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ROSE' WINE: PRETTY IN PINK




By:  Ed "The Wine Guy" 


The sale of Rosé wines has almost tripled in the last three years. My earliest memory of Rosé wine is Mateus and Lancers, both from Portugal. Mateus, once the world's most popular wine, is a light, fresh, young, moderately sweet, and slightly-sparkling wine; in the late 70s, one million (1,000,000) cases of Lancers were sold in the United States alone. Now, there are numerous Roséwines available to us, but the vast majority of them are produced by the same method. Most wine grapes, independent of the color of their skin,  produce clear or colorless juice. For a Rosé wine, the juice is allowed to remain in contact with the red skins (1 - 3 days) until a certain color is attained; the longer the contact, the deeper the color. Another, less-used method of producing a Rose' wine is to add a small amount of red wine to color up an already-made white wine. For instance, a Riesling can be made into a Rosé by adding a quantity of Cabernet Sauvignon wine or any other red wine.
Using Cabernet Sauvignon as an example, Rosé wines have been called Rosé of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Sauvignon Blush, White Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Sauvignon Blanc; the different names refer to the same wine. White Zinfandel is, in essence, a Rosé wine. There was a time - not too many years ago - that if a liquor store didn't sell White Zinfandel and Budweiser, it couldn't pay the rent/mortgage. Times have changed. Historically, Rosé wines in the United States were sweet, but tastes have changed, and the majority of people now prefer a dry (not sweet) Rosé after the manner of wines from the Provence area of France. There is nothing more refreshing, nothing more satisfying, than a glass or two of a good Rosé, Whispering Angel, for example,while sitting on the deck on a hot summer day, and eating a fresh tossed salad.
NOTE: Remember the fermentation process/equation: yeast (naturally-occurring or cultured) + sweet juice (sugar) = alcohol, sulfites, and carbon dioxide (bubbles which are captured for sparkling wines, which are released for still [non-sparkling] wines). Clear as mud? But if the fermentation process is understood, you'll be able to think about and talk about wine intelligently, and buy exactly what you want.

WILD THING ZINFANDEL 2012 MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA

WINE OF THE WEEK


WILD THING ZINFANDEL 2012
MENDOCINO, CALIFORNIA



By:  Ed "The Wine Guy"


No one, but no one, in the world makes Zinfandel as well as California. I would also say the same thing about buttery, creamy Chardonnay and full-bodied, classic Cabernet Sauvignon. That is not to say that California doesn't produce other outstanding wines, but these three, I feel, are unique to California. This Zinfandel is called wild because it uses naturally occurring wild yeast in the fermentation process. The vines are over sixty (60) years old which gives it depth of character. It is 83% Zinfandel, 15% Carignane, 2% Petite Syrah. It exhibits aromas and flavors of raspberry, blackberry, black pepper, and caramel, and some tasters have suggested cinnamon, clove, and licorice. The tannins are smooth, as well as the long finish.

Wine of the Week

COLUMBIA WINERY

MERLOT 2013

WASHINGTON STATE

 

By:  Ed "The Wine Guy"

Featuring the wines of Columbia Winery: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Red Blend, and Chardonnay, especially the Merlot. In my humble opinion, Merlot grapes grown in the Columbia Valley, Washington State, reach a level of complexity that is attained only by the Bordeaux region of France, and by Tuscany, Italy. Columbia Valley is in the same latitude as some of Europe's best wine-growing regions. The Valley is located on the Eastern side of the Cascade Range, where desert-like conditions prevail: hot, dry, sunny days, and cool, clear nights, with an abundance of runoff water from the Cascades. Ideal geography and conditions for growing complex, flavorful wine grapes. The Columbia Winery Merlot 2013 won the Best-in-Class Award at the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition. It exhibits enticing aromas and lush flavors of dark cherry, plum, toasty oak, and vanilla, with a hint of mocha. Very, very satisfying.

WINE OF THE WEEK FIRST CRUSH WINERY ZINFANDEL (visZINary) HARWICH, CAPE COD





By:  Ed "The Wine Guy"  




Having reviewed Dr. Frank Puzio's Cabernet Sauvignon in the previous installment of Wine of the Week, I now turn to his Zinfandel, a blend of 75% Zinfandel and 25% Petit Syrah. DNA studies of the Zinfandel grape have traced it to the Primitivo grape of Puglia, Italy, and from there across the Adriatic Sea to two varietals in Croatia. I enjoyed this Zinfandel from the start; the Cabernet needed aging in the bottle to reach its potential. The wine is rich and jammy with concentrated flavors of blackberry, black cherry, raspberry, black pepper, and spice. The Petit Syrah adds a deeper color and a firm, but not harsh, structure. It is a balance of intense fruit, refreshing acidity, smooth tannins, and a hint of vanilla in the finish. Thank you once again, Dr. Puzio, for producing an exquisite wine.