What You Need To Know About Pinot Noir Wine
3 min readPinot Noir wine is a type of red wine which is typically fruit-forward and light-to-medium bodied. This wine originates from Burgandy and has become one of the popular favorites across the world.
What Is Pinot Noir?
Pinot Noir is Burgundy’s most noble and famous grape. Loved and well-known as the “Red Burgundy” all over the world, the Pinot Noir wine forms a part of the more elegant wines that come from France.
Today, the Pinot Noir grapes have been planted in many countries and regions other than France. Some of these areas include California, Oregon, Germany, Italy, Spain, Chile, New Zealand, and Australia.
Pinot Noir might be one of the more difficult grapes when it comes to growing, yet the efforts are in most cases worth the investment and constant care. This grape is fickle and demands growing conditions that are optimum, which include warm days followed by cooler evenings.
Flavor Profile
Pinot Noir is classified as one of the dry red wines. It usually exhibits fruit-forward characters, with raspberry, blackberry, strawberry, and cherry that dominates the palate.
There are also earth-driven layers that are notable in Pinot Noir wine. Some of the other flavors that are familiar with this wine include herbs, leather, mushroom, and a few game-like qualities. The warm spicy notes that are also included in the flavor profiles include clove, cinnamon, and in some wines smoky tobacco.
Foor Pairings
The Pinot Noirs provide a palate profile of a red-wine in the style of a white wine. The rich fruit character and lighter-bodied components of these wines provide these wines with a step-up for both the white wine and red wine drinkers. The Pinot Noir’s matches up well when you pair them with various ethnic dishes, traditional foods, and classic cuisines. The versatility in these wines is mainly to do with the consistent acidity, a lighter-bodied style, and the silky and subtle tannins.
The ideal pairings with a good bottle of Pinot Noir include bacon, beef, poultry, pork, chocolate, cheese, wild game, fresh herbs, mushrooms, lamb, and fresh or saltwater fish. The Pinot Noir also works well with the spicy seasonings and the creamy sauces.
How To Find A Good Bottle Of Pinot Noir
The growing requirements for the Pinot Noirs are stringent, which means these wines are produced in far smaller quantities when compared to most of the other red wines. Traditionally, you can also expect to pay slightly more when it comes to the best bottles of Pinot Noir, due to the theory of “supply and demand” that usually kicks in.
There are a number of producers around the $10 range which are well worth trying. These include Mirrasou, Mark West, Cupcake, and Robert Mondavi Private Selection, which are all a part of the best budget Pinot Noir Wines.
For options that are more expensive, look for the bottles that come from the craggy Range of New Zealand or the Domaine Faiveley of Burgandy. If you are looking for a producer in America, you will really enjoy the Pinot Noirs from La Follette, Emeritus, and Gary Farrell. Oregon also has a few top-ranking wines from the Stroller and King Estate wineries.
