Why France’s Provence region started ‘pinking’ its wine
The black grapes winemakers can grow in hot, sunny Provence would yield a red wine that's not quite suited to the Mediterranean fare the region is also famous for.
As we enter the final days of the Philadelphia Flower Show, there’s no better time to break out the rosé. That’s because it’s the only wine category named for a flower, though indirectly.
A rose is a rose in both English and French, but that same word is also the term used in French for the color “pink,” since that is the natural color of roses in the wild. When French winemakers describe pink wines (like this delicate beauty from Provence) as rosé, they are not referring to a particular grape, or even to a grape color. They are using their word for pink as a verb to convey that a wine that would normally have been made as a red wine, due to the dark purple color of its grapes, has instead been “pinked” in the winemaking process to yield a wine style that is much paler and lighter in weight.
The Provence region was the first to begin deliberately “pinking” their wines back in the 16th century for reasons that make perfect sense in retrospect. This sun-bathed region of the south of France is too hot and sunny for growing healthy green grapes for white-winemaking, but is ideal for black grapes that don’t scorch as easily.
The cuisine of Provence is famously dominated by seafood, tomatoes, and other vegetables, though, and this lighter Mediterranean fare is not a great match with big, heavy red wines. The elegant Provencal solution was to press their dark grapes immediately — to prevent the transfer of red wine color, flavor, and tannin into the juice — and then to ferment that pale pink juice slowly in their cool cellars as if it were a white wine.
Today’s Provence rosés are always dry and pale, with a focus on refreshment over flavor intensity. They command higher prices than pink wines made elsewhere. The finest examples are more ethereal than ever, with a silky texture, as with this high-profile example from an estate owned by Brad Pitt. This wine’s subtlety and grace make its aromas difficult to describe — a seamless but understated mix of red apple, white tea, and fresh dragonfruit.
Miraval Côtes de Provence rosé
Provence, France; 13% ABV
PLCB Item #100026467
On sale for $19.99 through April 5 (regularly $21.99)
Also available at: Moorestown Super Buy Rite in Moorestown ($18.99; moorestownbuyrite.com), Canal’s Liquors in Pennsauken ($19.91; canalsliquors.com), and Total Wine & More in Wilmington and Claymont, Del. ($21.99; totalwine.com)