Coming up Rosés: reviews of nearly dry pink wines.
May 21 '05 (Updated Sep 03 '07)
The Bottom Line Dry rosés are as suited for summer days as a glass of lemonade. Given the widening selection, finding a good bottle shouldn't be difficult.
Call them blush, rosé, rosato, or just plain pink--they're a style of wine midway between red and white, made using red grapes but with limited contact with skins, and they're being found in increasing numbers on store shelves and in picnic baskets.
Rosés may be trendy but they're certainly nothing new. Some of the best American jug wines are rosés; the Paul Masson and Carlo Rossi offerings are standouts. And, of course, we can't forget about white zinfandel, the sweet strawberry-like stuff made from the king of red grapes, and, of course, its younger sibling, white merlot. These can certainly be well-flavored and pleasant wines--the above-mentioned jug offerings and the best White Zins could even be said to be balanced--but they're all decidedly off-dry. That's fine for cookouts and, given the American sweet tooth, good for parties and the dessert table, but to accompany more serious food or even just for a change of pace at a picnic, a dry rosé is in order.
Dry rosés make an excellent summer wine. They're best served chilled and they have no sticky aftertaste, and being usually simple and fruit-forward, they're crowd-pleasers.
The selections reviewed below are from several different countries, made from different grapes in styles ranging from blushes to deep ruby. What they have in common is that they're all dry or a mere touch off-dry (producers seem to leave a bit more residual sugar in these than in reds) and all in that region between white and red. As in the guide to wines under $5 new reviews will be added as I taste or removed as wines disappear from the market.
Folonari Pink Pinot Grigio 2006
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(added 2 September 2007)
$9.99 at Sunflower Market
Short Take:
A rosé of Pinot Grigio is such a good idea that I wonder why it took so long for one to come to market.
Alcohol: 11.5% ABV
Appearance: Pink, like the label says.
Imported by Frederick Wildman and Sons LTD, New York NY
Vinted and bottled by Folonari S.C.A.R.L., Calmasino, Italy
Call me ignorant, but until this wine hit the shelves I didn't know that Pinot Grigio was a red grape, especially since it's usually vinified as a real white wine's white wine, with crisp pear or melon flavors and pairing well with shellfish.
It's better as a rosé. Folonari Pink Pinot Grigio is intensely ripe and juicy, with a nose of hibiscus blossom and mixed tropical fruit. Medium bodied, moderately tart, with a finish just sweet enough to notice if you're paying attention and a bit of carbonation--less by far than even Portuguese vinho verde--it serves equally well as a cold summer apertif or a versatile food wine, perhaps the perfect accompaniment to grilled poultry or mixed-green salads.
This is easily the best rosé and the best food wine I've had in months. Given the pink poodle and animé-style blonde on the label, I don't think Folonari is aiming for me as a consumer, but they got me anyway.
Ca' del Solo Big House Pink
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(added 27 February 2006)
$8.99 at Cost Plus World Market
Short Take:
A bold rosé if there ever was one. Bonny Doon's offering is strongly fruity, tart, and somehow reminiscent of a watermelon Jolly Rancher
Alcohol: 13% ABV
Appearance: Magenta
Vinted and bottled by Ca' del Solo, Santa Cruz, CA
I somehow mistook the Ca' del Solo Big House Pink sitting in my fridge for the "vin gris de Cigare" by the same producer (Ca' del Solo is a synonym for Bonny Doon) and brought it to dinner to accompany baked salmon.
That's definitely a bad pairing, but the wine itself is pretty good. Carignane, Sangiovese, Charbono, Zinfandel, and Barbera are blended to produce a tart, boldly fruity wine with a medium body, strawberry nose and a taste strangely reminiscent of both slightly underripe strawberries and watermelon Jolly Rancher candy. Mind the acid and keep it away from salmon. Mexican food the day after turned out to be a far better pairing for the leftovers.
Fetzer Syrah Rosé 2003
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$5.99 at Trader Joe's
Short Take:
Fetzer's try for a French-style rosé succeeds but doesn't quite shine.
Alcohol: 13.5% Abv
Appearance: Somewhere between deep red and fuchsia
Vinted and bottled by Fetzer Vineyards, Hopland, Mendocino County, CA
The most immediately striking aspect of Fetzer's Syrah Rosé is its color. A deep ruby red with a hint of purple, this could be mistaken by appearance for a pinot noir. It's clear that Fetzer, despite its reputation for easy-drinking wines, wasn't aiming for a white zinfandel-style blush wine. If their label and website are any indication, they took their cue instead from the French.
We should almost wish they had kept their eyes on this side of the pond. The Syrah Rosé is a mediocre wine--it would be good at half the price--with almost no bouquet and a slight taste of raspberries and a pleasantly bitter finish reminiscent of a pale ale. It's almost well-balanced, but a tad sour, and when freshly opened it's both green and hot.
This dissipates after a few days (in the fridge, of course) without killing the fruit, but who really expects to have to let a rosé sit? With its screw-top, this wine is suited for immediate consumption at a picnic or cookout. Too bad it isn't suited to the purpose.
