Viva La Rosé Revolucion

By Nikki Berglund
Contributing Writer

This summer heat can really put a cramp on your wine drinking style.  Reds are just way too heavy and also served unchilled, which at least to me isn’t all that appealing once the temperature starts rising.  Wines straight out of refrigerator are definitely the way to go. 

For a wine snob this is technically a bit too cold, but on a 90+ degree day I’ve even been known to stick a bottle in the freezer for a couple of minutes.  Sacrilege I know; but it’s hot dammit! Luckily for me this is the time of year I get to enjoy my very favorite wine of all…Rosé. Anyone who knows anything about me, or at least my preferences in wine, knows that I go completely nutty over Rosé.  If it’s pink, and not found in the same aisle as the box wines and jug wines, I’ve tried it. I am always attempting to turn my friends as well as my customers onto Rosé and nine times out of ten, I think I am successful.

Let’s get one thing straight - this is not your Grandma’s pink wine - not even close.  Contrary to popular belief, most quality Rosés are considered dry rather than sweet. Technically, White Zinfandel, Sunset Blush, and any other pink wines that can be found in a jug or a box are considered Rosé wines but they’re really kind of the red headed stepchild of the family and tend to give all of the wonderful Rosé wines out there a very bad name.

The word Rosé (pronounced ro-ZAY) means “pinkish” in French.  A quality Rosé exhibits many of the same characteristics as a red wine with a bit more subtlety.  They are much lighter in flavor as well as color and often lower in alcohol. The general rule for these wines is the fresher the better.  Unlike many red wines that grow more complex and flavorful with age, Rosés are meant to be enjoyed young.

It is widely believed that the Greeks were the first to start making Rosé as far back as 600 BC.  In the Middle Ages the monasteries turned the Rosé wines of Provence, France into a money making business, eventually contributing to the prestige Rosé wines would achieve.  Soon Spain and Italy were making their own versions called “rosato” (‘d’ instead of ‘t’ in the Spanish version) and to this day make some pretty incredible Rosé wines as well.

There are three different methods used to produce Rosé wine.  White Zinfandel uses a technique called “bleeding” which essentially bleeds some of the pink juice out of a vat of red wine in order to intensify the flavors and color of the red wine being made. In this case the pink juice is more of a byproduct than anything else, making it a cheap watered down version of the wine its helping create.  In the second method, the color and flavor comes from keeping the crushed red skinned grapes in contact with the juice for a short amount of time, giving it some of the subtle flavors of the red grapes it comes from.  This method is responsible for the production of many if not most of the quality Rosé wines out there today. The third method which blends red wine with white wine to create pink wine (duh) has gone very much out of favor and is not used very often.

Some of the best Rosés out there come from France and Spain. I am personally a huge lover of French Rosé, Provence in particular if I have the luxury of getting picky about it.  Let me warn you though, these are not all that easy to find around these parts.  It seems the French wine craze has yet to really catch on in Fargo.  I usually end up special ordering a summer’s worth for the store which mostly gets drank by my family but which I also love getting people to try.

I am currently drinking a wine from the right bank of the Rhone Valley in France called Belleruche by Chapoutier which retails for right around $12.  The color of this wine alone is absolutely gorgeous with its pale pink hue.  Subtle hints of red fruits such as cherries and raspberries are balanced with a citrusy grapefruity finish. Made with a blend of Grenache, Cinsault, and Syrah this wine just oozes summertime.

This summer I have found a new love which hails from Washington State.  My experiences (until now) with Rosés from the United States haven’t really been all of that fabulous, but Charles and Charles make one that definitely worth checking out!  Talk about an incredible color- one blog I read described it as “peach fuzz pink” which I think describes it better than I can.  All I know is that I love looking at it almost as much as I love drinking it. You can pick this bad boy up for right around $12 as well; but grab two because you will quickly find that one just isn’t enough.

A word to the wise, these wines can be dangerous.  They are so light and refreshing and lower in alcohol that if you aren’t careful you might just drink the whole thing yourself…not that I have ever done anything like this.  The other nice thing is the price tag.  It is really not necessary to spend much more than $12 for a nice bottle.  With characteristics of both red and white wine these are also incredibly food friendly and their versatility allows you to serve them with just about anything.

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