UNTIL I overheard the following in the wine aisle of a well-known British retailer, famous for socks and underwear, I didn’t think much needed to be said about rosé:
Shopper: "What gives it this lovely pink colour?"
Wine sales advisor: "It’s the rosé grape."
Oh dear. Just as "yellow" is not a type of cheese, "rosé" is not a grape variety. Rosé wines are pink because the juice stays in contact with crushed red grape skins for a short period. Rosé cannot (in the EU) be made by blending red and white wines, though this is typical in the New World. There are rosés de soif (thirst-quenching aperitifs) and rosés de bouche (complex pinks that go with meals any time). The difference between ho-hum and memorable is about 3 Euros, so splash out.
