Pinot Mutant

French sounds so romantic that I sometimes feel I could get lucky by just whispering, “Jacques Cousteau” in my wife’s ear. In the wine world, the romantic sounding names of grapes like Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc are actually quite literal descriptions. Pinot refers to the pine cone shaped cluster, Noir is black, Gris is gray and Blanc is white. Now, you could argue that a Pinot Blanc cluster is really green, not white, and that the Gris grape varies from grayish blue to brownish pink, but since the Pinot Noir is the mother of these varieties, the color descriptions are relative to its dark red, almost black hue.

The mutant mother, Pinot Noir, is an ancient genetically unstable variety. Every once in a while, a bud mutation on a Pinot Noir vine creates a cane bearing a different shade of fruit. Take a cutting from that cane, propagate it, and the new color persists. Some argue that Pinot Gris is a direct mutant of Noir, and Blanc sprung from Gris, but no one knows for sure. Blanc could have come directly from Noir and Gris from Blanc, but who cares? What matters is that nature’s randomness creates some pretty yummy wines.

Tasting Notes

A brilliant pale lemon hue catches the light as an aromatic blast of fresh, bright citrus, stone fruit and jasmine erupts from the glass. A taste brings to mind bright tangy lemons, contrasting ripe pears and peaches, underlaid by a fresh touch of chervil and a hint of freshly baked bread. The Pinot Gris is vivacious on the palate with a long and bright finish.

Winegrowing Notes

Depending on who you ask, they either got up early, or stayed up late to harvest the Pinot Gris ahead of sunrise. Harvesting cool, firm grapes in the chilly wee hours ensures the fruit arrives at the cellar in top condition, with reduced risk of splitting, spoilage, oxidation or premature fermentation. Night harvested fruit helps make fresh, bright wines with crisp acidity.

Upon arrival, the cellar crew loads up the press with whole clusters of Pinot Gris and gently coaxes the juice from the grapes, stopping short of applying too much pressure to avoid driving bitter and astringent compounds from the stems and seeds. The juice is held at a low temperature for a couple of days to settle out solids before a long, cool fermentation in stainless steel tanks. No oak, no malolactic fermentation.

The wine is from a single block of RSV’s certified Biodynamic and organic Three Amigos Vineyard in southern Carneros. A whopping 736 cases produced.

At the top of the loin, and the end of the shoulder, you’ll find a succulent cut for grilling or roasting called the Country Rib Roast. Not quite loin, not quite shoulder, it’s just the right size for a small dinner. Grilling over indirect heat, yields a juicy, smoked, kissed roast. Paired with Grilled Nectarines it’s the perfect partner for the luscious, stone fruit-scented Pinot Gris.