Wine: ‘France is very protective over the way rosé is made’

WITH Valentine’s Day just over a week away, it is time to look at some of the pink wines we traditionally associate with 14 February. Oddly enough, few in France – home to a third of the world’s rosé – recognise that association; for them, rosé is for summer, not February.

France is, however, very protective about the way its rosé is made, opting for methods that either bleed off the juice from black grapes or involve only minimal contact with their skins. Depending on the grape variety used, a mere 24 hours can be sufficient to create the necessary pink tinge. New World producers are permitted to make rosé by blending red and white wines but, after a determined French campaign, tighter rules apply in the EC.

That is not the only difference, because, unlike France – where dry rosé is king – many in the UK and US love the off-dry, blush wines created by accident when a batch of ‘white zinfandel’ went wrong. If that is the style you and yours prefer, Sainsbury’s has a couple of wines to seek out. 2011 Taste the Difference Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé (£5.99) is a smooth, light version with a nice clean finish. Its off-dry flavours of cherry and other summer fruit have just a hint of the bubblegum that can spoil this style of wine, but not enough to upset the overall balance.

For a sparkling wine from the genre, try the soft and undemanding Taste the Difference Pinot Rosé (£6.99 until 21 February), a spumante with big – and, hence, somewhat ephemeral – bubbles that, with a mere 11 per cent alcohol, will work just on its own.

Half-way to the drier group of rosés comes the great-value 2011 Mayu Carmenere Syrah Rosé (£4.98, Asda), a smooth, darkish, perfumed version from Chile’s Elqui Valley, with minty strawberry fruit but sufficient concluding grip to complement food. Among the traditional rosés, I enjoyed 2010 Bordeaux Rosé (£7.49, M&S), with light, strawberry flavours bolstered by crisp, robust tropical fruit undertones.

Of course, nothing quite celebrates Valentine’s Day like sparkling wine. The first stop would be the North Island of New Zealand for Lindauer Rosé (£7.99, Majestic, until 12 March), a tank-fermented fizz with long, substantial red apple flavours supplemented by a berry-based tang and slightly toasty backdrop. Next is Spain’s Codorniu Pinot Noir Brut (£10.99, Wildflower Wines), which represents a significant step up from familiar entry-point Codorniu; it delivers a delicate rose-scented nose and really fresh acidity to underpin the combination of peach and strawberry flavours.

Another good option is Pongracz Brut Rosé (£14.99, Morrisons), a South African fizz with ripe, creamy strawberry fruit and appealing touches of brioche on the nose and palate. A good-value pink champagne is Louis Bernard Champagne Brut Rosé (£19, Asda), with mellow raspberry fruit, fresh and lively acidity and a faintly bready background induced by its secondary fermentation.

Inevitably, Valentine’s Day attracts some novelty offerings – such as Croft Pink (£11.05, Co-op), a rosé port that claims to bring subtlety and freshness to the world of port or add some extra interest to cocktails. Not to be outdone, the sherry producer Harvey’s is promoting sweet wine for the sweetest thing in your life via the treacle and chocolate-charged Harvey’s PX, made from the dessert wine grape pedro ximenez. It is available in 50cl bottles (£21.29, Waitrose ().

So, whatever wine style you prefer, there is something available to add a little extra colour to the most romantic of days.

BEST BUYS

2009 Domaine Paul Mas Viognier Languedoc-Roussillon, France, 13 per cent A rich, perfumed white from south of viognier’s normal home, with excellent fresh, floral peach flavours and a gentle vanilla finish. £8.50, Henderson Wines, Edinburgh

2011 Pinot Noir dell Venetia Italy, 12 per cent It’s not often ‘everyday’ and ‘pinot noir’ appear together but this wine’s light and delicate cherry flavours, soft touches of raspberry and nutmeg and cinnamon finish nicely demonstrate pinot’s key characteristics and give change from a fiver. £3.99, Aldi