Winemaker Notes
A zippy, citrus-driven French style that’s fresh, textural, harmonious and lingers just long enough. Not too heavy, not too light, it’s the Goldilocks of the whites; a superbly quaffable wine. Aromas of fresh-cut pears, snow pea shoots and lemon thyme. The palate is lively with a solid flick of lime flowers balanced by miso. Crisp, dry and moreish, with a tangy lemon sorbet finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Delicate ginger, lime, green apple and white floral aromas open. There's similar subtlety on the palate with lovely mouthwatering acidity and white peach and lime granita flavors. This is a well-crafted, food-friendly Pinot Gris at an everyday drinking price.
Best Buy -
James Suckling
It makes its case with the first sip: a generous pear-accented palate that has the cool-climate stamp of crisp, cleansing acidity.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
The 2021 Innocent Bystander Pinot Gris is pale straw in color and opens with aromas of crushed stones and citrus peel. On the palate, it’s crisp and biting, with a subtle undercurrent of richness that adds dimension. Notes of stone fruit emerge gracefully, making this wine an inspired match for raw Kumamoto oysters topped with cucumber granita and a whisper of shiso—an elegant dish that mirrors the wine’s cool minerality and aromatic lift. (Tasted: July 23, 2025, San Francisco, CA
Showing a unique rosy, purplish hue upon full ripeness, this “white” variety is actually born out of a mutation of Pinot Noir. The grape boasts two versions of its name, as well as two generally distinct styles. In Italy, Pinot Grigio achieves most success in the mountainous regions of Trentino and Alto Adige as well as in the neighboring Friuli—all in Italy’s northeast. France's Alsace and Oregon's Willamette Valley produce some of the world's most well-regarded Pinot Gris wine. California produces both styles with success.
Where Does Pinot Gris / Pinot Grigio Come From?
Pinot Gris is originally from France, and it is technically not a variety but a clone of Pinot Noir. In Italy it’s called Pinot Grigio (Italian for gray), and it is widely planted in northern and NE Italy. Pinot Gris is also grown around the globe, most notably in Oregon, California, and New Zealand. No matter where it’s made or what it’s called, Pinot Gris/Pinot Grigio produces many exciting styles.
Tasting Notes for Pinot Grigio
Pinot Grigio is a dry, white wine naturally low in acidity. Pinot Grigio wines showcase signature flavors and aromas of stone fruit, citrus, honeysuckle, pear and almond. Alsatian styles are refreshing, expressive, aromatic (think rose and honey), smooth, full-bodied and richly textured and sometimes relatively higher in alcohol compared to their Italian counterpart. As Pinot Grigio in Italy, the style is often light and charming. The focus here is usually to produce a crisp, refreshing, lighter style of wine. While there are regional differences of Pinot Grigio, the typical profile includes lemon, lime and subtle minerality.
Pinot Grigio Food Pairings
The viscosity of a typical Alsatian Pinot Gris allows it to fit in harmoniously with the region's rich foods like pork, charcuterie and foie gras. Pinot Grigio, on the other hand, with its citrusy freshness, works well as an aperitif wine or with seafood and subtle chicken dishes.
Sommelier Secrets
Given the pinkish color of its berries and aromatic potential if cared for to fully ripen, the Pinot Grigio variety is actually one that is commonly used to make "orange wines." An orange wine is a white wine made in the red wine method, i.e. with fermentation on its skins. This process leads to a wine with more ephemeral aromas, complexity on the palate and a pleasant, light orange hue.
To learn more, see our Essential Pinot Grigio Guide.
Nestled into the tip of its southeastern coastline, Victoria is Australia’s smallest mainland state, second most populous and third largest wine producer. Victoria includes the cool regions of Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula and Geelong, made famous mainly by impressive Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
The more inland Heathcote and Bendigo lead the way for complex and textured, full-bodied reds. Rutherglen’s fortified wines compete among the best on the planet.