Think Pink....Not Your Mother's White Zinfandel

For many of us who lived through the white zinfandel craze of the 1980's and 1990's, the idea of a pink wine is scary. Bad memories of a cotton candyish, Kool-Aid-wannabe alcoholic beverage rear their ugly heads. Trust me...things have changed. I now firmly believe that EVERYONE should have at least one "pink" wine on their house wine list. They're called rosés, and they're quite wonderful...even, perhaps surprisingly to you, when paired with food.

I was turned on to rosés several years ago when I was served a glass of a sparkling rosé from Spain. It wasn't at all what I expected...more tangy than sweet...and quite good with the appetizers at the party where it was served.

Just last month, I was exposed to another wonderful example of the wine in a shipment I received as part of a wine club run by Andrea Immer Robinson. (More on her later. I am a complete and total disciple of the woman. She makes wine approachable and is one of the top in her field in creating wonderful and simply accomplished food and wine pairings. Her books and TV shows have helped me learn much of what I know about wine, and I encourage you to check out her "products." A link to her website is to the right. You'll see me mention her a lot more in the days and weeks to come.)In this particular box were two wines from the Miner winery in California. One was their wonderful Sangiovese and the other a rosé wine made form the Sangiovese grape. (By the way, Sangiovese is an Italian grape that we more commonly drink in when we open a bottle of Chianti.) I opened the rosato a couple of nights ago, and, in the interest of research, compared it to a couple other rosé style wines from other parts of the world.

The first was from Spain. A Marques de Caceres Rioja Rosé. It had the lightest blush color of the three, and that translated into it being the lightest in intensity as well. With an almost rose flower scent, it had flavors of sweet cherry and strawberry. Served slightly chilled, it was quite sippable. It's a perfect bottle for the patio in the summertime, and at less than $10 a bottle, quite a bargain. When paired with food, it didn't stand up well to most of the things I tried it with, but it brought out the natural sweetness of some simple boiled shrimp. That's definitely a pairing to try. (And how easy when you can buy pre-cooked shrimp at most supermarkets!)

At the other end of the intensity spectrum was the Miner Sangiovese Rosato from California. A ruby color, it brought out the more tangy and tart qualities of this style of wine. With flavors of pomegranate, cranberry and bright cherry, it's a wine that has enough "oomph" to stand up to more aggressive food flavors. Although I didn't pair it this way at the time, it would be great with a pork loin or grilled pork chop with a bit of herbs or even fruit chutney of some sort. It's also quite affordable at $15.

Although I have to admit that I am not always a fan of Texas wines, I am pleased to report that a wine from the Lone Star State ended up as my favorite of the trio. The McPherson Rosé of Grenache-Syrah was as brilliantly colored as the Miner, but fell in the middle of the flavor spectrum, offering a great balance of softness and zing. The fruity flavors here were raspberry and soft plum. It also offered a bit of smoky spiciness--probably thanks to the Syrah that is a part of the blend. It was a great pairing with several leftovers I had on hand, including fried catfish and enchiladas. (Interesting,huh, given its Texan roots?) I'm also betting that it would be great with a bowl of smoky, not-too-spicy tortilla soup. The best news of all is that I found it at a discount wine store for less than 10 bucks.

All in all, each of these wines are quite good and have something different to offer. They all get my recommendation to buy. Try them--or another dry rosé out there, including the wonderful ones from Provence--and see if you don't agree that pink can be a wine to love.