There's a little wine shop at the North end of the main street. It holds something wonderful, rose wine from France. I bought a bottle a few days ago in anticipation of a day just like this one.
What is so special about French rose? Most people think it's similar to California "blush" wines, which are sweet and ordinary. Blush or white zinfandel is a good vehicle for getting alcohol into the bloodstream for people who don't really like wine. That's my opinion, since many of us "trained" on it in our youth. It's one step above wine coolers.
French rose, especially from Southeastern France, or Provence, is an entirely different animal. It is crisp, it is bone dry. Minerally, fruity, complex. Lovely color in the glass, in appears in all shades of pink. It is a red wine, really, made from grenache and syrah in most blends. The grapes are crushed and the skins left in the juice only long enough to tint it a bit. By removing the skins quickly, there is little or no tanin (which comes from the skins). You get clean fruit, but it does include the minerality of the soil, so characteristic of these roses. Strawberries, red currants and subtle flowers, spice and stone, lovely.
Sorry, California. You guys can't do this. The closest I've found to the French style is a very few from South Africa, and I have no idea why.
It is of interest that French law does not allow manipulation of chemistry in wine making. It's all natural. It's against the law to irrigate or fertilize a vineyard, so each vintage depends on the weather for it's quality. That's why you hear that 2005 was better than 2007 for some wines. Too much rain makes a diluted juice, just the right amount of draught makes intense, concentrated juice. It seems the harder the vines work, the better the product. It's all climate, weather, terroir (soil) and juice. Nothing more.
Other parts of the world, including the United States toy with irrigation, chemical fertilization, and even additives to the juice to make their product. In my opinion there is nothing wrong with this, but it's kinda over-the-top. In the glass it can be too much, all at once. And the manipulation creates trends, one year California chardonnays are over-oaked, and the next year too sweet, based upon the winemaker's whim and blending with the addition of sugar or ascorbic acid.
And the yeast a winemaker uses is his most closely guarded secret. Many of these cultures have been preserved for a hundred years or more. There is one that Taittinger uses that I swear gives their Champagne a hint of honey. They also use this yeast in their California winery at Sonoma (Domaine Carneros). Many French winemakers use "ambient" yeasts, which are in the air inside the winery or grow on the grapes themselves. These ambient yeasts can create the finest and most unique wines.
The roses from Tavel, an appellation just north of Avignon, are the best. They blend grenache and syrah, but also use cinsault and mourvedre grapes. There is more complexity and intensity in these. This particular rose has been the favorite of kings and popes for hundreds of years. I'll add my name to that list.
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| Tavel comes in distinctly embossed bottles, a sign of superiority and tradition |
Nobody can stand to watch me eat it, so with a little French pop music playing on the iPod, in blissful solitude I am complete.
