Buy this intensely flavorful pinot gris from the PLCB before it’s gone

New Zealand is relative newcomer to the fine wine world, with less than 50 years of international recognition for the quality of its wines.

The country is highly unusual among the nations of wine’s “new world” in that its vineyard zones are considerably colder in climate — more akin to the cool, moist wine zones of Europe than the hotter, drier areas in the Americas or Australia. As a result, New Zealand wines tend to be low in alcohol and high in acidity across the board.

While this can be a constraint on the appeal of the region’s red wines, this is precisely what makes New Zealand’s white wines stand out. The Marlborough region produces two thirds of New Zealand’s wine and is virtually synonymous with sauvignon blanc among wine lovers. However, many other grapes do perform well there, too, most notably those that make excellent unoaked white wines, as with this snappy pinot gris.

Many wine drinkers assume that pinot gris will always be bland and lightweight thanks to expectations set by oceans of cheap Italian pinot grigio. But when this heavy-cropping grapevine of French origin is pruned back to boost flavor rather than being exploited for volume and grapes are allowed to hang longer on the vine before picking, it can produce wines of surprising depth and character that have considerable flavor intensity.

This wine makes a perfect example with its saturated flavors of orchard-fruit desserts, like peach cobbler or honey-poached pears, that are brightened with a lemony thread of acidity.

Be sure to snag some while it lasts — unlike most of the wines we recommend in this column, this is not a regularly stocked item in Pennsylvania’s Fine Wine and Good Spirits stores, so when it’s gone, it will truly be gone.

13% ABV

Marlborough, New Zealand

PLCB Item #100043074

Sale price $16.99 through Oct. 5 (regularly $21.99)

Also available at: WineWorks in Marlton, N.J. ($15.99; wineworksonline.com)