Fantinel, Sant'Helena Pinot Grigio, Collio

Sat, 01/20/18, $2 Tasting (Vintage Wines Ltd., San Diego, CA) : N: Minerals, earth, with undertones of grn olives? P: Med Body; RNDISH entry with almost SWTISH frt nicely off-set by an acidity which seems to gain in strength before morphing into a LONG, slightly honied finish which still maintains a tang. For now & into '19. NICE QPR as a crisp food wine @ this vendor's now out of stock $9.95! [FYI, in mid-May 2018 wine-searcher still shows 1 …

natural cork with a bit of leakage, this is pale yellow, with discreet notes of damascus, dried leaves and almonds. peach and damascus in mouth, dry, mineral, with medium to low body, medium+ acidity and a beautiful finish.

99% of Pinot Grigio can be blind tasted and identified as follows: It's white, it tastes white, okay, it's Pinot Grigio. This wine has a lot more going on the nose, has a creaminess on the palate and is much more food friendly than a party quaffer. Save this one for a herb driven, savoury meal.

In general, I loathe pinot grigio; however, this stuff is actually good. Straw-colored, medium-bodied dry white; pineapple and tropical fruits, with a hint of almond and honey; pleasantly lingering finish. The '11 and '12 are both solid; the '13's not so much.

Much better than the weak Sauvignon Blanc 2011 of the same producer. Hint of copper in the colour; flavours are light and acidity relatively low, but the wine has pleasant substance and some varietal typicity; decent length. DYA.

Northeast Italy (and the surrounding Parts) (Cleveland) : This was served cold and on a hot day with the sun coming in thru the windows, it worked very well. It had the yellow/copper color of PG. The nose has peaches and minerals. Slightly oily. Nice acidity which worked well with the food. More mineral driven. Not profound (Pinot Grigio rarely is), but a step above some of the generic Pinot Grigio's that sell for $25 or more a bottles.

A rich and complex type of Pino Grigio with pears and blossom in balance with refreshing citrus and mineral components.

Tasted as part of WSET Level 3 wine class. Medium plus intensity nose of acacia, blossom, rose, lemon, lemon zest, pear, apple, grapefruit, nectarine, honeysuckle, hay, ginger, white pepper and stony/steely. Quite a lot going on. Medium plus acidity, dry, with lost more of the citrus and honeysuckle on the palate. Zippy and pronounced flavours on the palate. Fantastic PG.

Pale gold; pears, honeydews, lemons; pear, lemon peel, slick, light-medium body, decent acidity, slightly bitter finish. Decent but not memorable. Needed more "zing". Grigio style just not my preference.