Dry Rose Season!

"Pink Wines?!? Not for me, they're all sweet like White Zinfandel, right?" Whoa, stop the train and back it up a bit. Here's the real story.

Pink wines or Roses as they are usually referred to, are not all sweet and syrupy. In fact most rose wines are bone dry and loved by red wine enthusiasts. Think of them like the light refreshing version of your favorite red wines. They are the perfect Spring time sipping wines because they have the flavors and complexity of a red wine with the light easy drinking body of a white wine. The best of both worlds!

Rose wines are really interesting wines. First off, they are made the same way that red wines are. The only difference is that the skins of the grapes are pulled off early. This is usually after a few days (the longer they are left on the darker the color of the wine) . This results in a lighter color (pink instead of red) and less drying, bitter tannins. In Europe, people drink dry rose wines all year long, but here in the US we tend to only drink them in Spring and Summer if at all.

Tip: Drink your roses fresh, meaning current vintage, and the current vintage is 2012.  Most roses will start arriving beginning of March thru April. 

A snapshot of Great Rose Wine Regions  from around the World:

French- These tend to be light, strawberry inflected easy drinking wines made for warm weather and light foods.

Spanish-  These tend to be darker, dryer rose wines that can stand up to nice summer BBQ fare without losing a beat.

Italian- Mostly made from heavier grapes like Nebbiolo, these wines like their Spanish neighbors are richer and hold up to heavier, meatier foods.

Portuguese-  These tend to be very light silky wines that are very refreshing.

American-  These tend to be medium weight wines that go great by themselves, but have enough weight to stand up to lighter  summer meals.

Check Out Some of Our Favorite Dry Roses for the Spring/Summer Season:
Olivares, Rose (Spain) $9.99
Charles and Charles, Rose (California) $10.99
Mas de Gourgonier, Rose (France) $13.99
Crios, Rose of Malbec (Argentina) $11.99
Whispering Angel, Rose (France) $19.99
Goats do Roam, Rose (South Africa) $8.99
Miraval, Rose (France) $22.99
Domaine de Fontsainte, Rose (France) $15.99
Moulin de Gassac, Rose (France) $9.99