Beat the Heat with a Versatile Rosé

Fifteen years ago, we made a dry rosé from Zinfandel grapes at Zin Valle Vineyards.

It was good but we could not sell the wine. Matter of fact, we could barely get customers to even try it.

Even though it was a dry wine, everyone said it looked like a sweet White Zinfandel. We even wrote an article for the local newspaper with the headline, “Real Men Drink Rosé” to no avail.

Today, however, our Desert Rosé is on a sales frenzy at Zin Valle Vineyards, and every winery makes some version of it.

Worldwide sales of rosé have boomed with over $3.2 billion – with a ‘b’ – in total sales in 2022.

And it seems everyone is getting involved.

George Lucas’ Skywalker Vineyards bought a rosé estate in France. 

George and Amal Clooney are also in the rosé business spending $7.5 million dollars in 2021 to buy Domaine du Candel in France.

Former NBA player Tony Parker is a noted rosé producer. He owns Chateau La Mascarone in Le Luc, France.

In their divorce, even Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are fighting over their Miraval Rosé estate in France.

Rising in popularity is one thing, but many consumers still don’t take rosé seriously.

So, what exactly is rosé and how is it made?

Wine Spectator featured rosé in its recent August 2022 issue in an article entitled “The Serious Side of Rosé.” The writer explored the wine in greater detail.  According to Wikipedia, “a rosé is a type of wine that incorporates some of the color from the grape skins, but not enough to qualify it as a red wine.” 

A fact we often share in our tasting room is that any red grape can be vinified into a rosé.

Color, balance and flavor are still variables depending on the producer, country of origin and varietal of grape used.

The oldest of known wines, rosé is made in one of three ways: 1) skin contact with the grapes of only 2 to 24 hours; 2) the Saignee’ method (French bleeding) by removing pink juice from the red wine “must” and fermenting the wine separately, or 3) simply mixing red wine with white wine, a highly unfavored method. 

The pink color of rosé can range from pale orange to a near purple shade depending on the winemaker’s preference and the grapes used.

Known as rosé in the United States, France, Portugal and most English-speaking countries, it is called rosado in Spain, and rosato in Italy.

Rosé can be a still wine, a sparkling wine or semi-sparkling, with its sweetness varying from dry to sweet White Zinfandel.

The aroma and flavors range from a mineral like taste to a full fruit bodied wine, depending on the grape varietals used, with the better ones in the United States made from Pinot Noir or Syrah.

In France, the quality rosés are made from Grenache, Mourvèdre and Cinsault and are generally favored from the Tavel or Provence regions.

Many of us recall the early days of rosé made by Mateus and Lancers. Sutter Homes White Zinfandel in 1975 came about because of a stuck fermentation of a Red Zinfandel.

Today, you can even find rosé served frozen at bars, in a popular drink called Frose.

All easy to drink with a mineral like finish and a light refreshing berry taste, you will find rosé a great poolside summer wine alternative.

It costs less to produce, so it is also sold at very reasonable prices.

It’s summer – time to give rosé a try!