The Wine Institute

When the central character, Miles, in the hit movie, "Sideways," first extolled the virtues of Pinot Noir, U.S. supermarket sales of the variety jumped 18 percent between October 24, 2004 and July 2, 2005, compared to the same period a year earlier. The movie was released on October 22, 2004. Pinot Noir, however, had been steadily growing in popularity long before "Sideways" helped propel the wine into mainstream American awareness. In looking at winegrape production stats, California crushed 95,000 tons of Pinot Noir in 2005, up more than triple from the 32,000 tons crushed in 1990, according to the California Grape Crush Reports. Clearly, Americans are expanding their preference for the fresh raspberry, plum, rose and spice flavors and aromas that one can find in Pinot Noir.

The Pinot Noir Grape

Like the romantic relationships portrayed in the "Sideways" movie, Pinot Noir can be complex, elusive, and difficult to grow. Yet many a winemaker will make Pinot Noir because the resulting wines can reap a reward as great as the challenge. This noble red wine variety is ancient, described by Romans in 100 A.D. and cultivated in the Burgundy region of France as early as the 4th century. Pinot Noir is prone to genetic variation, and has more clones than any other variety. The University of California, Davis, has some 100 registered Pinot Noir clones. The variety does well in the coolest growing areas for color and flavor development.

California Pinot Noir Grape Crush Tonnage

Year	Tons Crushed
2005	94,736
2004	70,062
2003	58,185
2002	54,156
2001	63,501
2000	53,050
1999	36,653
1998	28,923
1997	48,319
1996	36,642
1995	28,917
1994	31,918
1993	36,378
1992	37,060
1991	34,396
1990	32,295

Source: California Agricultural Statistics Service.

Top 10 California Counties for Pinot Noir Acreage, 2005

County	2005 Total Acres
Sonoma	10,027
Monterey	4,102
Santa Barbara	3,169
Napa	2,623
Mendocino	1,930
San Luis Obispo	1,091
Sacramento	424
San Benito	280
Solano	174
San Joaquin	127
Other	619
STATE TOTAL	24,442

Source: California Agricultural Statistics Service.