Wine Travel Song

The Bluffer’s Guide to Rosé Wine

Food and Drink / by

With any kind of wine, I know what I like and I like what I know. For Rosé Wine that’s a chilled glass of Minuty, Bandol, Whispering Angel, Mirabeau or Miraval. Just don’t ask me what kind Rosé it is.

I can see the Somelier wince as I ask for “the pale one?”

I have to admit I don’t know if that’s sweet or dry. Worse still I don’t even know how Rosé wine is made. So I felt it was high time I found out before I hit the Riviera this summer.

Here is what I have learnt about Rosé wine, starting with the most fundamental question:

How Is Rosé Wine Made?

Rosé Wine is made using black or red grapes, not a mix of red and white grapes which is what I had stupidly assumed! Those ‘red’ and ’black’ grapes are actually the same grape but their colour description can change based on their appearance. With the right grapes chosen, there is broadly four main steps to produce the wine. Each of these steps will impact both what it looks like and how it tastes.

These fours steps are crushing, maceration, pressing and fermentation. Each of these wine making steps will have an impact on it’s dryness, sweetness and colour.

Let’s take a quick look at these steps:

Crushing: The harvested grapes are crushed to get the juice out. This can be done either by traditional method using hands and feet, or using modern machinery. Despite debates in wine circles about the best method, my palate struggles to discern a difference.

Maceration: This is a relatively passive step where the skin of the grapes (and maybe the stalks) are left to ‘mulch’ in their own juice from the crushing. This process extracts colour, tannins, and flavours from the grape skins into the juice. For Rosé, maceration is brief, lasting just a few hours to a few days, to achieve that signature pink hue.

Pressing: Here, the pulp is pressed to separate the skins from the juice, much like squeezing citrus fruit. The result should be the a clearer liquid that will form the basis of the wine.

Fermentation: The grape juice undergoes fermentation, where yeast converts sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide. The specifics of fermentation, including its duration and temperature, significantly influence the wine’s character.

After fermentation and any necessary post-fermentation steps, the wine is bottled. Unlike the reds, a Rosé is best enjoyed one or two years from its vintage, capturing the freshness and fruitiness of a young wine.

Does Pale Rosé Equal Dry Rosé?

A common misconception, or certainly my belief was that the paleness of a Rosé indicates its dryness. However, the wine’s style (sweet, semi-sweet, or dry) is determined by the winemaking technique, especially how fermentation is managed, not by its colour. So the paleness of the Rosé does not mean it will be dry.

How to identify a dry Rosé wine

Regions play a role in the typical sweetness of Rosé. For instance, Rosés from Provence are usually dry. While labels might not explicitly state sweetness levels, a higher alcohol content can hint at a drier Rosé, as it suggests more sugar has been fermented.

Rose Wine in Nice
It’s always Rosé O’Clock somewhere in the World!

My Favourite Rosé Wine Labels

While I’m no expert, I can share the Rosés that I find particularly enjoyable:

I’ve also discovered a delightful Croatian Rosé when last in Dubrovnik. It is called ‘ Saints Heels’, though it’s not so popular in the UK, but some online wine merchants do stock it.

Jay Drinking Rose Wine

Through this exploration, I hope you’ve gained a better understanding of Rosé wine, from how it’s made to identifying your preferred style. Here’s to many more enjoyable moments with a glass of Rosé in hand.

Cheers!