Drink pink

Real men -- and women -- do drink rosé

Uncorked by David Marglin

You're having a summer party on your patio. You want to serve some nice, refreshing light wine. And you don't want to bring out anything predictable -- chardonnay, say, or a light and fruity red.

So here's an idea: rosé. Rosés are often frowned upon by serious wine drinkers, thanks largely to what you might call "white zin syndrome": wine people generally consider white zin, a sweet blush wine, to be anathema, and all rosés become tainted by association. (All still rosés, that is; prestige pink Champagnes command three-digit prices from the same connoisseurs who snub the wines' nonsparkling cousins.) But snobs aside, real men -- and women -- do drink rosé. It can be served chilled, it looks cool in the glass, and I am now on record: you can impress people by serving them a decent rosé.

There are many tremendously refreshing rosés available, and they tend, with only a few exceptions, to be fairly inexpensive. Rosé wine is made all over the world, and despite the generally limited price range -- it's hard to pay more than about $15 for a nonsparkling rosé -- they span a wide range of quality and flavor.

So how are rosés created? The color comes from the skins of the grapes, just as it does in red wine. The longer the skins and juice are in contact, the darker the wine. To make a red wine, you ferment the juice with the skins for at least a week (and up to three or four weeks for big, heavy wines). To make a white, you start with white grapes and allow the skins no more than 24 hours of contact with the juice. To make rosé, you use red grapes and vinify them more like white wine: the juice is only in contact with the skins for 24 hours or so, which keeps the wines lighter, less tannic, and more immediately approachable than comparable reds.

Now that we know a little about how rosés are made, the next question is: why rosé? If they're considered so déclassé, why take the risk? Bucking the herd is one good reason. Another is context. All wines taste better in the right circumstances: big, heavy red wines are not appropriate for hot, sticky days, and though many chardonnays can be refreshing when cold, often they're too big and lush for hot summer nights in the back yard. So if the mood is light, and the moment demands something more tasty than delicate, and if you can get past that anti-pink attitude (which is, at bottom, just a prejudice), then you should reach for one of the following wines.

These are all lighter, leaner-style wines with crisp, fresh flavors, best drunk young. Some are fruitier, others more on the dry side (and therefore great with shellfish), but all are right for the season. So when you're outdoors with your friends and loved ones, and the sun starts to set majestically, don't be afraid to think -- and drink -- pink.

One final note: rosé and blush wine are synonymous to many people, but they aren't exactly the same thing. The difference is subtle: a blush wine is one where the color and the flavor are not intrinsically related; the grapes may be left in contact with the skin, but this is, in effect, just natural coloring. In a true rosé -- be it a pink Champagne or something simpler -- the skins add flavor, with the pink color being an often pleasant accident.

** Vega Sindoa 1996 Navarra ($5.95, Merchants Wine & Spirits). The price is right, and so are the flavors in this fairly dry, almost tropical rosé from Spain. Nice balance, and by far the best wine I have ever tried for under $6.

** McDowell Grenache Rosé 1995 Mendocino ($9.99, Merchants). Bone-dry rosé, barely a hint of fruit, plenty of pepper and spicy sharpness. If you like your wines crisp and lean, then this rosé's for you.

**¹/₂ Regaleali 1996 Sicily Tasca D'Almerita ($9.99, Marty's Liquors). Who would have thought that an old Moorish farm owned by a count (appointed by Mussolini, no less) could be transformed into one of the better vineyards in Sicily? This stunning wine has wonderful acidity, a refreshing mouth feel (just barely pétillant), and a hint of white raspberry flavor. Perfect with rare tuna, or olives and tomatoes, on a summer evening.

**¹/₂ Domaine Faillenc Sainte Marie 1997 Vin de Pays D'Oc ($11.99, University Wine Shop). A wondrously watermelony wine that's a prime example of how far Languedoc-Roussillon has come. This is utterly refreshing, with just a hint of acidity, a waft of hibiscus, and an aftertaste of strawberry shortcake.

**¹/₂ Zaca Mesa Z Cuvée (Santa Barbara County) ($16.95, available by special order). Made of 85 percent grenache, with some cinsaut thrown in, plus a couple of bonus Rhone varieties (including syrah!). Similar to the McDowell, but with more fruit, more flowers, just a little more flavor across the board. It verges on strawberry, almost like a red wine.

***¹/₂ Nicholas Feuillatte Premier Cru (Epernay Champagne) ($28.99, University Wine Shop). A total steal at 30 bucks, this is a less-dry Champagne, reminiscent of rose petals, featuring big bubbles and lots of grip for a Champagne, with great structure and acidity.

David Marglin can be reached at wine[a]phx.com.

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