Image of red grapes being pressed for rosé juice.
We should all say thank you to Barbie for reminding us of the power of Pink. This year’s summer blockbuster smash pairs perfectly with the historical drink of summer - Rosé. Year after year, we can expect more featured Rosés as the temperatures rise. Marketing capitalizes on the association between a pink glass of wine and pure summer fun. Maybe my opening night viewing of Barbie reinvigorated my desires for bubbly, pink, and pure fun. Summer is Rosé time.
A Little Background
Why is Rosé so beloved? Every type of wine drinker can get a little excited at the idea of drinking some Rosé. There is no fear no matter your wine skill level, just [enjoyment/to enjoy food and drink].
Other wines have the perception of being very serious and unapproachable. Drinking a Piedmont Nebbiolo with its rich tannins isn’t easy for a casual drinker to approach with ease. Rosé isn’t as much work. It just invites you to have fun. A little black dress type of wine that you can dress up if you want to impress or dress down if you have a casual kickback on your porch.
Having drunk Rosé for years, I never turned an analytical eye to this style of wine. Often, I would avoid Rosé as the most common encounter that I had was with overly sweet Rosés that could double as soda. Then I wondered, is this aversion warranted? I needed to ask some important questions.
What even is Rosé? Is this a grape? Where can this wine be made and how do they do it? Can I find more complex Rosés?
Knowing that there had to be more to this style of wine, I decided to conduct a casual experiment with no academic rigor. I invited 8 friends over to my house to taste 10 different Rosés. Well, I bought 6 and people brought their own bottles so we got to 8…
A series of 8 rosé / tinted wines. The group’s take on each of them below!
What’s Rosé?
Before I get to the experiment, let’s learn a little more about Rosé Wines. Rosé is not a grape but rather a method of making wine. Much like we hear about orange wines, think of them as cousins.
When making the wine, the color is determined by the grape type and the length of skin contact. Skin contact is key here. To make a Rosé, the winemaker allows for skin contact for anywhere between 2-24 hours. Length of time is a cosmetic choice made by the winemaker who has control over the particular hue of pink. Color variety in Rosé is wide. From rouge and dark pinks all the way to bubblegum pastel colors, Rosé can be any pink under the sun (Though I am waiting to find one the official Barbie pink - #e0218a).
The taste of this wine can be just as varied due to the wide number of grapes at the disposal of the winemaker. The typical flavor profiles associated with a Rosé wine are berry, floral, melon, citrus, and sometimes even herbal. Though this is a general profile; it can get more expansive and unique. The fun of Rosé is the ton of different styles, each with its own signature.
The most popular style of Rosé is from the Provence region in France, confined only to “Pays d’Oc” labeling. It’s easy to find in most grocery stores and is usually the taste people think of when they think of Rosé. Provence-style Rosé can be made from a number of grapes, Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, Cabernet-Sauvignon, and Mourvèdre, to name a few. Staying in France, another great region for rosé would be the Loire Valley. In our experiment, it would have been a mighty challenge drinking a Rosé from every classification so instead, I picked out some types that piqued my interest. We drank a Provence Rosé, Grenache Rosé, Syrah Rosé, Pinot Noir Rosé, and a Sangiovese Rosé.
The Experiment
For the experimental tasting, I prepared the wine bottles by placing them in brown paper bags and labeling them with a number. No one else, besides myself, was privy to the type of wine being poured. Out on the table, I had prepared sparkling wine, neutral crackers, and nuts to help cleanse the palette for the tasters. I tried to randomize the order of the wines tasted so that it wouldn’t be a linear transition between traditional Rosé to non-traditional Rosé. The wines brought by guests were also intermixed in the drinking order. I wanted curveballs to be unexpected.
Paper notebooks weto the guests and asked them to take whatever notes they wanted and to rate the wines as they go. No specific feedback was communicated besides the rating. The people attending were experienced wine drinkers to complete novices with no experience in tasting wine.
Here is the list of all the wines sampled:
Chateau Routas Cotes De Provence Rose 2022
Cinsault Syrah Rose 2021
Emma Reichat Rose P.N. 2022
Xirimiri Rose 2021
Zestos Rosado Old-Vine Garnacha 2020
Korbel Sweet Rose
Phesant’s Tears Rkatstteli Tibaani 2020
Time Warp Pet Nat Rose 2022
The Breakdown
Chateau Routas Cotes De Provence
Rose 2022
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Score: 4/10
Started with this more traditional version of a French Rose. The group was split half noted that the alcohol taste was strong while the others noted that while it was dry, it had an acidic bite. The flavor was faint in this wine, lightly floral, with an earthy aftertaste lingering on the palette.
