The Underwood Pinot Gris 2014 Can is sourced from grapes grown in the Willamette Valley in Oregon. Pinot Gris and Pinot Grigio are the same grape, Gris is the French word for gray and Grigio is the Italian word (the grapes can have a blue/grey color, but they do vary). Underwood is one of the Union Wine Co.’s brands, along with along with King’s Ridge and Alchemist brands. They try is make good wine, at a good price without the hype. The can of Underwood Pinot Gris contains the same wine as the bottle of Underwood Pinot Gris, the can is 375 ml (2 glasses) and the bottle is 750 ml (4 glasses) and the can should sell for around 6 bucks. This is a young Pinot Gris and was aged for a short time in stainless steel tanks. There is no vintage date on the can, because they were ordered in bulk (enough to last several years) and it would have been a complete pain in the butt to go back and stamp a date on them. The alcohol content is 13%.
The color is a pale, clear, daisy yellow. The nose is floral with peach, pear, melon, honey and apple, that’s from a glass, it is harder to nose the wine from the can.This is a dry, fruit-forward Pinot Gris with a solid, but not over-bearing dose of acidity. It tastes of white peach, lemon and golden delicious apple. The mid-palate adds light grapefruit and a hint of Anjou pear. I used a glass for tasting notes, but the sips from the can offered the same flavors, just slightly muted. The smaller hole in the top of the can may make it a little harder or take a little longer for the wine to aerate. The acidity is solid and balanced, some Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris can be acid bombs, but here the acidity allows the wine to work well with food and still be an enjoyable sipper. The finish is subtle and slowly fades away.
I am amused when I see people argue about corks vs screw-tops, especially with wines that are going to be consumed within hours of purchase, as if the closure was as important as the wine in the bottle. A can of wine is really going to cause a ruckus. But I love it, you can now take wine anywhere, a bottle does not fit every occasion. In 1825 it was cutting edge technology, but today it is a bit bulky. This can fits in a purse, a backpack, an igloo cooler, it fits in a beer cozy (to keep to cold on a hot day) and at 6 bucks for two glasses offers a deal you will never get at a wine bar. When box wine first came along it seemed like the wine in the box wasn’t all that good, but Underwood Pinot Gris 2014 Can is offering excellent value wine in a highly usable container.
