It is that magical time of year when the days are longer, the sun is out (hopefully) and the air is FINALLY starting to warm up (if we are lucky)….oh and the rosés are arriving! It may feel cliché to launch rosé season this time of year but we all know you love it. So we’re here to send it into the pink drink and embrace the onset of spring!

Rosé- an often misunderstood style perpetuated by…pardon my french, but shitty versions of white zinfandel or the likings of it. I cannot tell you how often I get people in here shopping and they say ‘I don’t like rosé, it’s too sweet.’ Well honey-you are drinking the wrong kind of rosé! First off- not all pink is sweet. Just because it has the most beautiful pink hue and often has a very cute label doesn’t mean it’s going to taste like a jolly rancher with a vanilla wrapper.

Let’s start with the basics. Rosé is red wine made like a white wine. Red grapes get their pigment solely from the skins; the fruit itself is clear. The skins of the red grapes are left after the pressing to macerate and pull out the color- more akin to ‘staining’ the wine. The longer it sits, the darker it becomes and it is completely up to the winemaker to determine the perfect hue. This would be the most common method for making rosé known as direct press. Saignée or ‘bled’ method is the result of bleeding off juice from the red wine production to concentrate the intensity of flavors & colors and adding to the juice. But only about 10% of rosés are made in this manner. And finally, the blending method which takes predominantly white juice and blends in a small percentage of red juice; a more common use for sparkling wines such as Champagne.

This month we are kicking off with a few of our absolute favorites that have just arrived!

Cheers

Wine Club: 2 Bottles

Folk Machine Rosé Santa Rosa California • Gamay

This beautiful baby is always one of the first rosés to land! You likely all know of Hobo Wine Company and our winemaker friend Kenny Likitprakong. Hobo being the parent company; Folk Machine, Camp, Workbook…all varying levels of the wines from this awesome company. The Folk Machine rosé is in it’s 8th year with the grapes taken directly to press and then a very light skin contact. As a continuation of their pledge to cut down on their carbon footprint the Folk Machine rosé is bottled in a lightweight green bottle; green bottles contain a much higher percentage of recycled material and their production has a lower carbon footprint. This rosé is a great kick off to the season with it’s bright acidity and soft strawberry finish.

Clos Cibonne ‘Tentations’ Provence France • Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, Tibouren

This historic property has always maintained a cult following as they earned distinction in fine tuning the Tibouren grape variety and it’s ability to make complex & age worthy rose. The modern era of this estate began when the Roux family in ean-Baptiste de Cibon, a captain in the royal marines of Louis XVI in 1793. In the early 1930s, André Roux forever changed the trajectory of this estate by planting it completely the rare variety Tibouren. This leadership under Roux would be the catalyst for bringing fame to the rosés of Clos Cibonne and eventually resulting in the inclusion of Tibouren into the region’s list of accepted varieties. Skip forward through a couple highs & lows, Olivier Deforges took over the estate in 1980s and helped bring the estate back to its former prestige. The land has been converted and is now certified organic. In addition to their traditional estate wines, they started the Cibonne Tentations line which offers an accessible and high level entry point into the traditional Côtes de Provence rosés. The Tentations rosé is a blend of mainly Grenache & Cinsault, aged in all stainless steel and is surely a perfect tease of what the Clos Cibonne wines offer.

Wine Club: 3-4 Bottles

Lamoresca ‘Rosato’ Sicily Italy • Nero d’Avola, Frappato, Zibibbo

The wines of Lamoresca are the reason I got into natural wine in the first place…specifically the ‘Nerocapitano’ which is 100% Frappato. When I went on a wine trip to Italy back in 2018 I got to finally meet Filippo Rizzo. I was starstruck hah! Lamoresca is an estate located southwest of MT. Etna and is it the only winery for 50 square km. They only have 4 hectares under vine and then rest of their 11 hectares consists of rare olive varieties. The rose is a blend of frappato, nero d’avola & zibibbo; the blend of Frappato and Nero d'Avola brings in the playfulness and structure, and a bit of Zibibbo adds a subtle flowery touch. Amazing to drink now but certainly a wine that can benefit from some age as well!

Bodegas los Bermejos ‘Rosado’ Canary Islands Spain • Listàn Negro

Bermejos is on the easternmost island of Lanzarote. in the Canary Islands of Spain. Only 125km from the African coast, conditions here are extreme to say the least. A volcanic explosion that lasted from 1730-1736 covered the entire island in lava and ash 3-5 meters deep. Consequently, each vine must be planted in a hole or hoyo that breaks through that infertile volcanic crust of petrified lava to the organic matter that can nourish it. The wind, which acts as a natural fungicide, is so ferocious that each hoyo is surrounded by rock walls for protection. The grape yields are extremely limited and concentrated due to this meticulous process. After a string of difficult vintages 2023 boasted a successful product with the resulting rosé full of aromas of pomegranate, strawberries, and subtle flavors with refreshing acidity.