2009 Passaggio New Generation Pinot Grigio

This wine has an inspiring back story. The Winemaker, Cynthia Cosco, was a law enforcement officer in West Virginia for 15 years. In 2003 she decided it was time to make a change and she moved to California, she didn’t have job waiting for her, she just knew that was where you need to be if you are going to make wine. Four years later she put out her first vintage of Passaggio Chardonnay. She is also the Head of the Wine Lab at Crushpad. CrushPad is a custom winemaking facility located in Napa Valley, where anybody can come in and make wine, as long as you have the money ($5,700 to $10,000 minimum), no experience necessary. The Passaggio Pinot Grigio is aged in stainless steel tanks and has an alcohol content of 13.4%.

The color is very pale golden yellow with traces of green along the edges. A fresh and clean nose, grapefruit, peach, some floral notes and lime. This is no flavor challenged Pinot Grigio, there is an taste explosion going off in your mouth. Grapefruit, lemon, lime and then a touch of peach to counter all the tart citrus, a nice dash of minerality in the mid-palate. A light lemon/lime finish that lingers for quite some time.

The Passaggio New Generation Pinot Grigio has depth and body, loads of flavor, yet is still light and refreshing. This would pair well with non red sauce pasta dishes and not too spicy Asian noodle dishes, but me, I would drink this on it’s own, it does taste good. I’m not usually a fan of Pinot Grigio, but this is not the usual Pinot Grigio.

I am not sure about the distribution for the Passaggio Pinot Grigio,

but you can find it online at:   passaggiowines