Rosé - anyone drinking it?

[Ozzie W]

I don't see much mention of Rosé on this forum, apart from the very occasional TN or mention in the 'Purchases' thread. Is anyone drinking it?

As the weather warms up, I'm finding that I no longer want to drink big reds and I'm finding drinking Rosé quite satisfying. Those who've been following my posts over the years will know that I don't get much enjoyment from drinking white wines, but there's something about good Rosé that ticks the boxes for me. They also pair well with a wide variety of food.

Most Rosé in Australia seem to be produced as an after-thought, a way of using up excess grapes and making a bit of extra money for the winery. They often taste like lolly water. But there seems to be more and more purposely made high quality Rosé that are balanced, complex and with a dry finish.

I had a Mac Forbes Woori Yallock Rosé the other day that I thoroughly enjoyed. It was complex, balanced, had a great acidity on the finish and even some noticeable tannins. That's probably the best Rosé I've ever had. Rosé by Alex Head and Luke Lambert are another couple I've had before which I really liked. I haven't tried any Old World Rosé yet.

Interested to hear other people's thoughts on what appears to be an often overlooked wine style.

[Matt@5453]

Yes, I am drinking Rose at the moment (first time for a long time). Totally agree, it pairs well with so many food styles. I am not alone, a lot of my wine drinking friends are drinking Rose at the moment.

It seems every man and his dog is making a Rose from Vintage 2016. It is a fast growing category and a lot of producers are jumping on the band wagon. From what I have experienced there is some ‘tripe’ out there; over extracted, too much skin contact, and in some instances too much residual sugar (I won’t name names). I think it was last week, there was a Rose ‘symposium’ in the Barossa with some French producers from Provence in attendance focusing on winemaking & viticulture techniques, hopefully for the betterment of this category.

I prefer mine ‘dry’, a touch of sweetness is okay, but not too much.

My preferred Roses are made from Pinot Noir or Grenache and this is what I tend to stick too. Some producers that I would suggest seeking out are:

Turkey Flat - Grenache
Claymore Wines - Grenache
Bird in Hand – Pinot Noir
Taylors Wines – Taylor Made – Pinot Noir
La Prova - Aglianico
KT Wines - Tempranillo and Grenache
Mr Micks - Sangiovese

I must admit I enjoy Rose the most when it’s in a large glass, lots of ice, sipping in the spa on a hot day.

[Rocky]

When weather warms I switch to riesling and mineral driven chardonnay. No real interest in rose'.

[ufo]

NOON does a very good Rose.

[Mahmoud Ali]

From what I have experienced there is some ‘tripe’ out there; over extracted, too much skin contact, and in some instances too much residual sugar (I won’t name names).

Why not - otherwise how will the rest of us know what not to buy?

To the list of good rosés that you are prepared to name I would add Charles Melton's Rose of Virginia.

Mahmoud.

[Mahmoud Ali]

To answer Ozzie's question, I agree, we don't drink and write enough about rosés and it's very true that many are made as an afterthought and rather forgettable. In our household, during the summer we like to have a rosé on hand but never seem to find enough examples on the market here.

Mahmoud.

[Ozzie W]

Thanks for the recommendations. Keep them coming.

Another one that I've enjoyed is the Farr Rising Saignée Rosé, which as the name suggests is made in the saignée style. Juice is extracted from black grapes pressed under their own weight. There’s no grape skin contact in the tanks. I believe it's also matured in older oak barrels.

The style of Rosé that I enjoy most seems to be much closer to a red wine than a white, with a dry finish and a splattering of tannins.

[Barney]

When weather cools down I switch to riesling and mineral driven chardonnay. No real interest in rose'.

Times 2......

[Chuck]

Rose is banned from this house although we may try some if out and about on a hot day. Agree with Rocky too. A good rizza or modern OZ chardy is great in warm weather particularly with anything from the sea - fish, prawns, oysters etc. Riesling was invented soon after oysters.

