Until fairly recently, rosé wine, whether still or bubbly, did not have a great reputation. Worse, it suffered from a perception (too often rooted in partial reality) of not even being a real wine, more like an aestival beverage, only to be drunk on festive occasions beside a pool or a lavish BBQ in replacement of beer – ultimately translating into a serious headache the next morning, made worse by added sulphates for conservation sake to compensate for limited grape skin contact.
The very fact that for a long time rosé wines were produced from grapes that were not necessarily the best ones in the vineyards did not help either. But those days are (almost) gone and rosé has now become a super trendy wine to drink – the fastest growing segment of the industry in fact, with rosé representing 30 percent of the wines drunk in France (compared to just 10 percent in the 1990s) and exports of rosé de Provence to the United States climbing by 57 percent in volume in 2015 alone!
Obviously, to parody the Duke de La Rochefoucauld correcting King Louis the XVI in 1789, it’s not a revolt, it’s a revolution, but this time a pink revolution!
Contrary to what people think, rosé is not made from blending red and white wines together. Except for Champagne, this method is forbidden in France. In fact it is made either from direct pressing – dark skins stay in contact with the clear juice for a short period of time, then the juice is extracted and fermentation begins – or bleeding – crushed grapes are left to macerate with the musk for between two to 20 hours, and then the juice below the musk is “extracted” (hence the bleeding concept) in order to start the fermentation.
Mostly used in Provence, the direct pressing method is responsible for the very delicate and pale coloured fashionable rosés – the ones leading the pack of the export boom. Up in the hinterland, further towards Languedoc-Roussillon or the Rhone Valley, bleeding becomes more common, and rosés get darker because of the longer exposure to tannin pigments. They are also more complex and more mouth-filling – my personal favourite is the AOC Tavel, once characterised by King Philip Le Bel as “the best wine in the world”.
Whatever the method, the real revolution is actually happening because of the winemakers, who have become much more attentive to wine-making methods (a lot of them converting to organic wine-growing and wine-making), more expert at controlling the “migration of colour”, and strikingly aware that marketing beside the “piscines” – literally “swimming pools”, meaning rosé wines poured in balloon wine glasses half-filled with ice-cubes – was a matter of urgency!
One of the great supporters of this “Rosé Revolution” in Asia is none other than Eddie MacDougall, the Australian “Flying Winemaker” of fame who has settled in Hong Kong and organised this annual event in Asia for six years in a row; first in our sister SAR, then in Singapore and now in Macau as well as Shanghai.
Last month, the Rosé Revolution was back for the second year in Macau, this time held at The Vista at MGM, thus providing just the right balance of casual and chic to taste and enjoy some 29 wines coming mainly from the south of France.
For Eddie MacDougall there is no doubt that rosé wines should be successful in Macau, first “because of heritage” (think Mateus Rosé, for better or worse), and then thanks to “a growing diversity”, both in offering (new restaurants, new flavours, development of the night scene, the “bistronomy” as well as the gastronomy) and consumption (new clients from all over Asia, more expatriates and growing education in wine-tasting).
“Rosé wines are sleek and fresh; and because of the right balance between acidity and minerality, they match very well with many kinds of food, including simple dumplings,” Eddie points out.
“We are in a transition stage, but the message is out: winemakers of rosé consider the wine they are making as their star-products, not as second-rate by-products,” adds the energetic young entrepreneur, who is himself a winemaker.
Ultimately, rosé can also be considered a “lifestyle choice”: “In Australia,” remarks Eddie, “there is a Brosé movement [a compression of the words “Brother” and “rosé”], and cool guys and gals are now telling us that drinking rosé is as much a matter of look as it is one of ‘feel’.”
Chic, affordable, not too high in alcohol, and growing in complexity, yet still accessible: how much better can it get?
AIX 2015, Maison Saint Aix, AOP CÙteaux DíAix en Provence, France
Made from 60% Grenache, 20% Cinsault and 20% Syrah, a well-structured wine, with a smoky flavours and hints of strawberry on the nose, and extra dry and fresh on the palate. By one of the leading houses of Provence at the vanguard of the Pink (light) Revolution, it adds smart marketing with a red “double-happiness” blazon stamped above the year.
Petula 2015, Marrenon, AOP Luberon, France
From Lubéron, more in the southern France hinterland: a blend of 90% Syrah and 10% Grenache. The official rosé of Roland Garros, to be drunk after the matches only: elegant, both herbaceous and spicy on the palate.
Chateau La Sauvageonne 2015, Gerard Bertrand, AOP CÙteaux du Languedoc, France
A blend of Grenache, Cinsault and Syrah from Roussillon. Rated best of the year by Eddie McDougall, with a long finish of ripe peach and candied apple.
MamsíElles 2015, Domaine du Petit Chaumont, IGP Sable de Camargues, France
An organic rosé, made of grey and black Grenache, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Syrah. Very enticing and great expression of Camargues wines, with vineyards literally growing “the roots in sea water”. Excellent salinity and amazing crispiness. Complex with hints of liquorice on the nose, elegant yet refreshing.
Mathilda RosÈ 2015, Domaine Tournon, Victoria, Australia
100% Grenache from Australia, made under the supervision of acclaimed Rhone Valley winemaker Michel Chapoutier (Tournon is also an indication), the Mathilda is endowed with an extra-dry palate and flavours of raspberry. Fruity and super easy to drink.
Natura RosÈ non-vintage, Vino Loho, Asti, Italy
A “natural” (no added sulphites) sparkling wine made from 100% Nebbiolo in Italy’s Piedmont. Notes of ripe apples on the nose, and very rich mousse with good balance of acidity and sweetness.