Philly Wine Finder

Rosé for Grilling

For grilling, don't forget to get rosé chilling.  The PLCB, PA Wine and Spirits, Fine Wine and Good Spirits, whatever you want to call them, for once has a lot of dry rosé available, which is great with anything in the summer, especially anything on the grill.  

 

Mirabello Pinot Grigio is a great buy at $7.99 and pairs well with grilled red snapper.

 

Aime Roquesant Cotes de Provence is fresh and crisp, but the best thing about it may be the cool looking bottle.

 

Mirabello Pinot Grigio Rose 2011
Chairman's Selection^TM
Description from PLCB web site
PLCB Code: 32495
Size: 750ML
Price: $7.99
Compare to prices on wine-searcher.com:  (Avg $8, Min $8, Max $8)
Availability in Pennsylvania:

In Wine & Spirits stores

Region:    Italy > Lombardy > Provincia di Pavia
Grape Varieties:     Pinot Grigio 87%
Pinot Nero 13%
Alcohol Content:    12.5%

Aime Roquesant Cotes de Provence Rose 2011
Luxury Item
PLCB Code: 39608
Size: 750 ML
Price: $9.99
Compare to prices on wine-searcher.com

 

 

 

Roc de Chateauvieux Rose d'Anjou 2009

There's some very good Chairman's Selection rosé out there, particulary Roc de Chateauvieux Rosé d'Anjou which is fresh and fruity and will go with anything, including MaPo Tofu and Spicy Grilled Chicken Veggie Pockets.

We especially recommend Roc de Chateauvieux; even a confirmed anti-pinkite we know was charmed by its soft summer fruitiness.  For now there's still a lot in Philly, but we expect it to go fast.

Roc de Chateauvieux Rose d'Anjou 2009
Chairman's Selection^TM
Description from PLCB web site
PLCB Code: 32472
Size: 750ML
Price: $7.99
Compare to prices on wine-searcher.com:  (Avg $8, Min $8, Max $8)
Availability in Pennsylvania:

In Wine & Spirits stores

Region:    France > Loire Valley
Grape Varieties:     Grolleau
Gamay
Pineau d'Aunis
Cabernet Sauvignon
Alcohol Content:    11%

 

Espirito Lagoalva Rose 2011
Chairman's Selection^TM
Description from PLCB web site
PLCB Code: 32567
Size: 750ML
Price: $8.99
Compare to prices on wine-searcher.com:
Availability in Pennsylvania:

In Wine & Spirits stores

Region:    Portugal > Ribatejano
Grape Varieties:     Touriga Nacional 50%
Syrah 50%
Alcohol Content:    12.5%

 

 

Domaine Magellan Vin de Pays de l'Hérault Le Fruit Defendu

Special offer rosé from Moore Brothers is always good. 

 

"In the glass, the wine has a limpid, polished-copper-in-candlelight color. The nose unfurls with wild cherries, red currants, and fresh flowers, all seasoned with the cinnamon-like side of fresh green perilla. On the palate, the wine is dry and compact, but very concentrated, with more red cherries and currants, plus pomegranate juice and persimmon, all seasoned with refreshing sandstone minerality. Drink now until next spring, when the 2012 vintage will arrive, with almost anything you can imagine."  --Greg Moore

Vin de Pays de l'Hérault Le Fruit Défendu
Rosé Domaine Magellan 2011    (reg. $14)    $11

CellarTracker

 

Toad Hollow Pinot Noir Rosé Eye of the Toad 2010

Not buying any wine named after a toad (or a swan, loon, cougar, bear, elk, monkey, llama etc.)  is probably a good idea, but we bought this anyway.  It was not bad for a critter wine, and a good way for impatient wine drinkers to get an early taste of spring.

Still some left at the Society Hill store.

