Rosé Resurgence
Suitable for many drinking occasions,
rosés, both domestic and imported, are back in fashion and gaining sales.
drink on so many occasions. For me, it’s not only that they go so well with many of the foods I eat, but they also suit my mood so often. There are times when a red wine feels too heavy, and a white seems too insubstantial. A glass of rosé is perfect as an aperitif, with a nibble of food. When warm weather sets in, and a red wine doesn’t seem right, I turn to rosé. I love rosés with seafood. Rosés also pair well with many Asian foods. And there’s always the time when you’re dining with someone who wants to drink white wine, but you want red, or the reverse. Rosé wine to the rescue.
By Ed McCarthy I
have always loved rosé wines—at least the dry and off-dry ones— but have often felt guilty ordering them in restaurants. As if the server might think I’m not “manly” because I’m ordering a rosé. The exception, of course, is any time I find myself in Provence in the summer, especially on the Côte d’Azur, where everyone is drinking rosé wines.
But now that rosés are back in style, I have happily overcome any guilt feelings, and order them with aban- don. The simple fact is that rosé wines are suitable to
Over the years, rosé wines have dropped in and out of fashion throughout the world. In the United States, during the 1970s, rosé or pink wines became especially fashionable, first, with the popularity of two Portuguese rosés, Mateus and Lancer’s; and then with the birth of white Zinfandels in 1975. Many novice drinkers especially found that the fairly sweet white Zinfandels and blush wines made an easy graduation from Coke and Pepsi. Others, no matter what their age— who always found red wines too dry or too tannic— turned to white Zinfandel.
Ed McCarthy is a wine writer, wine judge, guest speaker, Certified Wine Educator, and wine consul- tant. He is co-author (with Mary Ewing-Mulligan) of Wine For Dummies, White Wine For Dummies, Red Wine For Dummies, Wine Buying Companion For Dummies, French Wine For Dummies, Italian Wine For Dummies and California Wine For Dummies. Ed’s own book, Champagne for Dummies, was nominated for the James Beard Award as best wine book of the year.
Beverage Dynamics • www.beveragedynamics.com • March/April 2011 • 61
PHOTO COURTESY OF WINES OF PROVENCE
