Schnaitmann 2010 “Evoé!” Rosé 018 11 (Württemberg) – 80% pinot (I assume noir, but the label doesn’t specify), 20% trolllinger. Growls and yips, but behind a locked door through which all I can perceive is a muted din. What’s left is a countervailing soft strawberryishness and a powdery texture that really doesn’t do a whole lot for me, though there’s a bit of a nip at the end to remind me that this little dog’s unhappy about something. (11/11)
Browse Tag
rosé
Joe LaCava
German Gilabert Cava Brut Nature Rosat (Cataluña) – Trepat and garnacha. Less interesting than the white, with fruit sheets wrapped around bones. All treble, little midrange, no bass. (8/11)
The middle of the back
Mittelbach 2010 Zweigelt Rosé (Lower Austria) – Rose petal, tart wild strawberry not entirely free of greenness, blushing hues and tones. And yet, icy despite the blush. Simple, with stirrings of prettiness. (7/11)
Broken network
Terlan 2010 Lagrein Rosé (Alto Adige) – Straightforward chilled-berry pinkishness with a slender mineral core. A bit grapey as it lingers. A simple idea, simply executed. (7/11)
Good knight
Chevalier 2010 Val de Loire Pinot Noir (Loire) – I start with a complaint: the “Imported by Kermit Lynch” sur-label of much comment in crankier realms of the internet is, here, completely over the top in comparison to the proprietor’s identity, and highlights exactly why so many people find this respected importer’s new labeling practice difficult to accept, no matter how wise it might seem from the perspectives of branding and marketing. Who’s the most important person with respect to this bottle’s contents, anyway? If it’s Kermit, then fine; importer-directed cuvees aren’t unknown, certainly not from this particular importer. If not…
As for the wine? It’s tasty. Functionally a rosé with a little more precision than normal, not just in terms of its acidity but also in its pure thrust of pinkish-red fruit. Some flaky, bone-like minerality. Despite it being pink, there’s something about the wine that seems to cry out for fish…especially fish straight from the boat, cooked on a warm beach somewhere, a bottle bouquet of this wine resting (in quantity) in barrels of ice. In which situation, I could drink a lot of this. And then, probably, fall asleep on the beach, surrounded by a little shower of “Imported by Kermit Lynch” labels. (7/11)
Little fig, little fig, let me in
Figuette “Château La Roque” 2009 Pic Saint Loup Rosé (Languedoc) – A little bit too sticky to be refreshing. Strawberries and raspberries, just a touch candied, with a dusting of thyme maybe? Something vaguely herbal, anyway. I’m not yet completely off Languedoc rosés as a category, but I can tell that day is coming. The percentage of them that are pleasurable beyond their excess weight and/or remnants of the overripe grapes whence they came is just way too small. (7/11)
Adelsheim, Adelsheim, bless our homeland forever
Adelsheim 2006 Pinot Noir “Deglacé” (Willamette Valley) – 375 ml. Tastes more of generic sweet wine that anything particular, though there’s a shot of red berry juice that gestures vaguely in the direction of the source material. It’s clean and well-made, it’s just not interesting in any way. (6/11)
à la Turque
Rondeau Bugey Cerdon (Ain) – Pure strawberry lifted by raspberry/cranberry volatility. Fun, fun, fun, and no one’s T-Bird is getting taken away. (4/11)
Facher than the speed of light
Renardat-Fache Bugey Cerdon (Ain) – Intense strawberry, with one of the best balancing acts between acid, fruit, and sugar I’ve encountered under this label. Fresher for the lack of a trans-Atlantic trip? A better vintage? Or just an artifact of the environmental bonus multiplier of drinking it in Paris, rather than in a Boston suburb? Well…does it matter? Whatever the cause, this is the best bottle of this wine I’ve ever tasted, and I have consumed a lot. (11/09)
The first
Bernard-Noël Reverdy “Domaine de la Garenne” 2008 Sancerre Rosé (Loire) – Actually, not bad. (I know…lead off with the lavish praise, right?) Dry, with some flattish minerality exposed – something planar and uniform – and a little patina of raspberryishness. Nothing to think about, but quite drinkable while well-chilled. And had I not written this note hot on the drinking’s heels, I’d never have remembered drinking this at all. Meanwhile, that Reverdy family sure is fertile, isn’t it? (11/09)