Winey Tasting Notes: Puttin’ On My Fancy Pants (Pinot Grigio, That Is!)

I just couldn’t help it. I saw the name on the bottle and wham! Took me right back to my daughter, age 2, wearing those cute little tights with the ruffled panties under her Christmas dress. I just loved those little ruffles, sitting on top those fat little leggies that were just begging to be squeezed and tickled. Yes, it was 14 years ago, but I really did have a thing for girly toddler clothes and accessories (and those leggies). It was a good thing that I indulged my fashion whimsy on her back then too, because these days, when I suggest a piece of clothing as we shop, you can usually HEAR the eye roll all the way over in the lingerie department. Sometime all the way to shoes.

So I saw Fancy Pants Pinot Grigio (2011, 13%, Napa County, CA, Trinchero Family Estates) and I just had to get it. (I did NOT squeeze it, in case anyone of you are wondering.) I’m so glad I did, because this turned out to be one of my favorite types of Pinot Grigio – crisp and light and full of flavors. It’s a near colorless wine that sends off aromas of citrusy peach. It tastes of mango at peach at the center. There’s a little lime lurking around the edges and a mineral zest on top of it all. That mineral taste really ads a crispness to the taste – a little snap of life with each sip. The finish is crisp and lushly lingering. This is where the citrus stays on a bit and finishes things up.

If you are in a mood and  craving a bit more lime taste in your wine, I have a pairing suggestion that little Miss Fancy Pants herself came up with. You see, in addition to being a near clone (except for the girl stuff) of her father, Miss Fancy Pants also inherited his deep and passionate love for ice cream. I swear to you that it’s in their DNA. (Doesn’t help that the Winey Hubby worked scooping ice cream from the time he turned 16.) Anyway, it was Father’s Day and of course, the ONLY way to cap off a celebration of a day devoted to her ice cream loving father was with an ice cream cake. (Yes, I know her taste buds also benefited from this gift, but hey…he really loves his ice cream cakes too.) And that’s when I found out that if you take a bite of the ice cream cake and then a sip of Fancy Pants Pinot Grigio, the lime flavors in the wine really sing out!!

So now you know about my weakness for fancy pants on cute little toddlers, my family’s weakness for anything ice cream and that Pinot Grigio goes great with ice cream cake. Education never ends, does it?

Cheers!

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