Beverage
Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir is a thin-skinned, cool-climate red of cherry, raspberry, forest floor, and silky tannins—transparent to site and vintage, from ethereal Burgundy to riper Oregon, California, New Zealand, and German Spätburgunder. Low extraction and careful handling preserve perfume over brute power. In the kitchen it suits duck, mushroom ragù, salmon with red-wine sauce, and light game. Choose earthy, dry bottles over heavily oaked fruit bombs; reduce gently so delicate aromatics survive and tannins stay soft rather than green.
Also known as: Pinot Noir, Pinot Noir, Pinot Noir, Spätburgunder
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Characteristics
Preparations
Traits
Grading systems
Grades are placed along a shared scale so systems can be compared side by side.
History
Burgundian monasteries and estates cultivated Pinot Noir as the region’s defining red grape.
Côte d’Or village and cru systems codified Pinot Noir’s site hierarchy.
Oregon and California fine Pinot, with New Zealand and others, expanded global cool-climate Pinot culture.