Every once in a while, a California-grown, Italian-inspired, not too oaky, full-flavored, bright and crisp pinot grigio comes along. If it comes along for about 10 bucks, it's worth singing about!

Warm up your voice. Here's your wine!

This is easy to find, easy to afford and really easy to drink. It's great by itself and better with food. Pasta with white sauce, anything-parmesan and salads with a vinegarette make for a duet that'll rival Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell.

Open a bottle tonight and sing along, "Ain't No Mountain High Enough!"

Cheers,
TSW

WoW
...really excited about wine

There's lots of pinot grigio to be had for a song. The problem is, most of it is way out of tune. For a real sterling vocalist you've usually gotta pay a bit more.

Another sad truth is that most pinot grigio that hails from anywhere outside Italy is either a bad imitation of pinot grigio or something that might be pinot grigio, if it weren't for all the oak and overripe fruit masking the grape's character.

Another option is the watered down, can't-keep-it-down pinot grigio used to make the majority of jug and box wine served in finer trailer parks.

Pinot grigio from California can be the worst of the bunch, and it's usually a bad imitation of the real deal that tries to make up for its shortcomings with enough oak to build a church. Whatever juice is left over is pretty awful and lands in a ginormous vat, which ends up as the watered down swill in a box that finds its way into too many refrigerators.