While I think rosés have become something of a fetish over the last few years, they’re still a great way to shake off the winter, and there are many attractive wines at fair prices. In fact, a winemaker’s rosé might be significantly less expensive than their other wines.
Crush Wine, here in New York, advertises a War Of The Rosés each year around this time. (By the way, I recommend getting on Crush’s mailing list if you like to read about wine. They send out excellent emails that are well-written, informative, and persuasive––guard your wallet!) I like to think of myself as a lover rather than a warrior, so I staged a little Rosé Three-Way last week.
Long Island winery Wölffer Estate’s 2008 Rosé Table Wine is the new vintage of what is always a lovely and, if you’re in New York, locally produced wine. I love its pale hue and orange-hued sparkle. It smells like a strawberry patch on a wet late-spring day a month before you find any berries. I served it with some pan-fried little porgies over Memorial Day weekend. Speaking of fish, Eric Ripert of Le Bernadin usually buys up a good parcel of this wine. Supplies don’t last until autumn, so buy it while you can. $11.99 at Appellation Wine and Spirits.
Our second bedfellow is made in the Loire Valley by Thierry Puzelat, whose zanily cerebral, naturally-produced wines changed the way I think about drinking. His 2008 KO Vin de Table Français is made from Cot, which is the Loire dialect’s name for Malbec, and which means this is a pretty unique wine. It’s not overpoweringly aromatic, but it has incredibly acidity, making it incredibly drinkable. At a surprising 13% alcohol, watch out! A refreshing, if surprisingly refined, introduction to Puzelat wines. Chambers Street Wines has it for $13.99.
And lastly, the swarthier Las Rocas de San Alejandro’s 2008 Rosado from Spain. Las Rocas makes great, affordable wine. The red Garnacha was being served all over Brooklyn this year; it’s one of Embury Editor-in-Chief Jason Rowan’s favorites. I think the rosé is even better. It’s chalkier, and thus a little less refreshing than the other wines, but it’s also the deepest and maybe the most versatile, food-wise, of the three. It’s also the least expensive; Chelsea Wine Vault had it on sale for $9.99 last week. Buy it for barbeques, it will stand up well to the smoke.
Whichever rosé you buy, look for a 2008. These wines are made to be drunk fresh. Stuart Krimko
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