The other day I was in the mood for a white wine, so I settled on some Pinot Grigio.   Pinot Grigio is also known as Pinot

CA' del Sarto Pinot Grigio

Gris, depending on if it’s from France  or Italy.  Also some areas in the US label it differently, such as Oregon (they call it Pinot Gris there).  I haven’t really tried much in the way of Pinot Grigio in quite a while.  The last time I tried one it was from Barefoot Cellars, which I wouldn’t really consider anything great; although a former professor of mine practically lives on the stuff.  Anyways,  I’ve tried a few good Italian wines recently, so I chose a bottle of 2010 Ca’ Del Sarto Pinot Grigio from the Friuli region of Italy, which is in the Northeast corner of the country.  The specific DOC it was produced in is Grave Del Friuli, which is considered one of the most important DOCs in the region.  DOC is an abbreviation of the appellation system in Italy, which is Denominazione Di Origine Controllata.  This wine had a very clear, almost colorless appearance to it, with just a hint of pale yellow straw.  It had a pleasant nose of fresh pear, and a clean, crisp refreshing finish with great acidity and a touch of that same ripe pear.  I thought it was a nice glass of wine, and would be perfect for a warm spring or summer day.  I compared this wine to another Pinot Grigio, a 2009 Columbia Crest Two Vines from Washington State.  This was a product of the Columbia Valley, where there is  currently close to 1,600 planted acres of Pinot Grigio.   This bottle was about the

Columbia Crest Two Vines Pinot Grigio

same with respect to the color; very pale and maybe a light yellow or straw.  It was lacking in aromatics however, as I could not sense much in the way of fruit, with maybe a touch of honey.  It had a nice smooth finish, although not much in the way of acidity with maybe a slight hint of honey to it.  I thought the Ca’ Del Sarto was a much better wine, it had that nice crispness and pleasant aromatics that were lacking in the Columbia Crest; and it seemed like it would pair much better with a meal as well.  The Columbia Crest wasn’t necessarily a bad wine, just didn’t seem to have any particularly great quality that stood out.  It would probably be a good glass on a hot day, but I don’t think it would really pair well with a meal.  So if you come across a bottle of the Ca’ Del Sarto, give it a try. I am thinking I might try out some more Italian white wines from this region, hopefully I can find another that was as good as this one.  Also since the weather is getting better, it’s always nice to have a good glass of white wine on a nice warm day.

Cheers,

Seth