Pinoting in the Wind

OK, horrible pun aside, let’s talk about Pinot grapes for a few minutes. So many grape varieties have the word “pinot” in them that it pays to get to know the family a little better. The word “pinot” is actually a reference to the shape of the grape cluster as it ripens on the vine. Think about a pine cone; that is where the name came from, because the grape clusters are pine cone shaped.

The Pinots are a pretty big family with some well known and some obscure relatives. I think most everyone is familiar with the best known varieties and that’s where we start our exploration of this wonderful family tree, er, bunch.

Pinot Noir
THE red grape of Burgundy fame that can produce exquisite wines for which folks have been known to spend hundreds of dollars per bottle. This grape can produce a supple, elegant wine, surely not a “powerhouse grape” such as cabernet or syrah or merlot, but a wine that charms and eventually seduces all those who come in contact with it. That is if it is well made wine in a good year. PN can also produce thin, acidic, astringent wines, seemingly without any undue provocation. It is known as a problematical grape in that it demands so much from the grower and wine maker.

PN is an old grape and has been living in Burgundy for almost two thousand years. According the the Oxford Companion to Wine, it was almost certainly known as Morillon Noir. The first clear reference to Pinot Noir as Pinot Noir comes from around the 14th century.

Rumor has it that PN has around four dozen (48) clones of itself officially recognized in France. With so many choices, the viticulturalist can select clones for yield, disease resistance, degree of ripeness, and resistance to rot, among other characteristics. Certain clones can also be selected for local soil conditions and climactic variations, and maybe this is why PN is in such demand in France and around the world.

Despite its personality disorders and moodiness, PN is planted around the world where winemakers like to challenge themselves; if successful, a winemaker can enter the pantheon of great pinot growers, surely one of the most exclusive clubs in the world. Great risk and work but these come with a potential huge payoff.

Some of PNs better know relatives, all of which sprang from the loins of PN, include Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Meunier, and the ever popular Auxerrois; there is also some credence to the idea that chardonnay is a cousin of PN, but more about that in a later entry.

Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, and Auxerrois are found most famously in Alsace; as Pinot Grigio, Pinot Gris thrives in Italy; Oregon has a deservedly outstanding reputation for quality Pinot Gris as well as exquisite Pinot Noirs. PB and PG look so much like their famous ancestor that until varaison, that time when grapes start taking on color as they ripen more fully, these three varieties are almost impossible to distinguish in the vineyard.

This mini-series will be continued and we will speak in more depth on this large family that produces some of the world’s finest wines and some of its most frustrated winemakers!