Pinot Noir Wine: A Lighter, Yet Sophisticated Red

Pinot Noir wine is a lighter type of red wine. It is also, what I would call, a sophisticated wine. This red wine type grows in a number of different wine regions throughout the world from France to Sonoma. It is the main red wine in the popular Bourgogne wine from Burgundy.

Pinot wine is another one of my absolute favorites. Each region has a unique Pinot, which makes it a fun one to taste and compare the difference.

It is one of the best red wines on the market today. Here are just a few of the things you will learn about Pinot wine:

Brief Pinot Noir History and Overview | Wine Regions

Serving Tips | Food Pairing Ideas

Brief Pinot Noir History and Overview

This temperamental red is the most challenging wine in the world to grow. Although it tests the wine makers skills from the vine all the way to the bottle, they still love to grow it. As you can imagine, they love the challenge and enjoy such a wonderful finished product.

The fact that it is so challenging makes the quality and taste of it vary significantly by region and year. The first official recordings of Pinot being grown were in the Burgundy wine region in France in the 1500s. Burgundy was the main producer of this wine for a number of years.

It was in the late 1970s and mostly the 1980s when Pinot began to spread widely into other major wine regions. It is grown in almost every region in the world. Visit the Pinot Noir Description page for a more detailed description for this type of red wine.

Wine Regions

Most of the successful Pinot wines are grown in cooler climates. The Burgundy wine region grows some of the best and most expensive Pinots in the world. Bourgogne wine (the French term for Burgundy wine) grows in a number of regions in the Burgundy area.

Most of the wines from this region are 100% Pinot Noir. You will also find some of the most expensive ones in the world from the Cote de Nuits region in Burgundy.

Most people do not realize that this red wine is one of the main reds in Champagne from France. It is one of three main grape varieties used in the region. Wine makers in the region either leave the skins on for a short period of time or remove them all together during the wine making process. This is how the wines remain light in color, unlike still red wines. Blanc de Noir is a type of champagne made from 100% Pinot Noir grapes.

California began to successfully grow this light red wine in the late 1980s. This type of red wine grows well in Sonoma Wineries, specifically in the Russian River Valley region. When buying California Pinot Noir wines, look for Carneros or Sonoma Coast on the labels. These are sub-regions in Napa and Sonoma with some of the best on the market. Visit this section to get a few recommendations for some great Sonoma County Pinot Noir wines.

With its cool climate, Oregon now has some of the best Pinot Noir on the market today. There are a number of amazing Oregon Pinot Noir wines from the Willamette Valley Oregon wine region.

In the last ten years, Australia and New Zealand have been working hard on mastering it and have been doing quite well. Other wine regions include Germany, Austria and many other cooler European wine regions.

There are still a number of highly rated yet affordable Pinots on the market today, including these 90+ rated Pinots for $20 or less. You can also find a number of higher end fine Pinot Noir wine from some of the top regions mentioned above, see ratings and reviews for the more recent vintages.

Serving Tips

Pinot Noir wine doesn't need any special attention before serving. Open the bottle and let it mix a little with oxygen before serving.

I recommend opening the bottle at least an hour or two before drinking to give the wine enough time to aerate before serving. You will want to serve your Pinot wines a little cooler than room temperature or around 60°.

Food Pairing Ideas for Pinot Noir Red Wine

The great thing about Pinot wines is that it's one of the best types of red wine to pair with a meal. It goes well with almost any dish except really spicy ones.

For meats, it goes well with lamb, turkey, tuna and salmon. You will find that it also pairs well with lighter pasta dishes with olive oil or a lighter based tomato sauces without over powering spices.

You can also match it with cheeses. It pairs well with almost all cheeses except really strong blue cheeses. The stronger cheeses overpower the wine so you will not be able to taste the wonderful flavors as much.

---

Find out more about the other popular types of red wine including:

Cabernet Sauvignon Wine

Merlot Wine

Zinfandel Wine

Syrah Wine & Shiraz Wine

Also, learn more about these regional red wine types:

Cabernet Franc Wine

Malbec Wine

Sangiovese Wine

Tempranillo Wine