By William S. “Sandy” Kaplan

Many people claim that Pinot Noir is the world’s greatest red wine grape, referring to the incredible wines that come from the Burgundy region of France. That having been said, I think Pinot Noir is the world’s greatest “bridge wine”.

For people who don’t like heavy tannins, this wine serves as a “bridge” to change from white to red wine. Most importantly, the majority of these wines are ready to drink when you buy them, although some do taste better with short-term aging.

The Pinot Noir grape has a well-deserved reputation for being hard to grow. If it’s too hot, this finicky grape’s skin will split and the fruit rots before it can be made into wine. When it gets too cold, the resulting wine is thin and not very tasty. But when things go right, you get a wine that has medium to low tannins and a wonderful flavor.

“Okay, what does it taste like?” Well, it’s smooth, light and fragrant, with cherry and blackberry flavors. Sometimes there’s a hint of black currant, or strawberry, or even raspberry. When all is said and done, believe me you’ll like it! I mentioned that it’s a great “bridge wine” and I really meant it. I have convinced countless white wine drinkers to try this wine as a bridge to red and they’ve grown to appreciate a whole new world of wine.

Try a bottle of Oregon or California Pinot Noir the next time you’re grilling stuffed pork chops, or when you have a pork loin in the oven. I love it with rack of lamb, and it’s absolutely wonderful with seared ahi tuna or grilled sea bass with fresh rosemary sprigs. Whoa, my mouth is watering and I’m drooling on my keyboard.

You can find these wines at just about any wine merchant with prices ranging between $10 and $15 for very good examples. Better examples range from $20 to $60. And here’s another hint, let the wine “breathe” for about 30 minutes before drinking. In other words, open the bottle and let it sit for a while. Aerating the wine makes the flavors even softer.

There is no question that this wine is gaining acceptance in the United States. In the last decade, Pinot Noir acreage has increased in every major coastal winegrowing county in California except the Napa Valley. In Oregon, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay together occupy fifty-eight percent of cultivated vineyards and account for sixty-six percent of the dollar value of their total wine sales.

Here’s a quote from the Wine Spectator magazine relative to a tasting of Pinot Noirs, “The best wines had flavors eerily reminiscent of young Burgundy‚Ķraspberry, black cherry, truffle, violet, rose petal and spice notes jumped out of the glasses”. I mean, come on - all you people who never drink red wine, you’ve got to give this a try.

Filed Under: Food Talk