What is Pinot?

You walk into your favorite shop or restaurant and tell them you's like a bottle of Pinot. You might have eliminated 3/4 of the offerings available, but you've still haven't narrowed things down all that much... Pinot Noir, Pinot Grig, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Auxerrois... Are you looking for a red, white, rose? Sparkling or still wine?

Experts believe the name “Pinot” may be derived from the fact that its grape clusters have visual similarities to pine cones. Many belive Pinot Noir was used to make wine with as far back as the first century AD. but the name Pinot Noir first is found in the historical record in the fourteenth century, where it was already considered important in eastern France and southern Germany to both the nobility and the church.



A bit about grapevine propagation - When one grapevine pollinates another, the seeds that result have DNA mixed from the two parent plants. So, anytime a grape seed is planted, a new variety is born. Most vineyard owners wish to avoid this genetic mixing and propagate a single variety use a technique called “grafting” – essentially, taking cuttings from a vine to produce a new plant rather than using seeds. Vines grown from cuttings are called “clones,” because they came from the same plant and are therefore genetically identical. If a variety is cloned over and over for centuries, mutations can cause significant variation among examples of the same variety. The older a variety, the more mutations can occur – and Pinot is a very old variety that is less genetically stable than most other grape varieties and mutates more often. So, Pinot Noir, Grigio, Blanc, and Meunier (and others) are all the same variety, but different clones expressing various mutations.

The Pinot family of grapes make wines that are fantastic parings for fall weather and cuisine, especially perfect for a Thanksgiving turkey with all the trimmings. Therefore, we're putting all Pinot family wines on sale, all month long to give you plenty of time to sample and select the perfect wine for the year's most important feast!