Summer time wine - Rose

Last weekend was the first AlexMacWine Club of 2013 and we were all thinking pink! Rose is one of those wines that just beacons a summer day filled with sand between your toes and the smell of sizzling sausages wafting through the air. To pay homage to the summer time satisfier, this month's wine club was held poolside in Mona Vale.

Our host Laura, explained to her fellow wine clubbers that anything that starts with the letter P generally goes with Rose including prawns, pate, and pork. It is a wine that is generally made to drink now and should be served chilled, sometimes even with ice as is often done in the south of France.

We started the session off with a delicious glass of Rose Chandon. Interestingly sparkling rose is often made by mixing the juice of red and white wines. It is generally sweeter than its white counterparts and is a lovely point of difference to bring to a party. 

Each member brought a rose and we tried the Robert Stein 2012 Rose from Mudgee made with Cabernet Sauvignon & Shiraz, the 2011 Arrogant Frog Rose made with Syrah, the 2012 A.Retief rose from the Canberra district made from Cabernet Sauvignon, and the original and still one of the best a cuvee Mateus from Portugal.

Each wine demonstrated different characteristics. The Mateus was deep in colour, slightly sweet with a fizz on the tongue. The bottle was also an interesting and telling shape which made the blind tasting difficult not to cheat. 

The arrogant frog was everything but. A delicious and friendly wine that sells for a steal $10 per bottle. This wine was definitely stiff competition for other pricier counterparts.

The Robert Stein and A.Retief were the most similar in style. They had lighter shades of pink, which I am coming to learn means a drier style of rose, stronger berry aromas on the nose and much greater length, meaning the flavour stays in your mouth for a long time after.

As you can see, we had a fabulous time and there was very little left! But that always seems to be the case with wine club... go figure!?

Until next time, have a glass for me. Alex Mac