Great American rose?

[Idyllwild]

I love a good Provencal rose - one that's dry and has good acidity and aromas of red berries and loves garlicky seafood dishes.
Does any winery in America make a rose like that, or am I searching in vain?

[perk]

I agree about the Beckman rose. Very nice every year.

[sr44]

This appeared in the Syracuse newspaper this week:

http://blog.syracuse.com/cny/2013/04/...

Not exactly close, but maybe worth a research trip?

[Fowler]

Unti is currently offering a 20% case discount on their 2012 Estate Rose. I have not tried the 2012 but have enjoyed other vintages in the past.

[ibstatguy]

ok, got some Arnot-Roberts rose, Touriga Nacional varietal, for about $22/btl. It is excellent

[zin1953]

Interesting varietal choice . . .

[ibstatguy]

you don't see it very often do you? ;-)

[Robert Lauriston]

Luchsinger Vineyards planted that and some other Portuguese grape varieties in 2001 thinking that people might use them to make Port-style wines.

http://www.sfgate.com/wine/thirst/art...

[maria lorraine]

The San Francisco Chronicle Wine section just published a list of their top 100 wines, with a separate section on Rosé. Here is the list of link to the article and the list:

2011 Copain Tous Ensemble Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Rose ($20, 13.2% alcohol
2011 Knez Cerise Vineyard Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Rose ($15, 13.2
2011 Luminous Hills Aura Yamhill-Carlton Pinot Noir Rose ($21, 12.8
2011 Ponzi Rosato Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Rose ($15, 13.5
2011 Scherrer Sonoma County Rose ($18, 12%)
2011 Turley Napa Valley White Zinfandel ($19, 11.2%

http://www.sfgate.com/wine/top100/201...

[wally]

I had the Copain and the Knez last year and loved both. The Knez was my favorite. However, these wines have been long gone for purchase, and Rosé varies from year to year.

[zin1953]

That is too f*****g funny! Turley made a White Zin? Wonder if it was from the Smoot-Hawley vineyard . . .

Must make Stephen Brook breathe a sigh of relief!

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

But a quick Google search reassures me that, at least, Tom Hill knows about it . . . http://www.wineloverspage.com/forum/v...

[kagemusha49]

Sutter Home did a lot of damage to the reputation of white Zin.

[zin1953]

Do you know about he Smoot-Hawley WZin by Turley?

[Bill Hunt]

Interesting. We did a week of dinners and tastings with Larry Turley and family, and while he did drag out some esoteric wines, nothing was any form of Rosé. Must have come after?

The hit of the event was the Turley "101 Zinfandel," at least for me, even against many years of the Hayne (both Zin and Syrah).

Hunt

[zin1953]

Oh, God, does NO ONE know the Smoot-Hawley White Zin?!?!?!

OK, I see some explanation is in order . . .

Back in January 2001, Los Alamos scientist and all-around "wine guy," TomHill -- who, online, always wrote his name with no space between his first and last names -- wrote up a number of tasting notes on the "Wine Lover's Discussion Group." Included was this (now viral) description:
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Smoot-Hawley WhiteZin: As usual; this tiny production from the famed 172 yr. old Smoot-Hawley Vnyd; located right on Zinfandel Lane in the very shadow of the famed SutterHome Winery and Tank Farm, represents the rarest of the rare Turley wines. Production was down again this year to only three bottles; one for Larry Turley, one for Ehren Jordan, and merely a half-bottle for the famed LosAlamos market. Once again, Helen Turley was peeved for not being allocated a bottle and threatened to flood the market w/ a SonomaCoast White Zin at $30/btl. The Man from Monkton was, as usual, clueless about the existance of the rarest of rare wines. Bob Trinchero was so apoplectic with fear that he would lose his WhiteZin market to TurleyWineCellars that he
released under the cover of darkness several sassy-winged sharpshooters into the Smoot-Hawley Vnyd. The seven vines in Smoot-Hawley are not expected to survive this assault and this probably marks the last vintage of the famed Smoot-Hawley WhiteZin and the end of an era for Turley Wine Cellars.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Now, any CAREFUL reading of that TN should immediately make it clear to everyone that it's a FAKE review! But, as I said, it went viral.

