Ron Acierto is wine & beverage director at the Tributary Hotel’s ōkta restaurant in McMinnville, Oregon. He is an Imbibe 75 Person to Watch for 2024, as voted by Imbibe magazine in the US.
I have long had an affinity for this lovely wine. In my native Philippines, the national beverage is beer. Growing up, I never dreamed that wine would be part of my career path. Most Filipino households never even had bottles of liquor or beer at home, and drinking alcohol was something you did only on special occasions.
My first encounter with wine occurred when I worked in food and wine at a family friend’s retirement home in Indiana, USA and I built on this with more exposure to fine wines through various food service jobs. After moving to Oregon wine country in 2005, I immersed myself in learning all about the wines of Willamette Valley, while working first at Cherry Hill winery in the Eola-Amity Hills, and then in management at some of Portland’s finest restaurants.
Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are considered the king and queen of Willamette Valley wine grapes, but I also became curious about Pinot Gris, which is planted throughout Oregon. When working in restaurants in Portland, I noticed that Pinot Gris wasn’t usually highlighted on wine lists. The perception was that it was less interesting as a variety, perhaps because it was so widely available, and at a lower price point than other whites. Yet, over the last decade, I’ve gained more respect for this wine and grown to love its many expressions.
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I’ve offered Pinot Gris as a glass pour at ōkta restaurant in downtown McMinnville since it opened in July 2022. The Eyrie Estate Pinot Gris 2021 is delicious with our ōkta carrot snack with farro waffle tart shell, served with miso. It was also an excellent match for a dish on last year’s menu: wild sea bream, radishes, watercress and shiitake mushrooms. And it seems to be gaining more traction in general, with wine merchants introducing drinkers to more producers and styles of the grape.
Most consumers don’t know that Pinot Gris is the result of a genetic mutation that occurred in Pinot Noir. Their DNA profiles are remarkably similar; the colouration of the leaves and grape skin are the main differences. Many of the wine producers with whom I’ve opened bottles of Pinot Gris over the years have learned to coax the best expressions from this grape. Starting in the 1960s, David Lett planted Pinot Gris at Eyrie Vineyards in the Dundee Hills AVA. Its wines have always been rich in texture and flavour, balanced between fruit and acidity, and a versatile pairing.
Perhaps surprisingly, the Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Gris wines have demonstrated great ageability. Jason Lett, the late David’s son, recently poured a 1982 bottling, and I still remember its texture and richness, the lingering aroma of caramelised white fruit – tasted blind, I would probably have guessed Chardonnay, though the acidity and freshness were still distinguishable. I wish that more local producers would vinify their Pinot Gris to age in the same way that the great grand cru Pinot Gris wines of Alsace do.
Pinot Gris vinified with skin contact shows another aspect to the grape – look out for wines from Antiquum Farm and Big Table Farm. Aromas of these wines range from fresh flowers to candied fruits. At ōkta, we pair this style with the flavours of umami, sashimi-style seafood and chef larder-fermented root vegetables. It brings out the best in the food and highlights the wine’s acidity and lingering mouthfeel.
In general, I pair young Pinot Gris with shellfish and summer salads with white stone fruits. Meanwhile, wines with age would pair beautifully with spring and summer grilled vegetables. Pinot Gris will also hold up with your backyard barbecues, as well as charcoal-roasted chicken.
Discovering Pinot Gris: Acierto’s top picks
Jason Lett at Oregon’s Eyrie Vineyards has continued to make Pinot Gris to the same high quality as his father David, who died in 2008. The 2021 and 2022 Eyrie Pinot Gris ($US30 eyrievineyards.com) are both drinking beautifully now, with bright acidity, but will definitely get better with age. The richness in the mouthfeel and the balance of summer fruits make it the perfect bottle to take to your friends’ spring and summer dinners. Pair with tomato salad, grilled root vegetables and grilled whole fish with chimichurri-inspired sauces.
Some skin-contact Pinot Gris wines are made in a way that gives a dark rosé or lighter style red in the glass. The Ltd+ Wines project, run by husband and wife Bree and Chad Stock, sees grapes sourced from David Hill Winery, which owns some of the oldest vines planted in Forest Grove, just west of Portland. Introducing their Old Vine Skin Fermented Pinot Gris 2022 (currently US$42 for the 2021 on limitedadditionwines.com), the winemakers themselves describe it as neither a red wine nor what might typically be described as an ‘orange’ wine, ‘but utterly its own unique self and completely captivating’. It has definitely captivated me, and I’d pair it with any preparation of pork, as well as rotisserie chicken. I’ve recently cooked my personal version of Filipino chop suey – shrimps and pork mince stir fried with vermicelli rice noodles – and it balances the umami flavours of these dishes perfectly. Or just savour it on its own while reading a great novel on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
