If it isn’t clear already, I have been quite taken lately with other wines from the Costières de Nîmes appellation, including a red from this same vintner. This rosé is quite young, just released, and frankly I bought it just last week solely because I had been so impressed with its red cousin. I had planned to save it for summer - or at least May - but the temp climbed to nearly 80 degrees yesterday, and I was tired after several hours of work outside. I had a bottle of red wine open, but ... what the heck. I’d chilled the rosé, just in case the temp warmed enough, and the red seemed decidedly unappealing outside in the full sun. So I thought I’d try it.
Folks, this is a really different rosé. My very first impression right out of the bottle was ... smooth. Wow, so smooth. And clean. On first opening, the wine has a mineral nose, with some pear and peach. There is a very nice floral flavor on the tongue, with some strawberry and hints of apple and pear, and almost a flinty taste that made me expect an unpleasant acidic bite, but then I was surprised when it just ... dissolved into smoothness.
This is not the usual young, overwhelmingly citrus/acidic rosé. This is an elegant, subtle wine, DEFINITELY NOT a sweet rosé, or anything even close to resembling white zinfandel (which, I think, is the great fear with trying rosé). It is dry, fresh, crisp, refreshing, really a pleaser.
By the way, the wine is a beautiful color, one I would call a strawberry apricot. Really pretty in the glass. I didn’t think to photograph the bottle before I opened it; here’s an idea of the color of this gorgeous and delicious wine (although I don’t think the photo does it justice):
Like its red cousin, this an estate-bottled wine, and again the proprietor is R. Gassier. Since reviewing the Chateau de Nages red, I have learned a bit more about the estate and the Gassier family. Chateau de Nages is one of two estates run by Michel Gassier, the other being Domaine de Molines. Gassier emphasizes terrior and a natural approach to growing grapes that attempts to bring equilibrium to all the elements of nature and to minimize impact on the ecosystem. Pesticides and standardization are eschewed in favor of a personal touch, focusing on the strengths of a particular parcel of land and utilizing those strengths to produce unique qualities in the wine, rather than trying to force his wines to conform to an arbitrary criterion. For Mr. Gassier, a handshake is more important than a contract, the sharing of experiences at an intimate dinner more meaningful than commercial success. His web site is quite impressive, and I urge you to visit.
This rosé is 70% Grenache and 30% Syrah; Mr. Gassier describes it as “sunshine in a glass.” I couldn’t agree more. It would be excellent with any spicy food, chicken, fish, or pasta, and even Indian dishes. The 2007 vintage won a Gold medal at the Challenge International du Vin 2008. I expect this one to do so as well.
The best news is, this wine is quite reasonably priced. I paid $9.99 for it locally but was unable to find it on the Internet (though the 2007 seems readily available). I suspect the 2008 will hit the Net before too long, so keep looking - or better yet, ask your local wine shop to order it for you. That way you support local business.
Alcohol content: 13.5% One note: This wine is very young, and I recommend drinking all of it the night you open it. Even with careful preservation, by the second-day tasting the wine had lost much of its appealing freshness, though the fruit remained. With a little aging, however -- just a few months -- this might improve.
© K. Wills Sterling, 2009