Fetzer's Syrah Rosé isn't bad. It's even drinkable with food immediately after opening. Given that it's made from Central Valley grapes I suppose things could be far worse. (Think Charles Shaw sauvignon blanc!) At $3 per bottle I'd say it was a good buy, but compared to French offerings in its own price range, it's lacking.
La Vielle Ferme Rosé
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$5.99 at Cost Plus World Market
Short Take: A very pleasant wine with a minor flaw or two.
Appelation: Côtes du Ventoux
Appearance: Rose pink, almost red
Alcohol: 13% ABV
Bottled by La Vielle Ferme, Orange, France; imported by Vineyard Brands, Inc., Birmingham, AL
Having the same price and even the same screw-top closure as the Fetzer reviewed above, which aspires to be a Rhône-style rosé, a direct comparison would be tempting. I can say that this is better--it's not nearly as astringent and has only a slight bit of heat--but to say much else would be to compare apples to oranges; La Vielle Ferme's rosé is 50% Cinsault, 40% Grenache, and only 10% Syrah.
With a pronounced bouquet of ripe peaches, La Vielle Ferme Rosé tastes of strongly of peach fruit and berries. Like the Fetzer, it's a bit on the sour side and it has a similar albeit less pronounced bitter finish. It's best well chilled and makes an excellent summer aperitif.
La Vielle Ferme is not an outstanding wine, but it's a good wine for the price, and given the powerful fruit, I think you could serve it to "White Zin Only" types at a picnic without them missing the sugar.
Angove's Nine Vines 2004
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$9.85 at a local wine shop
Short take: Angove's, an Australian wine, is perfectly balanced and is the best of the wines made from Rhône grape varieties that I have reviewed so far.
Alcohol:12% ABV
Appearance: Magenta
Produced and bottled by Angove's Pty Ltd, Renmark, South Australia 5341; imported by Meadowbank Estates, Alexandra, VA 22314
I bought a bottle of Angove's on the recommendation of a local wine dealer and took it to a picnic of fellow science grad students, where it seemed to be quite a hit.
Angove's is made from 70% Grenache and 30% Shiraz, and it's an extremely straightforward wine. Raspberry fruit dominates, with some cherry and a faint note of spice. It's as dry as anything else listed here, but there's a faint oiliness.
It's very well-executed; it has adequate acid without being sour, no traces of hotness, no bitter finish, and no "skin extract" off-flavor, and the fruit has a very strong presence. That local wine shop's reccommendation was excellent; a better rosé may still exist, but there isn't a fault to be found with this wine.
Montevina Nebbiolo Rosato 2002
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$4.75 at Cost Plus World Market
(review shamelessly stolen from the guide to Wines under $5)
Short Take:
This is such a great rosé--crisp, refreshing, and only slightly off-dry (not significantly more than any others reviewed here), with flavors of pink grapefruit and peach--that it's hard to believe it was merely the result of Montevina experimenting with Nebbiolo after efforts at a Barolo-style wine failed. It's a great summer or picnic wine, worth the price and then some.
Alcohol: 12% by volume
Appearance: Peach pink.
Produced and bottled by Montevina Winery, Plymouth, Amador County, CA
Yes, I haven't seen a rosé made from Nebbiolo before, either.
Montevina, one of the premier "Cal-Ital" wineries, has been experimenting with Nebbiolo grapes, used to make some of the famous wines of Italy's Piedmont region including Barolo, for some time. Nebbiolo is so-called because it just about grows in the clouds, preferring high altitudes and cool weather. The trouble is, Montevina is located in relatively warm Amador County, where the weather is better suited to Sangiovese and their bread-and-butter wine, Zinfandel.
Supposedly, Montevina is still experimenting with trellising and different clones in the hope of producing a big red from Nebbiolo. I wish them luck, as long as success doesn't mean they'd stop producing this rosé, especially now that it's become just about the "house" wine at my apartment.
Being a unique wine, Montevina's Nebbiolo Rosato has a unique flavor, with the closest comparaison being a fruity Riesling such as Kendall-Jackson's or some of those from Germany. The bouquet is slightly floral but mainly of tart peaches. In the mouth this wine tastes more of pink grapefruit than anything else. It's very slightly sweet but unlike most other budget rosés (such as the ever popular Beringer White Zin and Gallo White Merlot) it's not flabby in the least; actually, it's refreshingly tart but without being sour, with a clean citrus-peel finish.
There's no such thing as the "perfect" summer wine but this comes awfully close, although at 11% alcohol I'd think twice about doing any "gulping." It also pairs well with Mediterranean-inspired chicken dishes and light asian fare.
If you're one of those people who think of rosés as alcoholic strawberry soda for sorority girls looking for a buzz, this is the wine that'll change your mind. With it costing about a dollar more than, say, an import beer, there isn't much excuse for not giving it a try.
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bkalafut
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Member: Bennett Kalafut
Location: Tucson, AZ, USA
Reviews written: 255
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About Me:
Stretching single molecules for fun and profit.
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