|
PINOT NOIR PARAMOUNT Wine Praised in Oscar-Nominated Film Is Perfect Winner Go ahead. Pin me down: What’s my most favorite wine? Pinot Noir, the noble one that stars in the wine-tasting movie Sideways, already a Golden Globe-winner and now up for an Oscar as Best Picture. In the film’s key scene, wine-loving Miles (Paul Giamatti) explains self-revealingly his obsession for the Pinot Noir grape to Maya (Virginia Madsen): “It’s thin-skinned, temperamental, ripens early… Pinot Noir needs constant care and attention. It’s not a survivor like Cabernet that can just grow anywhere and thrive even when it’s neglected….Only when someone has taken the time to truly understand its potential can Pinot Noir be coaxed into its fullest expression. And when that happens, its flavors are the most haunting and brilliant and subtle and thrilling and ancient on the planet.” Whew! Did someone say passion? Yes, Pinot Noir is one of the most difficult grapes to grow and make into a fine wine. Yet, when grown and fermented properly, it is also one of the best. The growing grape requires warm days and cool nights. If it receives too little heat, its wines are thin and pale; if too warm, the wines have an over-ripe, cooked flavor. Compared with other noble grape varieties, Pinot Noir produces a small crop. It contains low amounts of tannin and relatively high acid levels for a red grape. It does not have the longevity in the bottle of the darker red wines and tends to reach its peak at five to eight years past the vintage. Unknown by most people, the Pinot Noir grape is used in the production of some fine-quality Champagne and California sparkling wines. The reputation that gets Pinot Noir so much attention is owed to the wines of Burgundy (Bourgogne), France. For most of wine history, this 2-mile-wide by 30-mile-long stretch of hills – called the Cote d’Or (“Slope of Gold”) – is the only region to achieve consistent success from the Pinot Noir vine. In recent years, however some promising wines have been emerging from New Zealand, Oregon and California. Try some of these Pinot Noir favorites that I keep in my wine cellar collection at all times: 1999 Saintsbruy Brown Ranch, Carneros, California. Good value for $35/bottle. |
