10 Fun Facts about Rosé Wine
It’s not a party unless there’s Rosé Wine! This fabulously versatile wine is right in style for all year round! It got it’s Spring/Summer wine reputation because that’s when the new batches usually hit the market. Rosé Wine has a light, fruity taste that is low in tannins, which make it a terrific starting point for new wine drinkers. Rosé wine has been gaining in popularity over the last decade and especially in the last few years. Here are 10 Fun Facts about Rosé Wine.
- In France it’s called Rosé, in Italy, they’re called Rosato, and in Spain it’s Rosado.
- It was the first wine created about around 600 B.C in Provence, France. Red and white wines came a few thousand years later.
- Rosé wines are typically less expensive than red wines because they do not have to mature for long and are simpler to make.
- Rosé is not just for summer sipping! It’s a terrific aperitif or dinner wine all year round, and pairs well with BBQ, spicy food, chicken, pork, sushi, seafood, charcuterie, cheese, tapas, salads, pizza and more…
- Mixing red and white wine together is not how you make Rosé. To make most Rosé Wine, red grapes are lightly crushed and left to macerate with their redskins for a little while (anywhere from a few hours to a few days), after which the juice is strained out from the solid stuff (called “must”) and fermented in tanks.
- Rosé gets its pink colour from the fact that the skin is left to sit in contact with the crushed grape for a while. The longer it sits, the darker the pink colour will be. The skin is removed after a few hours or up to 3 days.
- Rosé wine is not meant to be “aged.” It’s best consumed within 2-3 years of its release.
- France is the main producer of rosé wines, at about 28 per cent. The Provencal region produces the majority of the rosés to come out of the country, but smaller operations can be found in the Loire Valley and the Rhone region. The United States and Italy are the next largest producers and the US is the second-largest consumer after France. Rosés Wine has overtaken whites in the popularity category in France.
- Don’t confuse Rosé with Blush. Blush wines are semi-sweet, while Rosé is dry.
- Rosé is made from red grape varieties, but fermented like white wine, and it’s best served chilled, like other white wine (50-60 degrees F).
