Chilled rosés are light, but still flavourful, and are ideal for sipping on a hot day. That’s why more rosé wines are sold during the summer than at any other time of the year.
Grape juice from white and red grapes is green. Most of a wine’s flavour and colour comes not from the juice, but from the skins of the grapes. Add yeast into a vat of grape juice from a ‘red wine’ grape such as Cabernet Sauvignon and you’ll end up with a white wine. To get a bit of colour into it, red grape skins need to be put into the brew.
The longer they are left in, the more colour and flavour is leached out. For a delicate rose-coloured wine like Rosé D’Anjou the grape skins are left in the wine for just a few hours. Leave the skins in for up to three days and even more of the grape’s colour and flavour will move into the wine – the resulting dark-coloured rosé could be mistaken for a light red.
Too little soaking will result in a flavourless wine while too much can result in ‘off’ aromas. The light strawberry flavours and raspberry aromas of the best rosés are due as much to the skill and judgment of the winemaker as the quality of the grapes.
PG Wine Reviews
SPAR Italian Garganega Pinot Grigio Blush 2017
£5.50 SPAR
A nice light and fruity rosé with a sweet edge.
The Big Top White Zinfandel rosé 2017, California
£7.99 Virgin Wines
Sweet with flavours of apple juice and lemon.
Trapiche Pure Rosé 2017, Argentina
£7.99 Co-op
More of a white wine than a rosé with its flavours of apple and almond.
La Belle Angele French rosé 2017
£8.99 Majestic
Pretty label and pretty wine. Light and fruity.
16 Little Black Pigs 2017, Australia rosé
£8.99 Virgin Wines
A versatile rosé – light and creamy.
Domaine Montrose French rosé 2017
£12.50 (equivalent price, sold in 6s for £75) Justerini and Brooks
A sweet-sour food-friendly rosé ith flavours of light strawberry, apple and redcurrant.
Kayra Turkish Beyaz Kalecik Karas 2017, rosé
£13.46 Novel Wines
Expensive but unusual with flavours of apple and strawberry.
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© Paula Goddard 2018 www.paulagoddard.com
