If I asked you to use one word to describe a rosé wine, what word would you use? Sweet? Pink? Acidic? Light? Summer? French? White zin? Favorite? Whatever you say, you will be both correct and incorrect—because rosé wines come in numerous varieties.
There are three methods used to produce rosé wines: the maceration method, the saignée method and the blending method.
Maceration is the most common method. The winemaker takes red grapes and processes them as if they are making a red wine, but removes the skins after the juice has achieved the desired depth of color. The amount of time the juice remains in contact with the skins varies from two to 20 hours. These maceration times produce wines ranging from the very pale rosés from Provence, France, to deeply colored rosés with richer flavors.
The saignée (“san-yay”) method is a byproduct of red winemaking. The winemaker takes red grapes and processes them to make a red wine; a short time after the grapes are crushed, the winemakers remove roughly 10 percent of the juice. This process allows the remaining juice to have more contact with the grape skins, creating a concentrated red wine. The juice that is removed, the saignée (which means “to bleed”), is used to make a rosé. This is a rare method in most regions, but it’s common in Napa and Sonoma, where they use this method to create deep, rich, concentrated red wines.
The blending method is the least common with still rosés, and is more common with (very expensive) sparkling wines produced in the Champagne region of France. This method involves adding a small amount of red wine into a much larger amount of white to create the desired rosé color.
Regardless of the method used, rosé is a unique and distinct wine style that comes in many different hues and flavors. I asked Shannon DeDora, the wine director Blackrock Wine Company, what about she likes about rosés over white wines.
“You’re getting a more concentrated wine with more character,” she said. “So you get those great dry notes of cherry, raspberries, strawberries—those things that make you think of a summer garden, maybe summer fruit. … My rosé philosophy is to always seek out rosé. I like to find ones that come from fun wine varietals that produce juicy red wines. Those usually translate to great, fresh and fruity rosé.” Great advice!
The palest rosés are generally from Provence and are produced with grenache, cinsault, syrah and mourvèdre grapes. These rosés are pale and pink-hued, with aromas of strawberries, watermelon and roses. On the palate, they are crisp, dry and fruity, with a salty minerality.
Rosés a shade darker are often made from pinot noir grapes. These rosés have many of the same aromas and flavors as a rosé from Provence, with the earthiness you would expect from a pinot.
With all the great rosés available on the market, I asked Shannon DeDora if she had any favorites. “Three that I really love right now are grenache, cabernet franc and Zweigelt,” she said.
Rosés from tempranillo grapes tend to have a pale watermelon hue. Along with the richer color comes richer and spicier herbaceous flavors that accompany the berry and melon notes we expect in a light rosé. These are some one of my favorites.
The next darker-hued rosé has, in many circles, a bad reputation. White zinfandel is the name given to rosés made from zinfandel. It’s a bright-pink rosé that is almost always off-dry (slightly sweet), with 3-5 grams of residual sugar. The aromas and flavors are like strawberry and raspberry jam—bright fruits with a dessert sweetness.
Cabernet sauvignon rosés have a deep ruby-red hue and flavors approaching those of a red wine. These flavors include cherries, black currants, leather and pepper. Cabernet sauvignon rosés often have more acidity, due to the fact that the wine never sees any time in oak, like red wines do.
With all the great rosés available on the market, I asked DeDora if she had any favorites. “Three that I really love right now are grenache, cabernet franc and Zweigelt,” she said. “Zweigelt is a grape from Austria that has low tannins and peppery notes that you can taste in the rosé.”
Blackrock Wine Company is located at 6135 Lakeside Drive, Suite 111, in Reno, and offers craft beer and wine by the bottle and glass, as well as small plates and charcuterie. I asked DeDora what people should look for when buying rosés.
“Anything imported—French, Spanish or Italian,” she said. “Generally, those will always be solid quality no matter what, because they’re made with purpose. From a price point, anything $25 bucks and below, you will find a solid bottle.”
Remember when I asked you to describe rosé with one word? Yes, it was an unfair question, although there is one word that works, in my opinion: delicious.