WTN: 2005 Wölffer Estate Rosé, The Hamptons, New York, USA
Every year in the late spring, wine publications run features that sing the praises of rosé wines. Every year, I wonder if anyone still believes that rosés are off-balance sweet wines in the manner of White Zinfandel. But I was out to dinner with a group of friends and friends of friends and they asked me to choose a wine. I mentioned an Italian rosé on the list, and the friends of friends chortled at what they thought was a joke.
So I guess that answers the question of why wine magazines and newspaper wine sections still run the hoary "rosés are great!" piece. If you're one of those "no pink" types, you're missing out. A good rosé is tart, dry, and food-friendly—not to mention prettier in the glass than either a white or a red.
Melissa and I recently opened the Wölffer Estate Rosé, which the winery sent me as a sample. We made a brief visit to the showy winery on our "Eat 'Til You Drop" tour, and I liked the wines, even in a slightly snuffly state. Wölffer seems to distribute its products more widely than its Long Island peers, and wine maker Roman Roth has created some admirable ambassadors for the region. There are better producers on the East End, even in my limited exposure to Long Island, but it's harder to find them outside of a small area.
Tasting note:
This pretty red-pink wine is a good, but not a great, rosé. Delicate floral aromas mingle with a brief hint of pepper. Floral flavors dominate the palate as you taste the medium-light wine, but there's a pleasant earthy quality in the first part of the long finish and a refreshing mineral quality at the end. I wish the wine had more acidity. It's not a flabby wine, but it's not as crisp as I'd like. I didn't note down what we ate with this wine, but I'd put it up against a charcuterie platter, fresh salmon, or steamed mussels.
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