Original Pinot Noir wines come from the city of Burgundy - France. It is one of the grapes with more importance in the preparedness of champagne and other sparkling wines, as well as a solo wine variety. Many of the most famous and expensive wines are made from the Pinot Noir.

This strain is as capricious as excellent in taste and elegance, as it is almost developed exclusively in cold climates, highlighting its production in countries like France, Spain, Australia, South Africa, Argentina and the region of California. The Pinot Noir has small berries, soft flesh and a purplish black. 

In an exciting convergence of technology, CSR, and wine, yesterday Twitter launched it's first wine, called Fledgling Wine. The 2009 vintage includes a Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, sourced from "top-flight California vineyards", crushed at San Francisco's DIY custom crush facility Crushpad, and on sale on $25 a bottle, but probably the most interesting thing about the wine is where your money goes. $5 from every bottle will be used to promote literacy in Uttarakhand, India through the non-profit Room to Read organization. It's part of Twitter's declared larger effort to increase access to information and use open communication to bring about positive change, and as the company points out, " if you can't read you can't Tweet!" In true Twitter style the winemaking process has been shared with users along the way, allowing them to participate in the process. 

Supporting educational efforts simply by enjoying your wine seems like an attractive idea to me...find out more about Fledgling Wine or buy a bottle here. 

If it is too hot this summer to comfortably enjoy your Cab, you can try it in sorbet form now thanks to Wine Cellars sorbet. Although I've seen other wine flavored ice creams and sorbets before, this was the first time I'd come across the company designed soley on this idea. The result is a range from riesling, to pinot noir, to rosé or port...all made with actual wine, though they are non-alcoholic. In my mind this opens up all kinds of interesting possibilities, like a frozen version of brunch- Heston Blumenthal style bacon and egg ice cream paired with mimosa sorbet, for example, or gazpacho sorbet and sangria sorbet for a Spanish themed lunch...

If you don't have access to these sorbets, you can try your hand at making one with only water, sugar, and your choice of wine. Let me know how they turn out!