Serious Rosés
Rosé’s popularity in recent decades has not only meant that pink wine flows at summertime BBQs and pool parties. A spate of mass-produced, pale versions has fed the belief that they all look and taste the same. But rosé has a more complex side—one that bursts with a diversity of color and flavor.
Some wrongly associate a darker shade of pink with lower quality. In Provence, the spiritual home of a wine that is crafted around the world, vintners primarily rely on the Grenache grape, pressing it quickly to separate the pale juice from the color-imparting red skins. But some of the best rosés from southern France skew darker. Longer contact with the skin produces hues from bold fuschia to deep ruby to burnt orange. As a result, the wines can show greater complexity and structure.
In Provence’s elite subregion of Bandol, winemakers use the sturdy Mourvédre grape as the backbone. This requires more time in the bottle to achieve harmony, but the wines age phenomenally. One stunning version, Domaines Ott Château Romassan Bandol 2023 ($65, rated 92 points by Wine Spectator, Cigar Aficionado’s sister publication), tastes of dried lavender and herbs with mandarin acidity.
A distinctive Provence outlier in style is Clos Cibonne, owned by the Roux family since the 1790s. Made with the mostly abandoned Tibouren grape, the rosés age in large, old oak barrels under a thin layer of yeast, which imparts a savory, nuttiness and hints of earthy tobacco leaf. The copper-hued Clos Cibonne Côtes de Provence Cuvée Tradition 2022 (91 points, $47) offers complexity and richness.
Just outside of Provence, winemakers in the southern Rhône appellation of Tavel have been dedicated to making only rosé for a century. Their traditional longer skin contact gives them a bold pink-to-deep garnet hue. Try the delicious Prieuré de Montézargues Tavel 2023 ($25, 91 points) with its rose petal, red licorice and cherry flavors shored up by a salty beam of acidity. It’s no delicate rosé, but it will deliver just as much poolside refreshment.
