Our Favourite Things: Dry Rosé

I have a lot of room in my heart for dry rosés. It’s a category consistently overlooked by many wine drinkers.

Dry rosés fall into a grey area — or, in this case, pink area — between white and red wines. They’re made with red grapes (with some white grapes occasionally thrown into the mix) and, while the skins of these grapes are left in contact with the juice, it’s usually just for a couple of days or less to impart that pinkish hue. The skins are then discarded (like when making white wine) and the juice is then typically fermented in stainless steel tanks. Dry rosés can be made by bleeding off juice from red wine tanks, a process called saignée.

Dry Rosés in Every Style

Dry rosé wines are shaped almost exclusively on the desires of the winemaker. Every aspect of the wine is controlled by the winemaker — the grape variety (or varieties) chosen to make the dry rosé, the length of contact between the grape skins and the juice (and therefore colour and tannin), weight, sweetness, and so forth.

A bonus: you can find good dry rosés from many corners of the wine-producing world, usually without an exorbitant price tag attached. French producers make dry rosés in a variety of styles — from the gutsier Rhône Valley pink wines to the subtler Tavel, Anjou and Côtes du Provence examples, where leaner red berry notes are balanced with subtle minerality. New World wine producers, meanwhile, tend to craft darker, racier and juicier dry rosés, often higher in alcohol and residual sugar (in part due to riper grapes in warmer climates). Chile, Canada, Australia and California have all stepped into the pink wine market — and, in the case of the latter, I’m not talking about the dreaded white zinfandel, another animal altogether.

Rosé is a Food-Friendly Wine

Dry rosés also happen to be one of the most food-friendly wines. The typical red berry flavours — cherry, raspberry and strawberry — are often complemented by rhubarb, watermelon and cranberry notes, as well. Served chilled, lighter pink wines work with soft cheeses, salads and lighter seafood dishes, while bolder rosés can stand up to pork, salmon, veal, curries, and more. Those with just a hint of sweetness can even work with berry-based desserts.

Read about more of Our Favourite Things about wine.