Stephen Brook, in his 2006 book "Wines of California," wrote about the Smoot-Hawley White Zinfandel, but said he hadn't had the opportunity to taste it.

ROFLMAO

[Bill Hunt]

Nah, I did not know of the Smoot-Hawley White Zin. Now, Larry DID bring some SB, that Helen produced for him, many years ago. It was interesting, but had not aged like a good white Bdx. might be expected to. "Interesting" is probably the best descriptor, that I can come up with.

Thank you for sharing the joke on Smoot-Hawley, like Mr. Brook, "I have not had the opportunity to taste it... " [Grin]

I do not think that Larry Turley is in my 2013 lineup, but if he makes an appearance, you can bet that Smoot-Hawley will be brought up.

Hunt

[absc]

The Turley white zin is excellent (really). Bar Tartine has it available by the glass.

[Robert Lauriston]

Donkey & Goat just bottled their 2012 rosé. It's pretty sure to sell out.
https://donkeyandgoat.com/store/item/...

[ibstatguy]

I remain unconvinced as to the number of quality (incorporating price as an element) rose wines available from Old World producers vs New but I did order some Arnot Roberts...

[zin1953]

FWIW, I think the search for quality -- as opposed to QPR -- are two very different things. There are certainly quality rosés produced in California, and they have been for some 40+ years.* But when it comes to QPR, I think the best options still originate in Europe.

Cheers,
Jason

* I'm not speaking of White Zin, but true rosés -- J. Pedroncelli Dry Zinfandel Rosé and Simi Rosé of Cabernet Sauvignon are two examples that spring to mind from the late 1960s and early 1970s, respectively.

[Robert Lauriston]

At the lower end of the price range, there's no contest, but I think at the high end some domestic producers now hold their own, partly because prices on the top French rosés have gone up faster. Château Simone, Tempier, Ott, holy crap they're asking a lot for those.

[roux42]

Wolfer from Long Island makes a nice rose and a nice sparkling.

[Idyllwild]

Thanks for all the tips, I'll be looking for some of these. Tablas Creek and Anglim are favorites of mine, but I can't remember seeing a rose from either before. Shinn was already on my list to visit, so now I have more reason to do so.

[sr44]

Based on these far wiser or better palates than mine (Naugahyde at best), don't hesitate to let the vineyards you visit know what you want. Yes, there are climate constraints, but the basic planting also includes customer demand. Otherwise, we'd be looking at foxy wines into the future.

So stand up and talk to the producers.

I've been whanging about roses in increasingly hot summers, and suddenly there are racks of roses in wine stores. I doubt I'm the only one. If you decide to focus on a particular vineyard, let me know and I'll do my best to support your demand.

[sr44]

http://www.coastalwinetrail.com/Home.htm might be fum to visit. Westport Vineyards (http://www.westportrivers.com/) makes a delicious pinot noir rose.

It won't hurt to get out and let producers know what you want.

[ChefJune]

Shinn Estate on Long Island makes a lovely Rose that would meet your requirements. You may have to order from them direct, though.

[goldangl95]

If you can find Ode to Lulu by Bedrock Wine - it's my favorite affordable Rose. Rhode Island, I believe, is not the most wine friendly state so it may be hard to find there.

[zin1953]

MANY wineries make it . . . where do you live?

[Idyllwild]

Could you recommend a few? I live in Rhode Island.

[zin1953]

Well, sadly, that could be an issue, as many of the rosés in question are not made in sufficient amounts to be sold in Rhode Island. Thus, either you may have to order online (and I don't know off the top of my head about shipping to R.I.), or you have have to travel a bit in order to find them.

All of these are vintage-dated ***unless*** otherwise noted.

IN RANDOM ORDER . . .

Edmunds St. John "Bone Jolly" Gamay Rosé
Donkey & Goat "Isabelle's Cuvée" Grenache Rosé
Dashe Vin Gris
Unti Rosé
Copain Tous Ensemble Rosé
Tablas Creek Rosé
Terre Rouge Vin Gris
Meyer Family Syrah Rosé
Anglim Rosé

. . . . among others.

