If back to school tasks have you preoccupied this week, the fabulous warm, late summer weather we are enjoying suggests fall could be more than a month away and that still leaves you plenty of time to embrace the season’s hottest wine style – rosé.
Like most everything in the wine business the rosé category has undergone a great deal of scrutiny of late as wineries move to improve a niche wine that somehow always looked better than it tasted.
Better techniques and a commitment to the rosé style from the vineyard to winery has upped the quality of the modern-day pink, giving it something to offer most curious sippers.
That said, I have a theory about the rush to rosé and it has nothing to do with technology or better winemaking. Nor does it point to any marketing gimmicks. I believe consumers are embracing rosé because they are as confident as ever about tasting wine and after years of exploring different grapes and styles of wine, rosé is just another, whose time has come.
Because we approach it with more knowledge and interest than ever before, it must taste better to hold our interest. Just being pink is no longer good enough.
Today’s rosé is generally drier and or fruiter than previous editions and it’s this style, (higher acid and less sugar) that is making important inroads into local restaurants and wine bars and even B.C Liquor stores.
For the record, there are few places rosé is made by simply blending red and white wines – at least legally. Most pink wine begins life the same way as a red wine, inside a tank fermenting on its skins. The difference is after a few hours, the skins are removed and fermentation continues as if it was a white wine.
The reduced skin contact produces a delicate pink wine that undeniably grabs your eye in the glass and that comes with just enough flavour and tannin to stand up to a wide array of al fresco bites.
Summer usually means eating more casually, and often out-of-doors, and both are suited to the versatility of rosé that offers more mouth-weight than simple whites but does not overpower the food in the way red wine tannins might.
Less acidity and lower alcohol are two key features of dry rosé, when compared with whites and reds, and that smoothness allows it to pair well with a variety of pasta dishes, both warm and cold.
Again thanks to its softer tannin, rosé is a fine companion to most fish dishes, and the spicier the better. Think grilled salmon and glass of pink Provence. A favourite rosé pairing of mine is fresh goat cheese encrusted with peppercorns and dried tomatoes.
Picnic meats such as grilled chicken, pork or cold cuts with vegetable/mushroom or rice-based side dishes are equally receptive to well chilled rosé.
If that’s not enough, serving straight-up Spanish-style tapas with sparkling rosé will seal the deal at any patio party. After that, simply add warm weather, friends and pleasant conversation.
This week we offer a baker’s dozen of pinks for you to check out and enjoy before the snow flies.
SPARKLING ROSé
Codorníu Pinot Noir Brut N/V Sant Sadurní d’Anoia, Penedès, Spain
Soft, creamy and round on the finish with good intensity. A good wine for turkey this Thanksgiving, or anytime. $19.99Segura Viudas Lavit Rosado Brut N/V Cava Penedès, Spain
This is crisp and fresh with more cherry, mineral, citrus rind, nutty, toasted flavours. $16.34
STILL ROSÉ
Torres De Casta Rosé 2005 Catalunya, Spain
Now available in screwcap the De Casta rosado is a wonderful clean fruity wine with a touch of sweetness. Think pasta. $12.86 Chateau Silex 2005 Éloge Rosé, Costières de Nîmes, France As in previous years, there is fine acidity with citrus, strawberry, mineral, and berry jam flavours. Made for summer. $16.84Lang Vineyards 2005 Blanc de Noir, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
Mineral, strawberry, spicy, minty, grapefruit flavours. Fresh and zippy with solid fruit. Look for lemberger/pinot noir this fall in VQA stores. $14
Vega Sindoa 2005 Rosé, Navarra, Spain
Spicy almond earthy notes mix with raspberry jam fruit flavours a rich peppery strawberry finish. Big enough for dinner but perfect for that al fresco lunch. $12.77Zunio Rosé 2005 California, United States
This stylish rosé does not depend on sugar to make the grade and hence it’s capable of accompanying a wide range of food. Good value. $13.87
Masi Modello 2005 Rosato delle Venezie, Veneto, Italy
Look for floral fruity flavours and slightly oily texture. The perfect cold chicken picnic wine although it’s capable of playing the très chic Euro pink as the ultimate patio apéritif. $12.37
Château la Tour d'Aigues Poeme Rosé 2005 Côtes du Lubéron, Provence, France
Another Euro-style rosé made from grenache and syrah. Lean fresh citrus cherry tones with a leafy undercurrent and mineral, earthy citrus flavours. A bit skinny for sipping but perfect for grilled chicken or pork. $12.84
Mateus Rosé N/V, Douro - Bairrada, Portugal
Mateus is back. It’s dry but fresh and elegant with some spritz. Light cherry, citrus, earthy, mineral apple flavours and a slightly sweet finish. Sound, inexpensive summer sipper. $8.90
Obikwa Rosé 2005 Western Cape, South Africa
Obikwa Rosé is made from Pinotage. There’s an illusion of sweetness but there is fine acidity to balance out the sugar in the back end. Fine spicy plummy strawberry fruit flavour. $9.89
Sutter Home White Zinfandel 2004 California, United States
The original white zin offers sweet watermelon fruit with just enough acidity to keep it from being cloying. My food thoughts turn to a spicy curry. $8.90
Tormaresca Paiara Rosé 2005, Apulia, Italy
Paiara Rosé is made with negroamaro, traditional red grape from southern Italy. Perfect for appetizers there is little or no sweet fruit to mess up the food. Very crisp and lip smacking it seems perfect for crab cakes or buttered corn on the cob. $10.99
Anthony Gismondi is a globetrotting wine writer who makes his home in West Vancouver, British Columbia. For more of his thoughts on wine log onto
www.gismondionwine.com