[Rory]

[dingozegan]

I enjoy rosé and drink it reasonably often. I prefer a more savoury style (bone dry, light-medium weight, and not too fruit forward) so it's harder to find what I'm looking for (especially from Australia). Much Aussie rosé is overtly fruity/confected, too heavy on the palate (and sometimes quite sweet) for me, and a large part of that might be because it's a production afterthought. There are some examples with r.s. and confected fruit that aren't bad (e.g., Charles Melton's Rose of Virginia) but it's not a style I go for.

Krinklewood's used to near-fit the bill when they used Tempranillo, but I don't think they're doing that anymore. Logan's Hannah Rose isn't too far off the mark. Fairbank (not the Sutton Grange label), too, though the winemaker recently changed and I'm not sure if the style has too. Canobolas Smith's Barrel Aged Rosé is interesting as an example of an unusual rosé - also might be enjoyable if you're more a red drinker.

I'd more often than not head to Provence: Rimauresq routinely delivers and I'd recommend it. The 2015 from Domaine du Gros Nore is ripe in style and has some weight, yet has sufficient acidity to keep it refreshing - I'd recommend it too.

[Redback]

On a hot summer day, I don't mind a rose with a light meal. Cracked open a David Franz Red Rose last weekend with a pesto pasta. Made from a batch of 108 varieties, it is made in a dry style and was quite enjoyable. Turkey Flat is also a regular buy during Summer.

[Redav]

I'm not big on rosé but to be fair, I probably haven't tried enough. The pick so far has been Rockford's Alicante Bouchet. I probably should try some more but the spot where we'd drink it is filled by Bungawarra Festival Red.

[sjw_11]

It was 4o here is the other day... For Xmas I am headed to Moscow where it is currently -11o albeit "mostly sunny" according to Google...... I think I might pass on the chilled Rose for the time being.

My preference is normally for the drier styles, but it all depends on the crucial element of balance. In the past I have enjoyed Rockies' Alicante, Hugh Hamilton's Floozie (often made in the past from Sangiovese), Turkey Flat is always dependable. I am slightly less enamoured of Charlie Melton's relative to its lofty reputation.

Looking at Cellar Tracker I am reminded Philip Shaw from Orange does a Rose which when I tried it was very good. Though it also shows only 2.2% of the 1,450 bottles I have logged over time as "consumed" were Rose! I guess something I more frequently impulse buy and never log in the spreadsheet, or consume while out and about in the sunshine...

[maybs]

I definitely enjoy rose this time of year and my wife loves it, so we get through a bit.

So far my Rose of the summer is the Pret a Rose by Schmolzer and Brown. Beechworth 50/50 Sangiovese and Pinot. Quite good. As an aside their Chardonnay is also excellent and their Pinot quite good.

The Farr Rising Saignee mentioned above is good. Serrat fourre tout is interesting. Circe Pinot rose good. Vinoque (de bortoli) Nebbiolo rose is interesting. Amisfield (NZ) pinot Rose quite good. Neudorf (NZ) Pinot rose really good. Have enjoyed a few others that don't immediately jump to mind.

[paulf]

Rose and Riesling tend to be my go to wines in the heat of summer. As long as it isn't too sweet and finishes dry then I am pretty happy, but that probably rules out at least two thirds of the Australian production. The Turkey flat has been mentioned a lot already. I've enjoyed Spinifex in the past, they used to have a second label called Cigale which I liked. I have some Amelia Park from WA in the wine fridge at the moment.
I do drink a bit of Provence rose as it usually is dry enough for my tastes. I have also had Portuguese stuff (no, not Mateus) made partially with Alicante Bouchet which I get when I can find it.

[Ian S]

I'm not a great fan at all, but odd bottles have been enjoyable. Seemingly going against perceived wisdom, I have enjoyed a few pink champagnes - they are often derided.

I'm planning to pick up some Musar, and I suspect this is the style of Rose for me - challenging & ageworthy, not worried at what a little oxygen might do. I also should try what the natural wine movement has to offer in such wines, even if it might have a touch of the scrumpy cider about it!

