mountains run east to west (or west to east), allowing cool Pacific breezes inland. Look for Santa Barbara County (especially Santa Maria Valley, Santa Rita Hills, Solomon Hills), and southern San Luis Obispo County (Edna Valley). Monterey County enjoys a similar situation, being naturally cooled by those same Pacific breezes.
In recent years, other places around the world have emerged as having climates well suited to pinot noir. New Zealand’s Central Otago district is one, as is Patagonia in Argentina and Chile’s Bio Bio River. In Europe, France’s Alsace region, and some parts of Germany excel with this grape, as do some nooks and crannies around the Alps, both on the Swiss side and the Italian side.
Block Nine Pinot Noir, a new arrival to the Arkansas market, combines grapes from Napa Valley with grapes from other parts of California for balance and complexity. It retails for around $15-$16.
