If you hang around this industry long enough, you begin to see how trends happen; that is to say, you see things change, but you don't always understand the whys behind those changes. Like, why did Pinot Blanc seem to get a demotion in Burgundy when fifty years ago it was clearly second best to Chardonnay. Aligote now holds that position and plantings of Pinot Blanc in Burgundy have become rare indeed.
Truth be known, we always thought Aligote was the better grape but in fairness, Pinot Blanc is very unoaked chard-like and a very versatile food-friendly wine in its own right.
We recently got in a case of Pinot Blanc from the historically reliable Boedecker Cellars of Willamette Valley, Oregon. Boedecker says their wine has a honeysuckle nose with peaches, apricots, green apples, lemon curd, pear and minerality on the palate. It carries a premium price tag but if it is as they acclaim, it may be a bargain.
As we said before, Pinot Blanc (Bianco) is a very versatile, all-purpose white like its sibling, Pinot Gris (Grigio), and like its paisano sibling, Italian Pinot Bianco is exceptional as a summertime pairing with seafood and salads. This is garden variety pinot we're talking about. In both northern Italy and Alsace, however, Pinot Blanc makes a richer white wine with ample fruity and floral aromas and flavors complemented by heady minerality.
We started this diatribe with a discussion of changes in this industry over time. Here's a constant though. Those everyday Euro pinots are still a bargain and the Alsatians and northern Italians are values at their price points. And if the Boedecker is true to form, it may be a centerpiece.
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