Dreambird Pinot Grigio 2017

Over recent years Pinot Grigio has become the definitive Italian grape for white wine, and by common consent the best Italian PGs come from the North East of that country, and the further North and East you go, the better they get. So what happens if you carry on travelling North and East beyond Italy's borders? Well, eventually - and very roughly - you get to Romania, where not only do you find terrific Pinot Grigio wines, but you find it at a terrific Romanian price. Well, it certainly stands to reason, but does it stand up to a taste test? Oh yes, oh yes it does.
The first vineyards were planted in Recas in 1457 by German settlers. In 1999 Cramele Recas purchased the vineyards and winery and embarked on an intensive program of investment. This has resulted in one of the most modern vineyard/winery investments in central Europe, with 800 hectares of newly planted, high quality vineyards. Cramele Recas’s objective is to produce value for money, clean, crisp and modern wines that retain the character of their specific vineyard plots.

Winemaker Hartley Smithers is a graduate of Roseworthy College Australia, and is a native of Sydney. He has worked in this role for over 25 years in Chile, Spain, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Australia, where he is currently the senior winemaker at Casellas during the European winter. He has worked for Recas for six months a year for the past six years. Vertical shoot positioning in the vineyard is used to ensure healthy and flavoursome grapes.

On arrival from the vineyards, the grapes are destemmed and immediately chilled to 5C, before light pressing. The juice is then clarified before fermentation in stainless steel tanks at 12-14C for around two weeks.

A fresh, distinctive and flavour-packed Pinot Grigio, balanced with a moderate yet crisp acidity, which gives the wine good structure and makes it a pleasure to drink. Lovely, opulent aromas of grapefruit and peach follow through to a lithe body, with loads of fruit as well as abundant melon and apple character and citrusy acidity. Would be perfect with a Thai green prawn and aubergine curry.