Wine of the Week – No Rosè Blends Allowed
Earlier this month the European Union’s agriculture commissioner, Mariann Fischer Boel, surprised many by ruling to not allow the production of blended rosè in the EU. This was a popular decision for European rosè producers as the value of their rosè production will be maintained. French wine producers in particular pressed the EU hard to maintain the current laws. They will benefit most from the acknowledgement of traditional production of rosè in France.
Chile, South Africa and Australia can import blended roses into the EU, however the ruling will be able to clearly differentiate European rose from the imports, and potentially increase the value of the European brands. Rosè is made in the traditional way by reducing the time the skins are fermented with red wine grapes. This allows the producers to create a great variety of rosè wines using this method.
With this in mind, this week’s wine of the week is a French rosè. I have chosen one from the Loire Valley to show the vaiety you can find in the tradition production of rosè wine. The Cabernet d’Anjou 2008 by Lacheteau is a great example of what you can do with traditional rosè wine making for under €10. It is a sweat and fruity, yet well rounded wine, but it has enough acidity to keep for some years. This was not the case for me as the bottles I bought were gone within a couple of weeks of returning from the Loire.
This great value wine is great for summer sipping and goes very well with spicy Mexican or some gourmet sausages on the barbeque. And remember the rosés made in the EU are still all made in the traditional way!
