Pretty In Pink.........

In recent years i have come o love rose as a refreshing alternative to white on a hot summers day. Rose's have gone from strength to strength and hold a very important place on any wine list. I find, fro the shop in particular, that people falls into two camps when it comes to rose, those are similar to white, dry or sweet.


I, personally, prefer a dryer rose. That is not to say that i don't like a bit of fruit to my wines, however i do try to avoid some new world rose such as the cheaper Californian rose, Grenache in particular as i find it almost sickly sweet at times.
Like most, i think, i am in the Provence camp. And Bandol. These two power houses of  the rose world produce some of the best rose i have tasted.

Recently i have tried three new roses to our shop and thought i would fire them all in in one post.




DOMAINE OTT "LES DOMANIERS" 2011


The name Ott is synonymous with quality premium rose and in particular their Cuvee Marine. So when this became available to order and was put on offer i jumped at the chance to try it.
A blend of majority Grenache 60% along with Cinsault 35% and Syrah 5%. At 13.5% it is a little high in alcohol for my taste in rose. Pale salmon in color with citrus notes and a fairly dominant aroma of strawberry.
Full bodied but well balanced, this fresh rose opens up with exotic fruit and subtle hints of white peach. The high alcohol content is instantly evident but not offensive. A beautifully well rounded rose and with a crisp yet fruity finish.

A nice rose, a little too full bodied for drinking on its own, its definitely a wine for food. Best paired with salads, sea-bass or grilled vegetables.



Domaine De L'Olivette Bandol 2011

Another great rose from Bandol, and one of which i have enjoyed in previous vintages. Lie the previous rose, this wine clocks in at 13.5%, but looks a little paler.
A classic blend of Cinsault, Grenache and Mouvedre. Bright pink in color and with fresh fruity aromas, mostly raspberry and a little redcurrant.
Nicely rich but fruity on the palate, more fruit fills the mouth, lots of fresh summer fruits, raspberry, ripe strawberry and currents. The alcohol content is not as dominant here as the fruit pushes through.
Raspberry is again evident on the finish, long and supple.


A very good rose, great balance or fruit, a little dryness and good body. This wine would be nice with or without food. Salads and grilled meat would be a great companion for this.



Le Poussin Rose Pays D'oc 2011

This was actually recommended by a colleague who's opinion i respect so i ordered it and had to try. Firstly this wine looks great, fantastic modern label, pale pink color and a screw top, always good for the picnic season.
A 100% Grenache wine, the color thankfully suggests a dryer rose. Fresh and floral on the nose, with hints rose rose petal.
Dry while well balanced palate, lots of supple summer fruits lingering nicely, with a slight raspberry finish. A little lacking in big flavor and favoring subtle fresh fruit hints instead.



If you favor the dryer rose then this is one for you, however i feel its a little slack on flavor and would suit food better. An ideal BBQ wine, i feel it would be very versatile wit food, from grilled meat to fish and salads as well as spicy food.

New Wine Tasted:

MOUTON CADET, BORDEAUX, 2010

Especially with regards french wine, Bordeaux whites seem to be some of the most under rated of all, i have noticed that's in the shop people are very wary of Bordeaux whits, unless there around the £7-8 range and then they are just looking at the price. i only stock 4 sometimes 5 Bordeaux whites in the shop but try to keep the better ones from the fairly sparse list we have, so when a new one comes available i feel obliged to get it in and try it out, and recently the Mouton Cadet range from Rothschild has appeared on our order list, and since the red proved popular recently i ordered the white.

As with most Bordeaux whites the wine is made up of sauvignon blanc (65%) and semillion (30%) but has a little muscdelle (5%) in there too, which should bind it together nicely and keep some fruit along with some nice dryness.

Lovely golden stray color, and looks well structured in the glass.
Strong but fresh nose, clean an a little crisp with some hints of lemon and a strong but not prevalent aroma of fresh peach. Fresh and fruity, so far so good.
On the palate, good body, lovely fruity but fresh and easy drinking. Again that nice mix of lemon and fresh peach coming through but not too overwhelming and good finish, with nice slight acidic aftertaste that really leaves you wanting more.

Great Bordeaux white, at £13.99 its worth every penny and will definitely be one i will return to again and again.

New Wine Tasted:

QUARTESE RUGGERI VALDOBBIADENE, PROSECCO SUPERIOR, NV


For me prosecco's have always just been there, another 'trendy' wine that has seen its sales increase through simple word of mouth. I have generally have avoided prosecco's because some of the ones i have tried in pubs have been bland and boring. With our new range of wines, a new prosecco came in, slightly pricier than the ones we have stocked before but that is not always a bad thing!


Immediately in the glass i could see this was going to be different, it was super light and pale.
Beatiful on the nose, light, fresh, with little hints of pear and honey, but just light hints!
the first taste was just great, fresh, clean and super light bubbles. Lovely hints of pear just sitting in the background complimenting the dry clean taste. Good finish, not to lingering but just enough to keep you wanting more!!

This was a fantastic sparkling wine, one of my absolute favorites outside of champagnes, but saying that its probably better than some of the cheaper champagnes i have tried.