Expand your repertoire of summer sips with our selection of the five best European rosé styles.
Provencal Rosé is all the rage – these dry, pale and scented pink wines just spell summer. But Europe boasts rosé styles beyond Provence. We have chosen five of the best so you can spend your summer in pretty much any shade of pink.
Chiaretto di Bardolino is Italy’s answer to Provençal rosé: it is dry, pale and crisp, light and scented. Made from the grape varieties Corvina and Rondinella – they are also behind Valpolicella and Amarone – it is grown on the shores of Lake Garda. Picture the scene: a terrace overlooking the lake, soft evening light, good company and a chilled glass of Chiaretto. That’s la dolce vita right there.
It is by their vibrant pink colour that you recognise these rosado wines from the Navarra region in northern Spain. Made mainly from Garnacha, these rosé wines have a lot of the vivid, red-fruited berry charm of that grape variety. There is a wonderful softness and fullness that makes these wines immensely enjoyable and certainly robust enough for food.
Tavel is the other rosé of southern France, namely from the southern Rhône Valley. Based on the grape varieties Grenache and Cinsault, it has much of their red berry allure but gains extra structure, backbone and spice from Mourvèdre and Syrah. It is the serious rosé to serve with that Salade Niçoise, with that vegetable quiche, with that spicy grilled fish.
Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo is a more robust rosé. Made from the local Montepulciano grape, it has some of the rusticity of this variety, it is darker and has more tannin – but this is useful when you want to pair this with grilled meats and sausages, or if it is a cooler night and you may want to have something a little more chewy.
This rosé from the Loire Valley is traditionally off-dry to medium sweet. But do not let that put you off: on the contrary, this sweetness opens the door for different pairings. Are you having berries for dessert? Or summer pudding? Then this may just be the wine to go with it. And here’s an insider tip: make a fruit salad of fresh strawberries, raspberries and chopped mint leaves and dress it with Rosé d’Anjou – you can thank us later.
