By Christine Salins.
Angullong 2022 Rose
Revel in the romance this Valentine’s Day with Rosé. Australia’s love affair with pink-hued wine shows no signs of abating: it’s one of the fastest growing categories in the liquor industry.
Whether you’re planning a barbecue, an afternoon on the deck, a dinner date, or a cosy night in, there’s a Rosé to suit every occasion. It’s easy drinking, refreshing and complements our lifestyle perfectly.
Australia’s appreciation of Rosé is relatively recent, as for a long time it was associated with sweet, cheap wines. Now, however, we have access to many fine expressions of the style.
It’s a style with a long history, dating back at least until the 6th century BC when the ancient Greeks brought grapevines to Massalia (modern-day Marseille) in southern France. They created a sort of field blend, harvesting white and red grapes together and pressing them quickly to speed up the fermentation, resulting in naturally light pink wines.
Mirabeau Dry Rose Gin
Provence is still the epicentre of Rosé production, and becoming acquainted with the wines of Provence is a fun (and romantic!) thing to do. But you’ll also find lovely Rosé produced in many of the world’s wine regions, from Spain and Italy to the United States, Australia and beyond.
Enjoy a glass of Rosé with the heart-shaped cake in this week’s recipe column, or pour yourself a cocktail made with Mirabeau Dry Rosé Gin, whose 12 botanicals are all evocatively Provencal.
Aromatic with citrus, floral and herbal tones, Mirabeau is made in the London Dry style. It has 10% Provence Rosé added to the final macerate before distillation, adding a lovely round softness to the mouthfeel.
Paul Mas Le Rose
Centennial Vineyards Reserve Rose, $31.99: I enjoyed a glass of this Southern Highlands wine with a fabulous Tagliatelle with Duck Ragu at a café in Bowral recently. It was a little spicy and herbaceous with a soft palate, a pleasing, dry finish, and an abundance of strawberry, watermelon and cherry notes that paired nicely with the ragu.
Domaines Paul Mas 2021 Jean-Claude Mas Le Rosé, $19.99: Instead of a bunch of flowers, consider this wine from France’s Languedoc region. It’s from a collection called Le Fleur and the bottles are decorated with lillies, roses and other flowers that proliferate in and around the vineyard. Available from Dan Murphy’s, it has cherry aromas and a refreshingly fruity zestiness.
Shaw 2022 Rose
Shaw Wines 2022 Estate Rosé, $26: This Canberra District wine is a 60/40 Shiraz Malbec blend that came about by happy accident. Shaw Rosé was originally 100% Shiraz but in 2021 a couple of rows of Malbec went into the blend, just to test out a harvester while they were doing their Shiraz. The extra little ‘va-va-vroom’ the Malbec gave was so successful that in 2022 they went ahead and put in even more. With strawberry, rhubarb, peach and cranberry notes, it is dry and savoury despite its darkish pink tinge.
Angullong 2022 Fossil Hill Rosé, $26: This Orange Region wine was made from Sangiovese in the region’s coolest vintage in 20 years. With great natural acidity and loads of flavour, it is pale and almost luminescent. Displaying strawberry notes and an ever so slight creaminess, it is elegant and enticing, enough to win it a trophy in the Australian Highlands Wine Show.
