The Chameleon Grape

Which grape can make a white, rose, red and sparkling wine?  Think about that before you read further.

 

If you guessed Pinot Noir  you are correct. You get Pinot Noir Blanc when you remove the juice from the skins immediately after pressing. As with all red grape varietals the skin give Pinot its color. Rose of Pinot Noir sits on the skins from 10 to 24 hours or so to get that rosy color. Red Pinot Noir has full contact on the skins during fermentation.  And you may know that Pinot Noir is one of the main grapes in sparkling wine and champagne, along with Chardonnay and occasionally Pinot Meunier. The sparkling Blanc de Noirs, is typically 100% Pinot Noir removed from the skins and made in the sparkling wine style.  You gotta love the versatility of Pinot Noir!