Bodega Piedra Negra (François Lurton) Pinot Gris Gran Lurton

Medium golden color. Pretty nose. More rich & full on the palate than California or Washington State PG. Flavors improve with air & temp. Still, less robust than Alsatian PG. Decent QPR. [12.5% abv.; $10.00].

Didn't realise when I picked this up it was an 05, I've only had more recent vintages in the past. Still holding up ok, with a simple lemon cream pie type note on the palate. Almost certainly a shadow of it's former self at this point, go ahead and drink up if you have any.

Clenan, medium golden color with tears. The nose was pronounced and developing. Creamy, toasty oak, lightly waxy, reminiscent of a Graves-white. The palate was dry with medium acidity, medium body and medium alcohol, but intensive fruit flavour. Toasty oak, gooseberry, notes of pear. Fairly long, slightly smoky finish. An ever so slight bitterness on the finish. Very good to excellent quality. The balance is very good, very intense nose, but a little less intense on the palate. Fairly long and …

A surprise hit at an evening of enological exploration. An enigmatic, beguiling aroma- lychee? pineapple? Very crisp, grassy, well balanced. Very appealing for its price.