Sometimes you don’t know when to stop, and that’s a good thing: a wine dinner based entirely on pinot noir

Uncorked, published in The East Hampton Star

Pinot Pinot Pinot Noir.

Michael Rozzi, the chef at Della Femina in East Hampton, gave enjoying a wine dinner a new spin Friday night. If you weren’t paying attention, you might not have noticed that every wine with every dish in a five-course meal was pinot noir. And if you were paying attention, you realized just how versatile and remarkable this grape can be.

Certainly one of the great wine grapes of the world, pinot noir is also among the most problematic, all the way from the field to the bottle. Not only are the vines genetically unstable and the fruit highly susceptible to disease and climate conditions, but once harvested the grapes can be challenging and perplexing to ferment.

Traditionally, pinot noir should have a medium to full body while remaining delicate, and neither acid nor tannins should be too prominent. In my opinion, it is the finely tuned balance of elements rather than one outstanding factor that characterizes great pinot noir.

The good news is that when it all works, pinot noir results in enchanting, harmonious wines, and, as we were reminded at the Della Femina dinner, they extend beyond the great red Burgundies that initially come to mind.

We began with a wine called Lucy ($21 retail), a rosé made from the pinot noir grape by Lucia Vineyards, in the Santa Lucia Highlands of California. The appetizer was warm salmon smoked in pecan wood, accompanied by celery-root slaw and caviar and paprika oil. With these complex tastes, a simple rosé, pale in color, delicate on the palate, with a nice balance of fruit and tartness, seemed just right. Point, counterpoint, and harmony.

The next course, a rabbit paté en croute surrounded by porcini, apples, and pistachios, called for a medium-bodied wine, and a Burgundy from Michel Gros, 2003 Haute Cotes de Nuit Rouge, was poured. The pairing was correct, and the wine itself was a respectable but minor-league pinot. It retails for $23, a reminder that it is extremely difficult to find outstanding wines from the Cote d’Or or surrounding regions of Burgundy at a reasonable price.

A 2002 Fiddlehead Cellars Oldsville Reserve from the Willamette Valley in Oregon ($45), arguably the world’s second-best region for pinot noir wines in the Burgundy style, was superb. It had all the rich earthiness you expect of this grape, the sumptuous, complex aroma (black cherry, raspberry, ripe tomato, in this case), the floral notes of violet, the hint of peppermint and spice, the soft and velvety mouth feel.

It accompanied a pork, carrot, and leek ragout (Mr. Rozzi started by roasting the pig) with date-filled profiteroles and sage sauce — an ambitious entree with a well-chosen wine.

We moved on to another serious course, grilled Long Island duck breast, with a 2005 Veranda pinot noir from the Casablanca Valley in Chile. Call it excess, but this is what wine dinners are all about. The duck was moist and succulent, and the wine a suitable and supple match.

The only problem was that after drinking the Fiddlehead Cellars, few other pinots were going to gratify the nose or the palate in quite the same way. If I had to make a call, I’d say the Veranda is an inviting, well-made wine, one that I would try again, especially since it sells for only $16, but it just did not stand a chance in this wine lineup.

The next wine had no such barrier. It was a Schramsberg 2002 Blanc de Noirs ($32), a light, dry, mildly yeasty sparkling wine, one of the oldest and best labels from California’s Napa Valley. It was a refreshing change of pace and a festive way — accompanied by hazelnut-crusted cheesecake — to end a memorable meal.

Mr. Rozzi grew up on the East End and uses local ingredients imaginatively and innovatively. He overreaches now and then, but that is hardly a fault in a young, creative chef who is preparing some of the best food on the South Fork. And these occasional wine dinners at the restaurant (priced at a reasonable $75 plus tax and tip) have become, at least for me, an off-season delight.

A note: Since wines were included with the meal, prices quoted are retail wine store prices. All are available at Race Lane Liquors in East Hampton.