The World of Rosé

First published in The Irish Times, Saturday 22nd July, 2017

I cast my net fairly wide to find some nice rosés to drink over the summer months. Last week, I focused on the trendy rosés of Provence. Today, a wider look at the world through pink goggles. Often ignored as simple and frivolous, particularly by men it must be said, (isn’t wine supposed to be fun?) rosé is the essence of summer, great for sipping in the shade on a hot day, or with light salads and cold meats and fish. It comes in all shapes and sizes, from the palest, lightly tinged, almost white, to deeply-coloured salmon-pink wines. Colour is not always an accurate guide, but generally the deeper the colour, the more fruit and flavour in the wine. Rosé varies from delicate to powerful, and from bone-dry to sweet. It also depends on the winemaking.

 The most common way to make a rosé wine is to leave the grape skins in contact with the freshly crushed juice for a short period; this can be anything from two to 12 hours. It is possible to use any red grape but some are more suitable than others. Grapes with thick skins can add too much colour and unwanted tannins very quickly. Once removed from the skins, the wine is then fermented as a white wine. A second closely related method is saignée, French for bled. For this, a winemaker bleeds off a small amount of free-run juice from freshly crushed, but unpressed red grapes. The resulting rosé wine can be very good, and the bonus for the winemaker is that the remaining grapes will have a higher concentration of colour and fruit for a red wine.

Dollops and charcoal

Two other, less common, methods are blending and charcoal. Blending simply means adding a small dollop of red wine to white. This is banned in some countries, but widely practised for Champagne and other sparkling wines. Although this method is dismissed by some, it certainly makes for some very good pink Champagne. Charcoal is occasionally used to remove colour (or off-flavours) from a wine. The problem is it removes some of the fruit as well. One last method, rarely used, and very hard to control, is simply fermenting red and white grapes together.

Mitchell & Son has a new range of wines from Trudie Styler and Sting from their estate in Tuscany, under the name Beppé , including the very stylish light dry Rosato below. This is mainly Sangiovese, a grape that can produce delicious rosé.

The intriguing Vaglio rosé below is made from a bewildering array of grapes; 40 per cent Malbec, 25 per cent Pinot Noir, 20 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon with 13 per cent Syrah and 2 per cent of the white grape Torrontés. The person responsible is José Lovaglio, the son of highly regarded winemaker Susana Balbo.

Vaglio Rosé 2016, Uco Valley, Argentina

12% (€15)

 A very pale colour with delicate lively fresh juicy red fruits and an off-dry finish.

 Stockists: Marks & Spencer.

Beppé Rosato Toscano 2016

12% (€18.95)

Perfumed with lovely delicate light strawberry and apple fruits.

Stockists: Mitchell & Son, chq, Sandycove, Avoca Kilmacanogue and Dunboyne; Sheridan’s, Galway.

Massaya Classic Rosé 2016, Bekka Valley, Lebanon

13.5 per cent (€22.50)

 Complex fresh red fruits, plenty of lively acidity and a dry finish. Perfection with a plate of meze?

 Stockists: JNwine.com

Ch Haut-Rian Bordeaux Rosé

12.5% (€12.95)

 A delicious Cabernet Merlot blend at a great price. Light but full of red and white peach fruits with a dry finish. Great summer drinking.

 Stockist: Wines Direct, Mullingar & Arnott’s, Dublin.

The best French wines you’ve never heard of

On Friday the French celebrate their fête nationale, otherwise known as le quatorze juillet or, outside France at least, Bastille Day. France is home to some of the world’s greatest wines. Everyone has heard of Bordeaux, burgundy and champagne. Yet the country offers so much more than these. The real France is made up of countless small regions producing unique local wines made from grape varieties unheard of elsewhere.

I am talking about Mondeuse from Savoie; Fer Servadou from Marcillac and Gaillac; Courbu, Gros Manseng and Petit Manseng from Jurançon; Arbois from Cheverny; Savagnin from Jura; and many more besides. Add the more familiar regions, such as Sancerre, Muscadet, Beaujolais and Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and you have the greatest number of grape varieties and regions known to humankind. The only countries that can compete in terms of variety are Italy and Greece.

At times it seems as if we know each and every area only to find several regions, previously known only to the wine anorak, suddenly spring to prominence. Jurançon and Jura would certainly fit this category; Marcillac and Savoie are waiting their turn, although both are available through the more adventurous importers.

The word “artisan” is widely abused, but many of these wines are made by small farmers who often struggle for recognition in a world increasingly dominated by large brands. Quality can be mixed, although the current generation certainly make better wine than their predecessors. The good producers are really worth seeking out, as they offer wines with real character and terroir (another much-abused term), often at reasonable prices.

You won’t find them for €6.99 in your local supermarket, as nobody can make a profit at this price. But spend €10-€15 and you can find wines of individuality and interest – or, for a few euro more, wines of depth and complexity. The three wines below have all of these qualities.

France also has the advantage of being close by. Shipping small quantities of wine from Australia and Argentina can be prohibitively expensive. It is far easier for specialist importers to access a few dozen cases of the more recherche French wines. Food, wine and France are inextricably linked. It is hard to think of one without the others. Each region has dishes to accompany the local wines. I know many readers have spent happy holidays meandering along picturesque country roads, discovering the home-grown cuisine. France produces every style of wine, from the lightest refreshing white to the most robust red. Anyone who claims they don’t like French wine hasn’t tried hard enough – or doesn’t like wine.

Bottles of the Week

Gloire de Mon Père 2014, Tour des Gendres, Côtes de Bergerac 12.5%, €21.50

A silky, seamless, elegant red wine awash with soft ripe blackcurrants. Perfect for a posh dinner party. From Blackrock Cellars, Le Caveau, Corkscrew, 64 Wine, Green Man Wines

Jurançon Sec Vitatge Vielh 2012 Clos Lapeyre 13.5%, €22

Unpronounceable and unputdownable. Stunning wine with rich honey, orange-peel and pineapple fruits, a strong mineral seam, and a long, bone-dry finish. From 64 Wine, Green Man Wines

Berthet-Bondet Côtes du Jura Tradition 2013 13%, €31

Captivating fino-like wine with tangy, racy, crisp apple fruits, grilled nuts and a dry finish. From the Corkscrew, Chatham Street.