Pinot Blanc Pairs With Foie Gras, Curries: John Mariani

They are the color of gold but not at all rare; They are inexpensive yet hard to find on a wine list. Yet they are among the most versatile white wines, not least with dishes that contain a good dose of spice.

I’m speaking about pinot blanc, once a prolific grape in France’s Burgundy region and now displaced by chardonnay. It is widely planted in Alsace, where it is sometimes called klevner; in northern Italy, it is called pinot bianco; in Germany, it’s known as weissburgunder; in the Czech Republic, it’s rulandske bile. Yet in California, a bottle labeled pinot blanc may actually be another varietal called muscat melon.