Toad Hollow Pinot Noir Rosé Eye of the Toad 2010
Chairman's Selection^TM
Description from PLCB web site
PLCB Code: 32287
Size: 750ML
Price: $7.99
Compare to prices on wine-searcher.com:  (Avg $9, Min $8, Max $13)
Availability in Pennsylvania:

In Wine & Spirits stores

Region:    USA > California > Sonoma County
Grape Variety:     Pinot Noir
Alcohol Content:    11%

2010 Château Grande Cassagne Costières-de-Nîmes Rosé

Pink fish, pink wine! Mmm love it. Dry but also prominent Jolly Rancher taste. A wonderful rosé from the Southern Rhone. 

We purchased this at the Philadelphia Wine Festival. Only regret is not buying more as there seems to be no more available in the PLCB system. 

 Code: 20349
    * Description: Chateau Grande Cassagne Rosé 2010
    * Size: 750 ML
    * Price: $12.99

PLCB Rosé Beats Moore Brothers Rosé in Blind Tasting

Philly Wine Finder has just returned from one of our out-of-state tasting locations where we did some blind tasting of wines purchased through the PLCB system and compared them to wines purchased out of the PLCB system.

Our first blind tasting consisted of three rosé wines:

2009 Château Vignelaure Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence La Source $13.99 (code 12134 PLCB Store 9113)

2009 Château Revelette Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence Rosé $15.00 special offering reg. $17 (Moore Brothers)

2008 Macari Rosé (North Fork, Long Island)

The PLCB system couldn't be any more different than boutique wine store Moore Brothers.  Moore Brothers boasts of their personal relationships with small-farm artisan winegrowers and their temperature controlled stores and shipping.  Special offers via email come complete with lavish descriptions of the wine and the wine grower written by Greg Moore.  The special offer for the 2009 Château Revelette was one of the more over-the-top descriptions:

"But this polished-copper-in-candlelight dry rosé, with red currants and wild strawberry in the nose, generous red fruit, and precise, deep minerality on the palate is a perfect wine (by which I mean I find it impossible to imagine a better Provence rosé)."

By contrast, the PLCB 2009 Château Vignelaure Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence La Source had no description or marketing at all.  By chance we happened to stumble upon 5 cases on the floor of Store 9113 in mid July. (Curiously (or not?) they now are sold out completely!) 

The third wine, the 2008 Macari Rosé, is from a Long Island winery and made from different grapes than the first two. 

Despite Moore Brothers reputation and superlative write up on the Revelette, a consensus of 8 blind tasters found the PLCB La Source to have a much fuller nose of floral aromatics and a more lively fresh taste.  The Revelette was judged to have a thin nose and to be rather flat. Care was taken so that the wines were at the same temperature.  The final proof was in how much of each wine was left at the end of the tasting. Even the Macari from Long Island beat out the Revelette! 

We're sorry Moore Brothers, we still love you!

 

PLCB Should Offer More Pink!

The selection of dry rosé wines at PLCB stores is disappointing to say the least.  Despite wine critics telling Americans for years that dry rosé is different from white zinfandel (even Gary V thinks rosé is overhyped), PLCB seems to have not gotten the memo.  Rosé wines are rarely featured as Chairman's Selection wines, and there aren't many dry rosés offered besides Mouton Cadet Bordeaux rosé and a few others.  PLCB needs to give us a better selection of dry rosé from the better-known rosé producing areas such as Provence, Tavel, Anjou, Bandol, or Rioja.

We had the Mouton Cadet rosé last night at a barbecue and had low expectations to begin with. The color is a little darker than most rosé.  The Mouton Cadet web site (which has some really snappy tunes by the way) touts raspberry and red currants, but all we could get on the nose was strawberry. The first attack of this wine is surprisingly strong, but after we got used it it was drinkable enough, especially with the grilled chicken and burgers.  Which just goes to show that it doesn't take much for a dry rosé to hit the spot in the summertime.

Still, most people at the barbecue chose white wine or beer over the rosé, which is disappointing. C'mon Philly people, discover the joy of crisp rosé!  C'mon PLCB, give us a bigger selection of pink!