Rosés are making a huge comeback around the world. Sweetness is the defining characteristic that divides these pink wines into two distinct styles. From Blush Rosé to Dry Rosé we have even more tips to share, thanks to Joelle's Top Ten Tips...
1. Rosé is on a roll globally with a massive surge in sales around the world in the past two decades.
2. Colour is not an indication of whether a pink wine tastes dry or sweet
3. Colour is all about how long the wine has had skin contact with red grapes during fermentation
4. Skin contact is the method of extracting colour from red grape skins
5. New Zealand rosé is mostly made from Pinot Noir
6. Pinot noir is the most planted red grape in the country, so it’s the most available grape to use to make rosé
7. Rosé can be made in a variety of ways, including lightly pressing red grapes, blending red and white wines together and, very popular in France, the saignée method - which means ‘bleeding’.
8. Saignée doubles as a way to make rosé while simultaneously concentrating the colour and flavour of red wine.
9. This makes saignee especially useful for Pinot Noir, which has thin skins and can gain big time from losing some fermenting juice to a rosé.
10. Rosé production has soared in New Zealand in tandem with the growth in Pinot Noir for two reasons - it can create better quality Pinot while making cash from a popular pink wine.
Joelle Thomson is a wine writer, journalist and author. She’s an avid lover of wine and currently writes for Capital magazine, Good magazine, NZ Winegrower, Drinksbiz, and her own site, www.joellethomson.com
