Pinot Gris

Identity

Pinot Gris leads a double life. In Alsace it is a full, rich, almost golden white, powerful enough to rival some reds. In northeastern Italy, under the name Pinot Grigio, it is one of the lightest and best-selling whites on earth. Same grape, two worlds.

Grey skin — hence the name — compact bunches, moderate vigour: depending on terroir and intended style, Pinot Gris yields wines of remarkable range, from the most neutral to the most concentrated.

History and origin

Pinot Gris belongs to the Pinot family. The Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC, no. 9275) states its parentage as a Pinot Noir mutation, confirmed by genetic markers: as with this corpus's Pinot Meunier, this is not a cross between two distinct varieties but a colour variation that arose on a single vine. The VIVC records 249 synonyms, one of the richest lists in its entry.

One naming trap is worth flagging: "Tokay d'Alsace," a name long in common use, is now banned under EU rules on wine appellations, owing to a misleading homonymy with Hungarian Tokaji — an entirely distinct grape, with no lineage tie. In Germany and Austria it goes by Grauburgunder or Ruländer; in Italy, Pinot Grigio.

In the vineyard

According to the Pl@ntGrape datasheet (no. 217, consulted in session), Pinot Gris buds two days after Chasselas, the reference variety, and ripens as early as the first period, a week and a half after it: an early grape at every stage, more so than an earlier estimate had suggested. Its vigour stays moderate, with a rather low yield.

It shows some susceptibility to grey rot, its skin being thinner than Pinot Noir's, and to downy mildew. It suits cool climate zones and fairly deep, relatively dry, well-exposed calcareous soils — a description that fits Alsace's best slopes well.

In the glass

In Alsace, Pinot Gris gives a deep, almost golden yellow colour, signalling powerful, full-bodied wines. On the nose, pear and quince lead, joined by riper fruit — apricot, sometimes bletted apple in the most concentrated versions. Ageing and ripeness add almond and, in the fullest cuvées, a spiced smoke note typical of Alsace, absent from Italian Pinot Grigio.

On the palate acidity stays moderate (2 to 3), body full (3 to 4), alcohol sustained (3 to 4): Alsatian Pinot Gris is not after tension but volume. With age, and in late-harvest wines, honey takes over, sometimes lifted by a touch of saffron.

Great terroirs

Alsace is its benchmark terroir, one of the appellation's seven historic varieties, vinified as a single variety and named on the label. In Grand Cru, it is one of the four principal varieties allowed, alongside Gewurztraminer, Muscat and Riesling.

The AOC Champagne rules also list it among the appellation's "principal varieties," though its actual planting there stays anecdotal, shared with Arbane, Chardonnay Rose, Petit Meslier and Pinot Blanc.

Outside France, northeastern Italy (Veneto, Friuli, Trentino–Alto Adige) makes it into Pinot Grigio, most often vinified as a light, crisp, neutral white meant to be drunk within the year — a style at the opposite end from the Alsatian version, the same grape grown under different conditions and yields. Germany (Baden) and the American Oregon give versions closer to the Alsatian style.

Commonly confused with

Gewurztraminer, also allowed in Alsace Grand Cru, can mislead in its fullest, richest versions: it lacks Gewurztraminer's lychee and rose, replaced here by pear, quince and, with age, smoke.

Pinot Blanc, a direct cousin in the same Pinot family, is more neutral and less aromatic: it has neither Pinot Gris's deep yellow colour nor its richness, staying in a more discreet apple-and-pear register.