The Monkey gears up for Summer, another recommended white

After the success of John Downing of Hi-Times with the Benito Ferrara Greco I thought I would try another reasonably priced white that he was into. In my experience, Weissburgunder (aka pinot blanc) can produce wines of real creamy body and interest balanced upon an underlying structure, or they can become top-heavy shapeless mashes. It is a very fine line, I think. I wonder if it is a hard grape to know when to pick or whether there is actually more breathing space in terms of getting to the sweet spot. To date, my favorite expressions have always been from Austria.

2005 Ignaz Niedrist Weissburgunder Alto Adige - Südtirol

I consumed this wine over three days in the fridge and it didn’t seem to suffer at all over that period. It also seems to thrive at maybe 50-52° after being out of the fridge. This has that quality that David Schildknecht calls a “creamed corn”. It is a sort of sweet, but earthy yellow fruit quality, I think, married to a creaminess. I find it an apt descriptor for pinot blanc. I even enjoyed a glass of it by itself, which is unusual for me. Around $20 and worth owning a fair bit at that price. Not sure age will add anything to it, although it might uncoil it the wine a bit. I prefer it the way it is now.

No way Lyle Fass is recommending wines this good.