It’s not too late to drink rose wine — in fact many of this year’s releases are still fresh and vibrant. Which is a good thing, since pink wines tend to be enjoyable on their own and match with a wide variety of foods.
This particular rose comes from an importer I respect highly — I have yet to be disappointed with the price/quality ratio of an “Eric Solomon Selection”. Finding his name on the back label of a wine I’ve never seen before is often the deciding factor in whether I’ll purchase the bottle.
But in fact I’ve already enjoyed roses from Artazuri in the past, so seeing this was a no-brainer. It’s made in Navarra, Spain, from the Garnacha grape — a.k.a., Grenache. If you’ve never been to Navarra, you might want to consider taking a trip one July for the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, where you can see “encierro” (the running of the bulls). Don’t look for me, though, I’ll be watching it on youTube from the safety of my home.
But I digress … how about we discuss the wine, which (how timely?) would be a nice match for a spread of bagels and lox, among other things.
Tasting Notes: Artazuri Rose 2007
Ample fresh strawberry on the nose, with hints of red raspberry, cherry, and vanilla. Smooth, almost creamy texture on the palate, with fresh, clean watermelon, red cherry, and strawberry flavors, accented by a touch of zesty citrus and a hint of vanilla. Acidity is on the low side, but there’s just enough to help the wine pair with mildly flavored appetizers or hot and spicy dishes. Drink it alone (chilled) as an aperitif, with spicy sausage sandwiches, barbecued chicken, spicy Indian cuisine, salads, cold cuts / antipasti, smoked salmon. Don’t over-chill it or you’ll miss a lot of the flavor.
a-8 t-8 b-8 fc-8 v-8 ~ 90 Points
US Importer: European Cellars – Eric Solomon Selection
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Summertime is the best time for rose wine, in my humble opinion. However, it can be difficult to find a good dry rose unless you do some research. Although many US wine drinkers have become more sophisticated, and now eschew the sugary white zins that proliferated the market for so many years, the shelves are still strewn with sweet pinks — and sit alongside their bone-dry cousins.