Chateau Ste Michelle Pinot Gris – Easy All Around

Another Trader Joe’s Bulk Buy, the Chateau Ste Michelle Pinot Gris.

100% Pinot Gris from cooler sites of the Columbia Valley, including the Yakima Valley, Washington. The wine undergoes a 3 week fermentation in stainless steel tanks and is then bottled.

The Chateau Ste Michelle Pinot Gris has an SRP of $15 and is available at Trader Joe’s for $8.99. It is also sold elsewhere, including Costco, for as low as $7. 127,835 cases produced.

From the bottle:

Our Pinot Gris is sourced from select sites in the world class vineyards of the Columbia Valley. With new world fruit intensity in an elegant old world style, this Pinot Gris offers lovely flavors of juicy pear and melon with a hint of spice.

13% Alcohol

Today we turn to another non-exclusive wine that can be found at Trader Joe’s. Much like the Wente Chardonnay we reviewed a few days ago, this wine can be found a bit cheaper elsewhere. Nevertheless, even at the Trader Joe’s price this is a great deal for a flavorful Pinot Gris, which we like to describe as Pinot Grigio that tastes good.

The 2014 Chateau Ste Michelle Pinot Gris begins with a very nice, harmonious aroma of pear, apple, apricot, melon, a little tropical fruit and a little cinnamon and other spice. Tasting the wine reveals flavors of peach, pear, apple, lemon and tropical fruit. Hints of spice from the nose also carryover to the mouth. With good acidity this wine makes a great pairing for seafood. The fruit turns more tart mid-palate and leads into the dry, long finish which even features some nice mineral streaks. Pinot Gris for the win!

As always you can find an updated list of all our recommended wines from Trader Joe’s as well as more tips and tricks for shopping the store here.