The Wine of the Month for July is another easy drinking summer treat, Hampton Water‘s Rose. This is a classic French rose made by the Bon Jovi brothers (yes, Jon Bon Jovi) & Gerard Bertrand, the wine king of Southern France. Normally, you would go to Provence for good rose’s, but this one comes from Languedoc, formerly the home of French “bulk” wine. Thanks to Mr. Bertrand, all of that is changing. Mine is a ’22, but if you were to buy it today, you would probably get a ’23. It can be found in most wine stores, including Clinton Wine & Spirits, and purchased well within Billy’s price range.
What makes a Rose a rose is how long the juice is in contact with the “skins”, usually that’s anywhere from a few hours to a few days. According to the Oxford Companion to Wine (OCtW), “Grenache and Cinsaut are two of the grapes commonly used for rose in the south of France.” In general, France is responsible for 27% of global production of this wine. This particular bottle is 60% Grenache, 15% Cinsaut, 15% Mourvedre, and 10% Syrah, all grape varietals typical of this region. Much like Prosecco, there is a long list of Rose “cocktails”, but I prefer to drink both straight up.
As far as tasting notes go, both mine and theirs, this is a fresh wine with soft notes of strawberry and citrus. It’s aged in new French oak, giving it a medium to long finish. It is a very crisp, easy drinking wine, perfectly designed for entertaining on a warm summer night. This was the first rose Wine Spectator (WS) put in it’s Top 100 (back in 2018). Typically, WS rates this wine in the low 90’s, the 2023 version was rated an 88. One item of note is the “funky” resealable cork, somewhat akin to what you find on a good bottle of port.
That should take care of this one. Next time, I will return to a Food & Wine pairing. Be sure to check it out. Cheers!