Varietal Rosé Wines

... and Taste and Talk Postponed

What varieties are used to make Rosé wines?

Rose can be made from just about any red wine variety. The juice of most red wine grapes is ‘white’ i.e. clear. The colour is in the skin. To make rosé wine, winemakers minimise the time the juice is in contact with the grape skins. Just long enough to pick up a bit of colour, and hopefully some flavours, the makings of which are also mainly in the skin.

Which alternative variety is best for making Rose?

There are so many on the market; you have plenty of choice. Styles vary from bone dry, off dry, semi sweet, sweet, sweeter, too sweet. Colours vary from just a tinge of pink through to lurid lipstick pink and sometimes with suggestion of amber. Most regions of Australia have wineries producing the pink stuff.

What are the popular varieties used to make Australian rose?

A quick run through the shelves of your local bottleshop will reveal that there are many varieties used. Many rose wines don’t have the variety or varieties used prominently displayed, if at all. Among the mainstream varieties you will find the Provencal classics Grenache and Mourvedre are well represented. You will also find plenty of Shiraz based rose. Pinot Noir is also in abundance.

But what about for us lovers of alternative varieties?

There is a class for alternative varieties at the annual Australian Alternative Varieties Wine Show (AAVWS). I did a quick survey of the results for five years the shows from 2020-24.

The Rose class at AAVWS has a trophy for best Rose. Recent trophy winners were:

• 2020: 22 Degree Halo Rose 2020 (Ricca Terra) Riverland, Aglianico/Mourvedre Vermentino blend

• 2021: No trophy awarded

• 2022: Roze 2022 Smallwater Estate, Geographe, Zinfandel

• 2023: Nebbiolo Rose 2023, rokkwell, Geographe

• 2024: Aglianico Rosato 2024, La Prova, Adelaide Hills

I compiled the table below from the AAVWS for the past five years. While I don’t take show results as gospel, I think some useful information can be gathered from the aggregated data.

Notes on the table

There was a total of 156 wines judged. Most were made from a single variety, or at least 85% of one variety. These are the wines I have included in the statistics. Less than 10% of the wines were made up of blends of two or more varieties. For simplicity, I have omitted them from the data.

Not all wineries enter AAVWS, and those that do may not enter their rose. So there are many more Australian roses out there for those who wish to look.

However the table does give rough a picture of the varieties used.

Make up your own mind

Here is a six pack of Rose wines which lets you delve into the variation in style, regional origin and varietal composition. The Table of Plenty Nebbiolo from Gundagai included in the offer picked up a silver medal at the 2023 AAVWS.

This offer is available as a six pack, or a dozen from our online wine merchant partner. Why not get some friends together and do a comparison tasting. You might need some of Darby’s Famous Tapenade to accompany your rose.

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Some reminders

1. Do you ever match Food and Wine?

I’d love to hear from you!

2. Wine Map Sale

3. Next Taste and Talk: Thursday 23rd January at 5pm. Topic Rosé wine

Zoom in with us. Have a glass of something to discuss. Maybe Rose this month. We have a theme each month but, the chat is often wide-ranging about wine related topics. I will send Zoom details to subscribers on the morning of the event.