Bonne: On Provencal Rose

Jon has a particularly well-written & insightful article in Punch on the ubiquity of Provencal rose and the makeover of the region's wines as a result:
Bonne:ProvencalRose

As a lined up my latest tableau of Calif to take down to Susan's (she's a big rose lover), I realized it's been ages since I tried a Provencal Rose. Usually Ode to Lulu/TablasCreek/Idlewild/Tercero/Forlorm-Hope fill all my (slender) rose needs. I should try a recent one.

The linked article on a Guide to Provence's pioneering wines recommends the Dom.Hauvette wines. This is one of Provence's "natural" winemakers that bottles san-soufre. I recently had their Cinsault/Grenache red that was so brett-laden/barnyardy/Kansas outhouse on a hot Summer day/horse-$hitty that I could not choke down more than one glass. I returned it to the shop where I bought it and asked them to try it, something I rarely bother to do. The response.."That's the way I remember it and that's the way it's supposed to taste". Worse...it was some $54/btl. Avoid Dom.Hauvette unless you're drinking it in Provence.
Tom

The linked article on a Guide to Provence's pioneering wines recommends the Dom.Hauvette wines. This is one of Provence's "natural" winemakers that bottles san-soufre. I recently had their Cinsault/Grenache red that was so brett-laden/barnyardy/Kansas outhouse on a hot Summer day/horse-$hitty that I could not choke down more than one glass. I returned it to the shop where I bought it and asked them to try it, something I rarely bother to do. The response.."That's the way I remember it and that's the way it's supposed to taste". Worse...it was some $54/btl. Avoid Dom.Hauvette unless you're drinking it in Provence.
Tom

Tom, that is NOT the way Hauvette's red is supposed to taste.

As for the linked article, it much exaggerates the domination of pink in Provence, which is not a new phenomenon. There is no difficulty in getting hold of excellent Provençal reds and mostly slightly less excellent whites, at least on this side of the Atlantic. Red Bandol, of course, from Tempier, Pibarnon...and also red Trévallon are IMO world class wines, Château Simone's white at Palette, IMO slightly better than their pink and red, is excellent, Bellet in Nice is fascinating for all three colours and the Côtes de Provence and Aix appellation areas contain several excellent estates making very good reds such as Richeaume, Gavoty, Saint-André de Figuière, Vignelaure.....

I don't drink a lot of pink but persons whom I believe say that many Rosés de Provence are becoming a lot more interesting and worthy of serious wine-lovers' interest. I'll do some exploration one day to make up my own mind. Good survey on pink in the last number of la Revue du Vin de France but too long to précis and it will serve as a useful guide in my exploration.

The linked article on a Guide to Provence's pioneering wines recommends the Dom.Hauvette wines. This is one of Provence's "natural" winemakers that bottles san-soufre. I recently had their Cinsault/Grenache red that was so brett-laden/barnyardy/Kansas outhouse on a hot Summer day/horse-$hitty that I could not choke down more than one glass. I returned it to the shop where I bought it and asked them to try it, something I rarely bother to do. The response.."That's the way I remember it and that's the way it's supposed to taste". Worse...it was some $54/btl. Avoid Dom.Hauvette unless you're drinking it in Provence.
Tom

Tom, that is NOT the way Hauvette's red is supposed to taste.

Well, Tim.....the shop's owner has some sort of letters after his name.....so I wasn't about to argue w/ him.
I was a bit taken aback by his response. If a were the shop's owner I would not be selling a wine that was that bretty
as to be undrinkable...unless I gave them a head's up that it was "natural" and maybe a bit funky. Since it was a san-soufre
wine, I just assumed maybe heat in transit initiated a run-away brett infection. When you dealing w/ sans-soufre wines,
every bottle is a potential bombshell.
Tom

. Since it was a san-soufre
wine, I just assumed maybe heat in transit initiated a run-away brett infection. When you dealing w/ sans-soufre wines,
every bottle is a potential bombshell.
Tom

I still remember the Loire gamay made by a guy who from his photograph looks like one of our "urban campers" (No sulfur-but also no electricity and no tractors!).

Nice gamay fruit, then...PEANUT BUTTER! RANCID PEANUT BUTTER.

Tom, that is NOT the way Hauvette's red is supposed to taste.

Well, Tim.....the shop's owner has some sort of letters after his name.....so I wasn't about to argue w/ him.
I was a bit taken aback by his response. If a were the shop's owner I would not be selling a wine that was that bretty
as to be undrinkable...unless I gave them a head's up that it was "natural" and maybe a bit funky. Since it was a san-soufre
wine, I just assumed maybe heat in transit initiated a run-away brett infection. When you dealing w/ sans-soufre wines,
every bottle is a potential bombshell.
Tom

I wonder if Dominique Hauvette knows how her wines are being mistreated in transit and storage in California. If I come across her at a tasting, I'll tell her of your experience and the comment of the guy in the store.

Whoa, Jamie Goode is stirring the pot!!

http://www.wineanorak.com/wineblog/

I quite agree with Jamie Goode's excellent article, both in content and tone.

He says it all eloquently so I have little to add.

And it still grates on me that people still dismiss Provence rose' with the word "pink", which shows a distinct lack of vision as well as appreciation of all the myriad things rose' can be. Provence concentrates, focuses, obsesses on the soul and essence of its rose'---and I'm sorry, I would never, ever descend to calling the vast majority of the rose' there as "simple".

I'd even go so far as to say that if someone is drinking rose'---and most especially if someone is drinking rose' in Provence with a fougasse or a bouilliabase or grilled fish or simply a nicoise--- and dismisses it as somehow lacking or unsatisfying, then I would assume the drinker is more in love with his expectations than whatever wine he is drinking.

To me the primary difference, the pinpoint focus of what Provence rose' so compelling is that, from start to finish, they do everything to make rose'. It's not a sideline of red wine making. It's not a tinting of white wine. It's not an artifically mellow and understated pink. It is intended to be rose. Nothing else. And as such most of it is utterly appealing.

Whoa, Jamie Goode is stirring the pot!!

http://www.wineanorak.com/wineblog/

Wow, Jamie's pen has sharpened a lot . A good article which intensifies my desire to get to grips with more modern Provençal rosé.

I was wandering around in the vicinity of Union Square Wines in NYC on Saturday and happened to catch a tasting of 'Wines for Mum' - almost 2 dozen wines, with a high percentage of rose, including about a half dozen from Provence. Of those, none were poor, but none really grabbed me either. I think my favorite was the relatively inexpensive (about $10) Lavendette Alpes de Haute Provence Rose, 2015: this may have had a bit more grip due to the higher altitude vineyards.

Otherwise, I enjoyed the six wines at the David Bowler table the most, with the '15 Thomas-Labaille Sancerre Rose my favorite (Pinot Noir, I bought this). Also at that table the '15 d'Oupia Minervois Rose was delicious and had great QPR, and the '14 Cour-Cheverny Cuvee Renaissance from Cazin was superb. I had enjoyed the Edmunds St. John Bone Jolly in some previous vintages, but the '15 version, while nice, didn't really grab me.

From the tables, I looked forward to trying the '08 Colet-Navazos Cava Reserva, but I found it heavy and dull - certainly not worth the $50 price tag. And among the Mourvedre Roses, the pricier '15 Puech-Haut Tete de Belier from Languedoc and the '15 Liquid Farm from Santa Barbara were outshone by the cheapie ($10) '15 Primitivo Quiles Rosado Virgen from Alicante in Spain!