pinot grigio

[PEE-noh GREE] Gris is French for "gray," which presumably refers to the grayish hue of this member of the Pinot family. Pinot Gris grapes can vary widely in color from silvery blue to grayish violet to ashen yellow. The grapes' varying colors produce wines that range from white to slightly pink. The style of wines ranges from crisp, light and dry-such as those produced in northern Italy (where Pinot Gris is called Pinot Grigio), to the rich, fat, honeyed versions from France's alsace region (where Pinot Gris is called Tokay d'Alsace). Limited amounts of this grape are grown in other parts of France, as well as in Austria, Germany, Hungary, and Romania. Other than a small group of producers in Oregon and minor plantings in the napa valley and monterrey, there aren't substantial Pinot Gris plantings in the United States. The Okanagan Valley in british columbia, Canada, also grows small amounts of this variety, as do australia and new zealand. Pinot Gris is also known as Auxerrois Gris, Grauburgunder, Petit Gris, Pinot Beurot, Pinot Buot, Rülander, and Szükerbarát.