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Pinot Noir is the red wine grape of Burgundy, now adopted (and studied) in wine regions all over the world. The variety's elusive charm has resulted it being transplanted in vineyards all over the world, from western Germany and northern Italy, to Chile, South Africa, Australia, the United States and New Zealand. It is the patriarch of the ‘Pinot’ family of grape varieties.
The identifying characteristic of Pinot Noir wine is its strawberry and cherry aromas – fresh red cherries in lighter wines and deeper-colored black cherries in weightier versions. These notes are often complimented by hints of undergrowth, known as sous-bois in French. Well-built Pinot Noirs, particularly those from warmer harvests, also exhibit notes of leather and violets, sometimes approaching the flavor spectrum of Syrah.
Pinot Noir prompts more discussion and dispute in the wine world than almost any other grape variety, perhaps only rivaled only by its white Burgundian stablemate, Chardonnay. Most of this debate centers around the wine style that best represents the ‘true’ Pinot Noir. However, Pinot Noir from Central Otago, in New Zealand, is so distinct from Pinot Noir from Santenay in eastern France, that even those with untrained palates can them apart – and yet both are unmistakably Pinot Noir.
It is this strength of character which has made this temperamental vine so popular, producing at worst a watery, acidic candy water but, at best, some of the richest, most intensely perfumed wines on Earth. The grape is well-known for promoting what verges on an obsession among collectors and connoisseurs, particularly after the 2004 film, Sideways, brought Pinot Noir to the consciousness of millions of Americans. While this Pinot fanaticism has its roots in 1980s California, there are now devoted Pinot fans over the modern wine world.
In Pinot Noir’s homeland (the Cote d’Or and particularly the Cote de Nuits), the traditional vigneron has focused less on the intrinsic qualities of the grape itself, but the nature of the soil and climate in which it grows. Although many may find it hard to believe, there are consistent, perceptible differences between the Pinot Noirs of Volnay and those of Pommard, even though these two villages are less than a mile apart.
For decades New World wine regions held red Burgundy up as their target style, but winemakers in the western United States and New Zealand (first Martinborough, then Central Otago) have this century, begun finding their own idiocyncratic expressions of Pinot.
Pinot Noir is typically used to make varietal wines, with particular emphasis on regional nuance. In its purest form, this may manifest as fruit from just a handful of rows from a single vineyard. Other producers may prefer to blend selected parcels from multiple vineyards to create a proprietary winemaker’s blend (often labeled as Reserve in the New World).
In Champagne, Pinot Noir is blended with Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier to produce the region's famous sparkling wines. (In the cool, northern French climate the berries rarely attain optimal ripeness and so non-sparkling Pinot Noir is rarely produced there.) The success of the Pinot–Chardonnay blend has been so successful it has been used as a model of sparkling wine production in regions as far apart as Alsace, France and Tasmania, Australia. The grape is even used to make still white wines (Colli Pesaresi), although only rarely.
The issue of using oak in Pinot Noir is a frequent discussion point, as is the length of fermentation and the option of a pre-ferment maceration, or cold soak. (Cooler temperatures result in fresher fruit flavors, while longer, warmer fermentations and pigeage result in more wines with greater tannic structure.)
In order to retain as much ‘Pinot’ character and believing that the phosphorous and nitrogen fertilizers interfer with the grape's natural flavours, many Pinot Noir producers have now turned to biodynamic viticulture.
Popular blends include: Champagne blend, Chardonnay – Pinot Noir, Gamay – Pinot Noir
Synonyms include: Pinot Nero, Pinot Negro, Spatburgunder, Blauburgunder
Related grape varieties include: Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Meunier, Chardonnay
Food matches include:
Europe: Beef bourguignon, mushroom risotto with truffles, rabbit stew
America: Grilled salmon, dark chocolate truffles, roast pork belly
Asia: Peking duck pancakes, seared yellowfin (Ahi) tuna
Australasia: Grilled venison (Cervena) fillet, seared kangaroo salad
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