I am a dummy about wine. So, this is all about having fun and enjoying good food and drinks. It's amazing to discover what we really like once we get beyond price, packaging, and marketing. And we use our notes later to help with our future purchases for meals and/or gifts.
How it works is simple. We mark each wine glass and mix them to keep their identity secret. Then we sip each to look for the smell, taste, texture, acidity, and tannins. We then do it again with food suggestions we've found from various sources. Finally, we rank our favorites with and without food ending with an overall winner.
Note before we begin: What is the difference between Pinot Grigio and Pinot Gris? They are the same grape, but Pinot Grigio is grown in Italy and Pinot Gris is from France. Pinot Grigio tends to be harvested earlier too for more crispness and dryer flavor. As the selection is from California, Oregon, and Italy; they're expected to be very close.
Spasso Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie 2022 (no website)
Color: Soft golden yellow
Nose/Smell: Crisp lemon with faint apple
Taste: Tart apple with buttered herbs
Texure/Mouthfeel: Soft with a little bite at the end
Acid/Cheek: lightly Acidic
Tannin/Gumdryness: Slight-to-medium dryness
Food:
Clementines: Immediately sour/tart that quickly disappears
Lemon Cookies: Tart-to-sweet. Brings out the sugars. Good
Herb Goat Cheese: Super smooth and soft
Lightly Salted Almonds: Punch of sour to start, nutty, then smooth.
Carrots: Mike: neutralized palatte Megan: Tastes like bad salad
White Chocolate: Bitter that gives way to enhanced chocolate flavor
Underwood Pinot Gris 2021 (https://shop.unionwinecompany.com/collections/underwood/products/2022-underwood-pinot-gris)
Color: Light orange/pink/peach
Nose/Smell: Tart sour apple and strawberry
Taste: Tart with very faint peach, sour apple. Lingering aftertaste
Texure/Mouthfeel: Rough cotton-to-smooth
Acid/Cheek: Medium acid that disappears
Tannin/Gumdryness: A little dry
Food:
Clementines: Mike: smoother, but a little off Megan: Tastes like soap
Lemon Cookies: Mike: Pungent then sweet Megan: Dirty Socks
Herb Goat Cheese: Good, not as tart. Easy to drink.
Lightly Salted Almonds: Brings out the sour/bitterness. Makes wine better
Carrots: Mike: neutralized palatte Megan: eh...
White Chocolate: Good tartness.
Bota Box Pinot Grigio (https://www.botabox.com/wines/pinot-grigio/)
Color: Foggy Light Yellow
Nose/Smell: Citrus/Lemon and grass
Taste: Apple, Citrus/Lemon, Buttery
Texure/Mouthfeel: Smooth and soft with nice tartness
Acid/Cheek: Lightly acidic
Tannin/Gumdryness: Sort of dry on back of tongue
Food:
Clementines: Really good and full of fruity flavor
Lemon Cookies: Brought out the lemon and went down easy
Herb Goat Cheese: Makes the wine sweet and lemony. Everything more flavorful
Lightly Salted Almonds: Starts our sweet then lightly sour
Carrots: Mike: neutralized palatte Megan: yuck
White Chocolate: Paired well, but leaned toward chocolate
Estancia Pinot Grigio 2022 (https://www.estanciawines.com/products/pinot-grigio)
Color: Very light hay/yellow. Bubbly
Nose/Smell: Mike: Sweet woodsiness Megan: Orange Starburst
Taste: Tart Apple and butter
Texure/Mouthfeel: Smooth with a little roughness/stab at throat
Acid/Cheek: low-to-medium acidity
Tannin/Gumdryness: Lightly dry on the finish
Food:
Clementines: Less smooth and emphasizes dryness
Lemon Cookies: Immediately bitter and tart Mike: Fine. Megan: no good
Herb Goat Cheese: Sweet. Brings out the lemon of the wine. Mike: Smoothly tart like Sprite pop/soda
Lightly Salted Almonds: All sour and rough
Carrots: Mike: neutralized palatte Megan: Best wine with carrots
White Chocolate: Like mineral water
BEST PINOT GRIGIO/GRIS ON ITS OWN:
#1 (TIE) Bota Box Pinot Grigio/Spasso Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie 2022
#2 (TIE) Underwood Pinot Gris 2021/Estancia Pinot Grigio 2022
BEST PINOT GRIGIO/GRIS WITH FOOD:
#1 (TIE) Bota Box Pinot Grigio/Spasso Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie 2022
#2 (TIE) Underwood Pinot Gris 2021/Estancia Pinot Grigio 2022
BEST OVERALL PINOT GRIGIO/GRIS:
#1 (TIE) Bota Box Pinot Grigio/Spasso Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie 2022
#2 (TIE) Underwood Pinot Gris 2021/Estancia Pinot Grigio 2022
This was the closest tasting we've ever had. It only varied a bit with levels of fruit flavor, tartness, smoothness, acid, and dryness. Most of the differences came from their reaction to food, which had a wide range. I hope this helps you find something you like. Maybe you'll have a different experience. Or you'll share one for us to try next time. THANKS!
See our other wine tasting results at:
Mike Kraus was born on the industrial shoreline of Muskegon, Michigan. After earning his Fine Arts Degree from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, he attended Grand Valley State University for his graduate degree. From there, he gained varied experiences from the Chicago Architecture Center, Art Institute of Chicago, Hauenstein Center For Presidential Studies, Lollypop Farm Humane Society, and the Lurie Children's Foundation. And every place he worked, he had his sketchbook with him and found ways to be actively creative. In 2014, Kraus became a full-time artist by establishing Mike Kraus Art. Since then, he has sold thousands of paintings that are displayed in nearly every state and dozens of countries. Currently, Kraus lives in Rochester, New York with his beautiful wife and goofy dog.
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