Hess Select Pinot Gris

Hess Select Pinot Gris is a stainless steel-fermented California white wine bottled at 12.5% ABV in 750ml format. Rated 89 points by Wine Enthusiast, this bottling from The Hess Collection emphasizes bright stone fruit and citrus through a deliberate no-oak production approach paired with lees stirring for added texture.

Quick Facts: ABV: 12.5%  |  Origin: California, USA  |  Varietal: Pinot Gris  |  Producer: The Hess Collection

Production & Heritage

The Hess Collection was founded by Swiss-born entrepreneur Donald Hess, with estate vineyards on Mount Veeder in Napa Valley. The Hess Select tier draws fruit from vineyards across California, giving the winemaking team flexibility to source grapes that express the variety's naturally aromatic character. This Pinot Gris is fermented entirely in stainless steel tanks — deliberately avoiding any oak contact — to preserve the grape's tropical and stone fruit personality. Periodic lees stirring during aging adds a subtle creaminess and weight to what would otherwise be a purely crisp, fruit-driven wine.

Tasting Notes

Aroma: Ripe pear and nectarine lead on the nose, followed by lighter floral notes and a hint of tropical pineapple. A subtle mineral quality rounds out the bouquet as the wine opens in the glass.

Taste: The palate enters with juicy white peach and nectarine, building into layers of citrus and crisp apple through the mid-palate. Lemon zest sharpens the flavors toward the peak, while balanced acidity keeps everything vibrant and lifted without turning tart.

Finish: The finish is bright and clean, with lemon zest and lingering nectarine trailing off at a moderate length. A mineral crispness carries through, leaving the palate refreshed and dry.

How to Drink Hess Select Pinot Gris

This wine drinks best well chilled, around 45–50°F, poured straight from the bottle into a standard white wine glass. Its vibrant acidity and fruit-forward profile make it versatile in lighter cocktails and spritzers. A White Wine Spritz with sparkling water and a lemon twist showcases the citrus notes without masking them. A Hugo Spritz — substituting this Pinot Gris for Prosecco alongside elderflower, mint, and soda — works well because the stone fruit aromatics complement the elderflower. A Wine Sangria built with sliced peaches, pears, and a splash of citrus liqueur mirrors the wine's natural flavor profile.

Best For

• Weeknight dinners when you want something refreshing but not too light
• Outdoor warm-weather gatherings where crisp acidity and fruit appeal to a wide range of palates
• Pairing with seafood dishes where oak-aged whites would overpower the food
• Introducing wine drinkers who prefer sweeter styles to a dry, fruit-forward alternative

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Hess Select Pinot Gris taste like? It delivers ripe pear, nectarine, and white peach flavors brightened by lemon zest and balanced acidity. The stainless steel fermentation keeps the fruit clean and forward, with a crisp, mineral-tinged finish.

How does Hess Select Pinot Gris compare to Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio? Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio hails from Alto Adige in northeastern Italy and tends toward a leaner, more mineral-driven profile, while Hess Select sources California fruit and leans into riper tropical and stone fruit flavors. The lees stirring in the Hess bottling also gives it slightly more mid-palate weight than the typically lighter Italian style.

Is Hess Select Pinot Gris good for sipping on its own? Yes — the balanced acidity and ripe fruit make it an easy-drinking wine that doesn't require food to be enjoyable. Serve it well chilled for the best expression of its citrus and stone fruit character.

Where is Hess Select Pinot Gris made? It is produced by The Hess Collection, headquartered on Mount Veeder in Napa Valley, California. The Hess Select line sources grapes from vineyards across California rather than exclusively from the Mount Veeder estate.

What foods pair well with Hess Select Pinot Gris? Grilled shrimp or prawns complement the wine's citrus brightness. Light salads with goat cheese benefit from the acidity cutting through the creaminess. Seared scallops echo the wine's subtle sweetness. Thai green curry works because the fruit and acidity temper the spice. Fresh oysters on the half shell pair naturally with the mineral finish.

What sizes does Hess Select Pinot Gris come in? The standard offering is a 750ml bottle, which is the most widely available format for this wine.

Is Hess Select Pinot Gris worth the price? Hess Select Pinot Gris positions as an accessible, everyday white wine within The Hess Collection's value-oriented Select tier. With an 89-point rating from Wine Enthusiast and a production approach that prioritizes fruit purity, it delivers strong quality relative to its entry-level price positioning.

Why Hess Select Pinot Gris?

The deliberate choice to ferment entirely in stainless steel and avoid any oak contact sets this wine apart from many California whites that lean on barrel influence for body and complexity. Instead, the winemaking team achieves texture through lees stirring, a technique more commonly associated with premium Muscadet or white Burgundy production. The result is a Pinot Gris that retains the grape's aromatic intensity — all pear, nectarine, and citrus — while carrying enough weight on the palate to stand alongside food. Its 89-point Wine Enthusiast score confirms that the straightforward approach works, producing a clean, well-balanced California white that punches above its tier.