Wines made from Pinot gris grapes of Patagonia
Discover the best wines made with Pinot gris as a single variety or as a blend of Patagonia.
Pinot Gris is a grey grape variety mutated from Pinot Noir. It has its origins in Burgundy, where it is called pinot-beurot in reference to the colour of the grey robes worn by the monks of the region. Established in Alsace since the 17th century, pinot gris was called tokay until 2007. It is made up of bunches of small berries that vary in colour from pink to blue-grey. It is particularly well suited to the continental climate because it is resistant to the cold in winter and to spring frosts. This variety also likes dry limestone soils with plenty of sunshine in the summer. Pinot Gris is well suited to late harvesting or to the selection of noble grapes, depending on the year and the concentration of sugars in the berries. Pinot Gris wines are distinguished by their aromatic complexity of white fruits, mushrooms, honey, vanilla, cinnamon, etc., and their great finesse. In the Loire Valley, pinot gris is used in the Coteaux-d'Ancenis appellations. It gives dry or sweet wines with pear and peach aromas.
Patagonia is South America's southernmost wine-producing region. Despite being one of the world's least-obvious places for quality viticulture, this desert region – with its cool, DryClimate – has proved itself well suited to producing Elegant red wines from Pinot Noir and Malbec. The geographical region covers a vast area – around twice the Size of California – across southern Argentina and Chile. Patagonia is more closely associated with dinosaurs and desert than with fine wine, but it has a viticultural zone that stretches 300 kilometers (200 miles) along the Neuquen and Rio Negro rivers, from Anelo in the west to Choele Choel in the east.