BearBoat Sonoma County California 2008 Pinot Gris, $6.99-$16.99, 88 points, is another nice (Sorry, I know the word nice bothers some of you, but get over it.) wine from BearBoat.
I bought this wine last summer at the Derry, NH liquor store, and I'm am not sure if this wine is still available.
That being said: find it!
Golden color, warm aroma of honeydew melon with hints of lichee and Granny Smith apples all find their way onto your palate on a light to medium body, crisp and refreshing as a good white wine on a hot day should be. The finish is tangy with a hint of apricot.
Pinot Gris/Grigio should be drunk "young", but I doubt that this wine has suffered from its bottle time. At any rate, should I see this wine's latest bottling, I'll be buying.
Man, for $6.99 you couldn't possibly go wrong.
BearBoat Pinot Gris has plenty of food friendly acidity, but I just sipped it by itself.
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I've only had the Bearboat Pinot Noir - can't remember the vintage - but I remember it was pretty good. Come to think of it, I haven't seen or heard of it for a few years & I have to wonder if it's available here anymore. Anyway, I've been really into Pinot Gris these days. (To be clear, not Pinot Grigio - yeah, same grape, but different style.) Most notably from Oregon or New Zealand, in my opinion. However, it's been quite a while since I've had a Californian Pinot Gris OR a Pinot Grigio from anywhere, so maybe I should take a fresh look.
ReplyDeleteClaire, you are so right about BearBoat PN, and at the price point it is a real value. Just imagine $6.99 for a very good PG; I think I waited so long to drink it because I just didn't believe it would be that good. My son liked it very much as well. Claire, lots of opinions about how long to keep white wines, and Bill just picks them up as he needs them (probably the best idea), but sometimes you know that a wine is a one-time event; what's your thinking on how long to keep a PG?
DeleteClaire, I know I should be sending you tweets, but I'm still finding my way through FB. I have noticed that you are having a lot of fun there!
Nice. I'll have to see if that one's for sale in Kansas. When the weather is warm, I go through a good amount of Pinot Gris, mostly from Oregon. I like the ones that bring a slightly yeasty/"sur lie" component to the table ala Alsace.
ReplyDeleteUsed to love their Pinot Noir when it was $12-15. But it sells in the low-mid $20s here now and I think there are better values out there in that price range.
Bill, I'm quite new to PG, but one has to start somewhere. As BearBoat PN, the last two bottles I bought were about $15.00
DeleteWhile I won't say that I loved the Bearboat PN, I did like it...but I wouldn't pay over $15 for it. But like I said, I haven't seen or heard about it in a long while, so it's probably a non-issue.
DeleteDennis, don't take Twitter or FB so seriously. Keep in mind that I don't take much too terribly seriously, but I like it that way!
Dennis, a couple of domestic Pinot Gris I can recommend. All from Oregon unless otherwise noted:
DeleteErath
Wallace Brook
Willow Crest
Big Fire
Adelsheim
Etude (CA)
Cline (CA)
Pulenta (Argentina)
Boomtown (WA)
Better notes on the blog if interested.
I'm a big fan of trying to match local food and local wines whenever possible and I love grilled salmon with an Oregon Pinot Gris. It's also pretty good with tuna tartare!
Thanks Bill. I do recognize some of these labels, and I may have one or two hiding in my cellar, but my organizational skills need some work. If I find them, I'll look for your write-up.
DeleteBill, how you find the time amazes me!!!!
DeleteYou and John just seem to get so much done; just the cooking alone.
Me, I get home from work, and it's all I can do to take a picture, make supper (Hamburger or pizza ;-0 with my Brunello) and e-mail family and friends. Yesterday I broke a plate and it took me 1/2 hr. to clean up the mess; that took away precious sipping time. Enough of this glib blah, blah, blah.
Not sure if you all have Trader Joe's where you are, but I purchased a bottle of BearBoat 2008 Pinot Gris (the exact same one as in the photograph) there a couple weeks ago for just $3.99. Having lived along the northern and central CA coast my entire life, I am admittedly a bit spoiled when it comes to wine :). That said, I am working towards my Ph.D so the cost of a wine is often a main selling point for me. For the price, this Pinot Gris was just about right. Not the best, but certainly not the worst. I probably wouldn't pay over $10 for it, simply because there are other wines in that price range that I would prefer. However, for $3.99 a bottle, I'll be sure to continue buying it through the summer at least. Also, it seems to go really well with most foods, so that's a definite plus!
ReplyDeleteGood morning Lauren, and thanks for your comments; I'd love to hear your other PG recommendations. $3.99, what a steal!
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