[goldangl95]

Agreed. In the U.S. a lot of the Roses can be found around late April - June and the popular ones sell out by mid-summer. Maybe a trip to New York to quality wine stores in late Spring is in order =). Also you may want to check with New York wine stores if they can ship to RI.

Winesearcher.com is a good resource to locate stores.

[absc]

I'd add the La Clarine Farm rosé to this excellent list. But, I think the most recent vintage is sold out.

[Bill Hunt]

I would add Beckman to that list, but for RI, I sort of doubt that it is available.

Hunt

[Idyllwild]

Just to clarify, while I do live in RI, I'm not on parole. I'm allowed to cross state lines and I do so frequently.

[zin1953]

Thus the difference between people in the East and the West. I can drive for 6+ hours and still be in California . . . drive that long starting in Rhode Island and you'll probably pass through six states!

[Bill Hunt]

It's not just the "state lines," but availability anywhere near you. Beckman is a Central Coast (CA) producer of Rhône varietals, though he dabbles in some Burgundian varietals, as well.

In AZ, we are lucky to have some (but certainly not all), of his offerings.

I just do not know the NE distribution model, so added the qualifier.

Good luck, and Rosé can be a wonderful wine, whether imported, or domestic (US), though many US offerings are... well, how to say it? Bland and sweet?

Hunt

[Robert Lauriston]

Nice list. The Sinskey Vin Gris of Pinot Noir is another good one.

[Bill Hunt]

Robert,

I have not tried that, but predicated on your rec. will. Robert Sinskey does some very nice wines.

Thank you,

Hunt

[Klunco]

Check out Westport Rivers winery. Heck you could drive there!

They make a nice rosé that you would most likely enjoy. Dry and minerally. I also really like their sparkler.

[ibstatguy]

Zin - excluding price points for say Bandol roses, what thoughts do you have on QPR of old world roses to our homegrown roses? I tend to think the values still are with the old world roses
thx

[zin1953]

OK, I'll play . . . . please note, however, that the OP was asking specifically about American rosés in a (broadly similar) style similar to those from Provence.

There are any number of excellent rosés from the Côtes-du-Rhône (CdR) appellation, and these continue to provide great value as well. This is true as well for some of the rosés from Lirac. Tavel, sadly, has either gone the way of a Domaine Tempier in terms of price, or else the quality has dropped off as corners are cut to keep the price down. (IMHO, of course.) Domaine Ott is right up there with other Bandol, despite the specific appellation of their various wines. Mas de Gourgognier has long done a great job with their rosé from the Les Beaux de Provence appellation, and it's still affordable.

But I tend to think the "great buys" in rosés of this type, aside from CdR, are coming from Spain -- still Old World, just not French.

Cheers,
Jason

[ibstatguy]

my question was inartfully posed but I thank you for the response. I was trying to express that I tend to think that our New World roses are overpriced compared to what is available from the Old World

Best,

[Bill Hunt]

Just had the Domaine Ott the other night at Farallon, and it was very good. However, since it was in the "sommelier's pairing," I have no idea about PP's there.

Hunt

[jock]

Best value rose for me in the past three years has been the Charles Bieler rose from Provence, Syrah - Grenache. Wide distribution - should be about $10- $11 and positively delicious.

[Klunco]

I'll have to check this out. We usually do Domaine Houchart from Provence for the same reason. Zippy, widely available and only about $10.

Downside is they moved from AOC Aix-en-Provence to AOC Provence a couple of years ago and while still a great value, I have found it not quite as good as it was.

[Robert Lauriston]

Once in a while I find domestic wines that are price-competitive with imports of the same general style and level of quality, but it's rare.

In some vintages, at least, I've thought the Donkey & Goat rosé was as good or better than Bandol rosés in the same ~$25 price range.

[ibstatguy]

I received an offering for the Arnot Roberts rose at $22 but know nothing about although I know AR is very well regarded generally in some quarters. Thanks for the heads up on Donkey & Goat

[absc]

I like the Arnot-Roberts rosé a lot and would recommend trying it. Here is some info on the '11: http://sfwine.wordpress.com/2012/02/1...

[ibstatguy]

great link; thank you!