Laurent Miquel
Cinsault Syrah Rose 2021
Score: 7/10
This wine was a fan favorite of the group with two people writing remarking, “would definitely drink again!”. Unlike the first wine, this bottle had a fuller body with a great balance between sweet and savory notes. Someone also remarked that it was smooth and easy to drink because of the lower acidity.
Emma Reichart Rose Pinot Noir 2022
Score: 6/10
This wine was on many lists as a great Rose option from Trader Joe’s - meaning I had to try it at my blind taste test. Overall, it was pretty middle-of-the-road. My guinea pigs…I mean test subjects noted that it was very acidic and quite a few caught that it was a Californian wine. Someone wrote, “watered down” which I found hilarious. It was very sharp on the nose and smelled pretty nice. There were citrus notes that added to the acidity. I would still buy this again because of the price but it isn’t a Rose for a special occasion.
Xirimiri Rose 2021
Score: 5.5/10
Myself, I wasn’t a fan of this wine giving it a 3/10. In a turn of events, I was overruled. Everyone else rated this wine higher. Cherry notes are likely what brought down the score for me. Though other people liked it calling it “soda wine”. People remarked that it was “tangy” and could likely have a greater amount of skin contact, which from the color of the wine I would agree with.
Zestos Rosado Old-Vine Garnacha 2020
Score: 3/10
Sadly, this was one of the lowest-ranked wines of the group. The taste of alcohol was thought to be extremely overbearing to a few tasters. One person remarked that it tasted “spoiled” while others just though it was “an underdeveloped hard seltzer”. I do want to try another Garnacha Rose to see if there are renditions I would like more.
Korbel Sweet Rose
Score: 7/10
The curve ball I through in became a boomerang that hit me from behind. I added this Korbel classic as a joke and it became one of the most popular Rose wines of the night. Only myself and another friend held steady to our morals and did not fall to its charm. People loved the strawberry notes and how much it tasted like sparkling juice. It got two 10/10! The people want what the people want, however, I am not converted.
Pheasant's Tears Rkatsiteli Tibaani 2020
Score: 3.5/10
The wine with the greatest score range received both a 0/10 and an 8/10. This wine is a walk-on from an attendee and is technically an orange wine. (Though the difference between Orange wine and Rose is using white grapes v. red grapes). This wine was a full-grown adult. One person remarked it was like “dog’s hair and licorice” They have it a 7/10. To me, it was pretty dry with moderate tannins. It almost tasted like a fortified wine, but this is because the wine is not aged in stainless steel or oak barrels but rather aged in a Qvevri. The Qvevri is an egg-shaped earthenware vessel used for making, aging, and storing the wine used in the Caucasus region.
Time Warp Pet Nat Rose 2022
Score: 6/10
This was another middle-of-the-road wine. A Pet Nat (naturally fermented, low sugar, sparkling wine) this wine mostly tasted like cider. Which I consider a win personally! I could easily drink this bottle again because it is reminiscent of cider. The group agreed with 4 tasters writing it tasted like cider. It was crisp and had just the right level of sweetness with notes of apple, herbs, and a little lemon. It could be a bit disappointing if you are looking for a traditional Rose wine experience, however.
Conclusion
Like always, I left this wine experience pleasantly surprised. Everyone contributed keen insights, even the less experienced wine drinkers, and could form opinions trusting their own palette. Wine can and should be enjoyed by everyone and it was comforting to know that all experience levels were able to enjoy and learn.
Some wines were sleeper stars. That Cinsault Syrah Rose 2021!! It was the best Rose option in the bunch. It reminded you of that classic Rose taste of light, floral, and berry but with just a little more to keep you interested. The acid wasn’t too high and it paired extremely well with the tinned fish that I provided as snacks. I can’t wait to drink that wine again and again. Korbel really showed out as well, wine drinkers with a lot of experience and wine drinkers with no experience both loved this wine. It could be because it is commercially produced, but they really crafted a more universal bottle. I don’t know if I will be buying any Korbel Rose in the future, but I have a greater understanding and appreciation for the people who do.
Sure, read my perspective and make impressions but ultimately, drinking wine is fun because you get to define it for yourself. No one else can taste wine the way you do!
After this experiment, I realized that there is a bottle out there for everyone to enjoy…it just may not be your bottle too (looking at you, Korbel Sweet Rose). How can you get closer to the things you like? Knowing more about yourself. Do you like sweeter wines? Or the drier the better. Maybe every time you drink a French wine you are pleasantly surprised but an Italian wine isn’t quite as yummy.
Once you know yourself, allow yourself to be surprised. Imbibing should be fun and a way to explore different experiences. As long as it is tasty to you, it doesn’t really matter what TikTok rates it.
Happy Experimenting,
Makayla
ride *your* rosé wave
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ride *your* rosé wave 〰️