Rosé season is upon us! The sun is shining, flowers are getting ready to bloom, and rosé bottles are flying off the shelves to be enjoyed in Prescott’s beautiful (if not perfect) weather. If this is the first time you’re hearing of this very special time of year, fear not! This trend is still catching on, and has been steadily on the rise in the U.S. for the last five years. While the popularity of the pink drink started mainly in New York and California, it’s been migrating inland, and Arizona is catching on quickly.
Now, if you’re about to give up reading this because you’re thinking, “I don’t like sweet wines,” stick around! A brief history of rosé is in order!
While in Europe, France specifically, rosé had always been a favorite. Not so in America. In the 1970s, the California winery Sutter Home had an accident occur while making a white Zinfandel, called stuck fermentation, wherein the sugar from the grapes didn’t fully convert to alcohol, resulting in a slightly sweet wine. Instead of fixing their mistake, they released the wine, only to find that Americans loved it. Even though white Zinfandel’s popularity continued to boom throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s, sommeliers and wine professionals were not taking the craze very seriously. High-end restaurants and wine bars wouldn’t dare pour rosé, since most winemakers were using their leftover grapes to make the newly popular sweet drink, and very few American wineries were actually setting out to make high quality juice.
This changed in the early 2000s, when American wine drinkers became increasingly obsessed with French wines, and with them, dry (not sweet) rosé. The French had been making high quality dry rosé for some time, so as it crossed the ocean, more and more wine drinkers, who were opposed to the “American” version of the sweet stuff, quickly caught on. This changed a lot of perspectives on the style, so much so that many American winemakers soon followed suit, America now being second, behind France, in the world’s overall rosé production.
Clever marketing during this time period, specifically on social media, deemed the spring/early summer “rosé season,” as the dryer, less sweet, super crisp and refreshing rosés paired extremely well with the weather, and looked great poolside. Clever hashtags and slogans such as Rosé All Day and Yes Way Rosé have made a huge splash on the internet, now a very common thing to see on t-shirts, bags, and water bottles. But is this trend just that? Or is there more behind the sudden take off of this particular style of wine?
I believe the popularity lies in the way rosé is made, so I should explain exactly what rosé is, and what sets it apart from its red and white cousins. Wine, no matter what kind, gets its color, if any, from the skins. Red wines come from wines that have darker skins. When the juice is allowed time in contact with the skins, it takes on the color. White wines usually have lighter skins, and while some may impart some color, mostly the juice is run off from the skins, not allowing much contact time. Rosé wines come from grapes you are familiar with, commonly Grenache, Syrah, Zinfandel, Tempranillo and even Cabernet Sauvignon. The juice is run off from the skins, and allowed minimal contact, giving the juice its pink color. This allows the true nature of the grapes juice to be showcased, but results in a much lighter drink. If you are a big Syrah fan, but are enjoying lunch on your patio in 90-degree weather, you’re probably going to opt for something a little lighter. This is where rosé steps in, all of the earthy goodness of a Syrah, but in a lighter, crisper form.
Ultimately, as someone who usually stays away from trends, rosé has gotten to me, as its quality now lives up to the hype and really does taste great on a beautiful sunny day. There are many, many different styles out there, so I highly recommend saying “Yes Way Rosé” this season and finding your favorite. QCBN
By Valerye Jeffries
Join us at the Raven Cafe in downtown Prescott as we have jumped on the bandwagon, now offering our rosés at half price, all day every Wednesday.
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