Every year I invite a bunch of friends over for a start of summer BBQ. Rose wines are the flavor of the day and yesterday we went through a range of the pink juice ranging from both the 2011 and 2010 vintages withh wines from Spain, the USA and France.
Off the cuff, the 2011's from France are stunning and drinkable right now. Perhaps the most precosious of any vintage I can remember, across the board they were dry, fruity and on the mark, with three standing out from the nine French Rose's of which 8 were from 2011.
The winners were:
Provence-2011 Chateau d'Esclans Whispering Angel, Cotes de Provence is mostly Grenache with some Rolle in the blend of a total of seven different grapes.
Languedoc-2011 Domaine de Pujol Rose, Vin d' Pays de Heurault is a lovely blend of Cinsault, Carignan, Grenache and Mourvèdre.
Rhone-2011 Le Prieure de Montezargues Tavel Rose a blend of Grenache Noir and Blanc, Cinsault, Clairette, Syrah, Mourvedre, Carignan and Bourbourblanc.
Hands down the Le Prieure de Montezargues Tavel Rose was the wine of the day for being the classic French Rose, but the crispness of the Chateau d'Esclans Whispering Angel and it's pale pink color makes it the ideal poolside sipper. As for the Pujol, layers upon layers of fruit, along with the crispness it offers, along with the nice dry backbone made it a no brain choice.