Very occasionally I'll take something more youthful/fruity and then it's about getting something with a bit of body, such as Charles Melton Rose of Virginia or Il Rogito from Cantine del Notaio in Basilicata, Italy

*I suspect less than 1% of my drinking

regards
Ian

* yes, that may well approximate to the proportion of hot days over here per year, but that is purely coincidental

[Mahmoud Ali]

There are some examples with r.s. and confected fruit that aren't bad (e.g., Charles Melton's Rose of Virginia) but it's not a style I go for.

I am slightly less enamoured of Charlie Melton's relative to its lofty reputation.

I'm beginning to think that the style Melton's rosé has changed since I was last in Australia. If that's the case then it is unfortunate because a '98 Rose of Virgina that I found in a drive-through bottle shop in the McLaren Vale, back in 2001, and which I brought back to Canada, was a fine drop when a decade old.

Mahmoud.

[Teisto]

Drink a bit of it over summer. My regulars are

Head
Torbreck Saignee - mataro
Brokenwood - which is nebbiolo based

Looking for a reasonable Pinot based one .... any recommendations?

[Polymer]

In general, I dislike Rose....but that's mostly because I've generally had bad Rose...There have been some interesting ones out there...I generally look at it is, if the winemaker is TRYING to make a good Rose, they often can....If it is just an afterthought or a way to make a few extra bucks with little effort, it shows..

Savory, good acid, maybe even a tad bit of grip..something refreshing but not void of any interest...

[rens]

I've been drinking a bit over the last few years. Nothing has blown me away although most have been an acceptable quaffer on a hot and humid Brisbane afternoon. That said most have been Aussie and I've recently purchased some of the lower end French Rosé:
ABBOTTS & DELAUNAY 'DOMAINE DE LA METAIRIE D’ALON' ORGANIC ROSE 2015
CHATEAU RIOTOR ROSE 2015
FAMILLE NEGREL NUIT BLANCHE COTES DE PROVENCE ROSE 2014
All of which I'm yet to try.
If any are worth buying again, I'll post accordingly.

[maybs]

Drink a bit of it over summer. My regulars are

Head
Torbreck Saignee - mataro
Brokenwood - which is nebbiolo based

Looking for a reasonable Pinot based one .... any recommendations?

See my post above.

[Michael McNally]

I had the 2015 Hoddles Creek Rose on Thursday night. Really good. Salmon in colour, I presume it's a Pinot. Savoury, refreshing and moreish. We ordered another bottle!

Cheers

Michael

[Red Smurf]

Love drinking rosé. Often a good lead into a nice bottle of Champagne for us.
Pinot based Domaine Collotte Marsannay rosé is good as is F. Cotet Pinot rosé. I Also like Ch. Riotor and I'm aging some Pegau rosé.
I really like WA based Dormilona and her tempranillo rosé.

[Mark Carrington]

Our favourite rosé during the summer just gone - 2015 Château La Martinette Côtes de Provence Rollier de La Martinette.

[Teisto]

Drink a bit of it over summer. My regulars are

Head
Torbreck Saignee - mataro
Brokenwood - which is nebbiolo based

Looking for a reasonable Pinot based one .... any recommendations?

See my post above.

Thanks

[kaos]

Mike Press (pinot noir) is a top value quaffing rose

[Ozzie W]

Some great comments and recommendations. I'll have to seek out some Old World Rosé to try. And also the Hoddles Creek... I didn't realise Franco even made a Rosé.

[Ozzie W]

I'm away on holidays and lo and behold in my local Bottle-O is a bottle of 2015 Ott Clos de Mireille. Perfect opportunity to try an iconic old world Rosé. It didn't disappoint. Such a clean wine and wonderful drinking on a hot day.

[shirazphile]

My go to wine for summer along with white (chardonnay and riesling).

Rose is a great option for someone who loves red wine. Very refreshing, matches with a lot of foods, and has that flavour we all love in red wine.