By: Ed "The Wine Guy"
Montalcino: the home of the Super Tuscans, Brunello di Montalcino, and San Angelo Pinot Grigio. We usually think of Italian Pinot Grigio as coming from the northeast of Italy (the wider Venice area). However, San Angelo, in my opinion, rivals - if not surpasses - the Pinot Grigios of northeast Italy, including Santa Margherita, which for a long time has been the standard of that varietal. Perhaps Santa Margherita has been the standard because it was the first Pinot Grigio to have such an impact, just as Cloudy Bay was the first New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc to create such a stir. Both wines have achieved the status of cult wines, with the resultant higher prices. Don't get me wrong, both Santa Margherita and Cloudy Bay are very good wines, but others have come along that, in my opinion, have equaled, if not surpassed, them. For example, Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc and San Angelo Pinot Grigio. Many vineyards worldwide - too many, really - have jumped on the Pinot Grigio bandwagon; it is their new cash-cow; the proliferation offers nothing or very little that is unique/distinctive, similar to so many Merlots, which are interchangeable: if you have tasted one, you have tasted a hundred. San Angelo has a fuller body than most Pinot Grigios; no oak; it is crisp; fresh; refreshing; with flavors and aromas of peach and a hint of anise; with a good finish (how long it stays with you). Vernaccia, from the region of San Gimignano, and San Angelo are my two favorite Italian white wines. Taste and see!
