Global Masters Wine of the Week: Okanagan Valley Pinot Gris

Every week, we select a wine that picked up either a Gold or Master from our competition series, and tell you why the judges loved it. Enter the Global Masters, and this could be your wine.

It’s not often you see people in raptures over a Pinot Grigio. The hugely popular grape variety is much maligned in the oenophile community due to the high number of bland, mass-produced wines lining supermarket shelves.

So earlier this month, we were delighted to prove the connoisseurs at our Wine Show Chelsea wrong by showing them this lovely entry from Mission Hill in Canada’s Okanagan.

The grapes for this particular wine were sourced from two vineyards owned by Mission Hill; Black Sage Road and Naramata Ranch. Each has a distinct microclimate and soil composition, lending their own characteristics to the variety before it becomes part of a final blend with all the hallmarks of a fine Pinot Gris: bright citrus, peach, pear and a subtle hint of warming ginger. Mission Hill winemaker Ben Bryant fermented a quarter of this batch in French oak, adding some complexity, and a slightly fuller mouthfeel to the end result.

The punters at the wine show were suspicious at first being handed something with the words “Pinot Gris” proudly on the label, but this soon gave way to impressed nods.

“That’s richer than I thought it would be”, one guest told us over the weekend, while another said “it has a really nice flowery bouquet thing going on.” Another attendee simply nodded, and passed his tasting glass back over to us to ask for the same again. We’ll take that as a good sign.

The wine: Mission Hill Reserve Pinot Gris

The source: Naramata, Okanagan Valley, BC, Canada

The grape(s): 100% Pinot Grigio

The style: A dry, fresh, delicately floral wine with notes of pear, white blossom and ginger

The winemaker: Ben Bryant

The price: £20-30

The medal: Gold – The Global Pinot Gris Masters, 2019

Click here to see the results of our Pinot Gris Masters 2019

With high-quality judges and a unique sampling process, the Global Wine Masters provides a chance for your wines to star, whether they hail from the great vineyards of Europe or lesser-known corners of the New World.

It’s a competition dedicated to making winners out of winemakers.

Please visit the Global Masters website for more information, or please call +44 (0)20 7803 2420 or email Sophie Raichura at: sophie@thedrinksbusiness.com