Au Bon Climat Pinot Blanc/Pinot Gris '23

The Au Bon Climat Pinot Gris/Pinot Blanc is a versatile wine with salty, mineral, and citrus notes. In the mouth, the wine is rich and textural from the time spent on lees in the barrel. Au Bon Climat makes a longer barrel-aged version of this wine called Hildegard, which is Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, and Aligoté, with more oak influence and more barrel and bottle age.It is light and refreshing, making it a good choice for an aperitif. It has enough body and intensity to go with food as well. The minerality and acidity make this a great wine for shellfish of any kind, but it is also delightful with roast chicken, turkey, or pasta with a light béchamel sauce. The lighter, crisper qualities of Pinot Gris are met by the somewhat richer traits of Pinot Blanc here, and the result is a fascinating effort that smacks of ripe peaches at one moment and at minerals and citrus the next. The wine is a bit more serious than either of its two varieties predict, and, while it can serve as a thirst-quenching quaff, it is something we would reserve for drinking with the likes of a well-seasoned roasted chicken now and for more than a few years to come.