Winemaker Notes
Pair Grand Mère with beef wellington, tortellini in broth, or Asian dishes such as spiced pork, tempura shrimp and vegetables, or sweet & sour sauce.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Ethereal with mossy forest berries. Some damp earth and wet leaves, too. Really juicy and expressive on the palate, full of nuance. Medium-bodied, long and Burgundy-like.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
I tasted the 2021 Grand Mère Pinot Noir next to the 2020, and it showed more contained ripeness (13% alcohol) and even better integration of the oak. It fermented with some clusters, less than the rest of the range here, and matured in French oak that was selected very carefully to not mark the wines. It's floral, clean and elegant, with a medium-bodied palate and refined tannins with a long finish where the flowers and red berries are intermixed with some spices and a dry, stony sensation.
Rating:92+
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
With a winning combination of cool weather, high elevation and well-draining alluvial soils, it is no surprise that Mendoza’s Uco Valley is one of the most exciting up-and-coming wine regions in Argentina. Healthy, easy-to-manage vines produce low yields of high-quality fruit, which in turn create flavorful, full-bodied wines with generous acidity.
This is the source of some of the best Malbec in Mendoza, which can range from value-priced to ultra-premium. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Chardonnay also perform well here.