Other Whites
Here are some additional white grapes one should be familiar with when working in a hospitality setting.
Pinot Gris, also known as Pinot Grigio in Italy, is a lighter white variety found growing throughout the world. This wine tends to be light to medium bodied and is mostly produced on the drier side. The Pinot Gris grape was made famous from the ocean of examples flooding the U.S. market in the 1990’s and onward, forever cementing itself into the lexicon of wine drinkers. The examples of different styles are far and wide, with sweet examples from Alsace that age gracefully to off dry bottles at the gas station. However, what we find on restaurant wine lists most often are the light, bright styles that go well with earlier courses in the dinner service. Oregon has made great strides with the grape, and the producers who make a great Willamette Valley Pinot Noir usually make a pretty good Pinot Gris as well.
Viognier is an aromatic white grape that hails from the southern areas of France, grown in famous communes like Condrieu and around the city of Avignon. In the Rhône Valley, this variety produces serious wines with a lot of diverse aromatics and flavors. It often has the aromas of Riesling and the body style of Chardonnay, offering more a more fruit forward version of a full-bodied white wine. In the central coast region of California, it can be made in a wide array of styles, with some achieving fairly good quality levels. Some of these offerings have oak and a medium to full body, while others are made without oak and are on the lighter side.
Grüner Veltliner is a light to medium bodied wine, grown from a grape found most comfortably alongside the Danube River in Austria. There is a fairly wide array of styles produced, some being very light and fresh, and some having oak and a fuller body. The flavor profile leans toward just ripe fruit, slight spice and a slightly vegetal component, most affectionately described as lentils and white pepper. The result is a fantastic food wine, and a great pairing for dishes that have vegetables as their main component.
Albariño hails from the Atlantic coast of Spain, yielding a light to medium style of wine. The aromatics are strong, with a floral component that is the hallmark of the grape. On the palate, it is light (usually made without oak) and has a fair amount of acidity. It is a fantastic option for seafood dishes, especially octopus and shellfish.
Albariño hails from the Atlantic coast of Spain, yielding a light to medium style of wine. The aromatics are strong, with a floral component that is the hallmark of the grape. On the palate, it is light (usually made without oak) and has a fair amount of acidity. It is a fantastic option for seafood dishes, especially octopus and shellfish.