Pinot Noir, The Most Noble Grape

As grape varieties go, Pinot Noir can be the most rewarding, disappointing and frustrating for wine-makers. It produces some of the most expensive and sought-after wines and yet until recently it has proved difficult to make anything other than exclusive, expensive wine.

The home of Pinot Noir is of course Burgundy where all red wine is made from this single variety. In small, manually intensive vineyards set in limestone hills these hand crafted wines are capable of elegance, finesse and great ageing potential. On the downside they can be thin and tannic when young and as a general rule of thumb, don't drink a red Burgundy with less than three years ageing.

While in northern Italy (Pinot Nero) and California (One of my favourites is Clos du Val) have been producing good Pinot Noir for many years, in general the new world wine countries have stuggled in vain to make a success of this variety. The vines prefer a cooler climate then most and are notoriously difficult to cultivate. New Zealand started to have some success in the 1990's with a younger, lighter, more fruity style of wine.

In recent years Chile has really come to the fore in producing excellent inexpensive Pinot Noir. Tabali Pinot Noir from the Limari Valley in northern Chile has great depth and complexity and the new 2007 vintage is the best yet. Nostros Pinot Noir from Casablanca west of Santiago has cracked the making of this variety at a low price. At £5.99 this really is exceptional value, smooth with enough interest to make you want to keep sipping.

With it's trademark farmyard nose, elegant style and subtle fruit, Pinot Noir is a grape variety worth getting to know. From Sancerre rose, fine Burgundies to great value Chilean it is a variety that intrigues and can be most rewarding.

You can find more about Pinot Noir and a great range of wines at Talking Wines.