Pinot noir

This luscious, complex wine is at its magnificent best when matched with red meat and well-hung game

P29 Winesupp Dec06

Pinot is a good all-rounder matched with food. The lighter years from Burgundy and the mid-weight styles from the rest of the world are fine partners for the sturdy fish like monkfish, tuna or sea bass. But more generally pinot is a red meat wine with a particular affinity for game. Take a pheasant that’s been decently hung or a well-ripened grouse, pair with a wonderfully rich, complex, luscious pinot and you may find yourself at your own personal gateway to seventh heaven. Not a bad choice when it comes to a good pink and juicy lamb chop either. If you’re facing a nice, fat piece of foie gras, then you’d best opt for a well-aged bottle with a high Pinot content to find the richness of flavour to combat a goose’s vital parts.

P29 Winesupp Dec06

Cheat Sheet

A Pinot by any other name
In the former Yugoslavia, pinot noir is romantically entitled Burgundac Crni, while its Hungarian fans use the pithy but poignant Nagburgundi.
Negrettes – I’ve had a few
There’s a variety in California called Pinot St George. The thing is, it isn’t even distantly related to pinot noir, and more likely to be an obscure variety called Negrette.
Old hand
Pinot is thought to have been planted in Burgundy as early as the 4th century AD, though its earliest recorded use in the region dates back only to the 14th century.

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