In Provence, the grape harvest started two weeks ago, starting first in the vineyards near the coast and then continuing further inland. As usual, the wine year has brought a number of challenges, torrential rain in May, then drought and several heat waves leading up to the harvest. More on this when the harvest is complete.
The rest of the post contains news from the world of rosé wine as well as some more rosé wines that have been tasted. The rosé research centre, which is so important for Provence, is to be expanded and now has its own experimental vineyards, an association for “terroir rosé wines” has been formed and which aromas/flavours in rosé wines have the greatest chance of winning medals?
New Rosé Wines that have been Tasted
In the post from June, 14 different Provence rosé wines were tasted, the post has now been updated with two more wines from the Swedish Systembolaget. The wines are the négociant wine Chavin from the producer Pierre Chavin located in Hérault in Occitanie (formerly Languedoc) and the brand wine produced for Contemporary Wines Sweden AB.
Then there is a new, fresh post about Lidl’s cheap rosé wine sold under its own brand Saint- Aygade that is sold for only 2,5€.
Centre du Rosé de Provence
A major contributor to the success of Provence rosé wine is the world-unique research centre for rosé wine founded in Vidauban in 1999. Their development work has resulted in major quality improvements through, for example, process improvements such as harvesting at night, short pressing of the grapes, low-temperature sedimentation, use of yeast and controlled low-temperature fermentation, all of which have resulted in today’s light but aromatic Provençal rosé wine type.
The research centre has been successfully led by Gilles Masson for all these years, but he announced in June that he is stepping down to focus instead on his vineyard in Brue-Auriac in the Var and is also starting a wine consultancy operating both in France and abroad. When asked what he is most proud of, he replies, “Successfully combining scientific rigor with the originality of rosé wine”.
There have been discussions for five or six years about building a new expanded research centre and it now seems that everything is ready to start with this. The initiative combines the current rosé centre with the Chamber of Agriculture in Var and construction in Vidauban is expected to start in late 2025 and be inaugurated in 2028.
The centre will include an experimental vineyard of 5,000 m², a wine cellar, a laboratory, a large meeting room and a reception room. In addition to research on rosé wine, the activities will include knowledge transfer to winegrowers.
Source: Vitisphere
Is Rosé Wine a Terroir Wine?
This is a controversial issue, with some claiming that rosé wine is a technological wine created in the wine cellar and only drunk by the pool, while more serious winemakers claim that it is a terroir wine, i.e. a wine that reflects, among other things, the terroir of the place where it is grown.
Four years ago, 20 French wine producers created the Association Internationale des Rosés de Terroirs (AIRT) with the aim of supporting and accelerating the recognition of terroir rosé wines. The association has grown to now include 50 winemakers in France, Italy, Greece, and Lebanon and is chaired by none other than Philippe Guigal.
A terroir wine should not follow the whims of fashion, but rather, through its colour and flavour, it should tell about its origin and the winemaker, who is often unique, and they should also be able to pair well with meals. Finally, the wines should be able to be aged and thus, like white and red wines, gain increased complexity.
The association has therefore created the world’s first wine cellar intended solely for the storage of terroir rosé wines. From 2024, each member will store a few bottles of each vintage and the development of these wines will be followed by the association.
With aging, a rosé wine can develop tertiary aromas such as empyreumatic (burnt, smoky or tar-like notes), dried and candied fruits, dried flowers, roasted notes, caramel, spices, honey, and with a silky mouthfeel and a light tannic body.
Producers in Provence currently participating are:
Bandol: Château de Pibarnon, Château Pradeux, La Bastide Blanche, Domaine Maubernard, Domaine La Suffrène, Domaine de Terrebrune, Domaine de la Tour du Bon
Côtes de Provence: Château Barbanau, Clos Cibonne, Domaine Gavoty, Le Grand Cros, Château de Roquefort
Côtes de Provence Fréjus: Château Paquette
Côtes de Provence Saint- Victoire: Mas de Cadenet, Château Gassier
Source: Vitisphere , rosesdeterroirs.com
Medals – Rosé Wine Fashion
Did you know that there has been a fashion for how a Provençal rosé wine should taste in order to win medals in the various wine competitions in France and where the winners then boast a medal stuck on the bottle?
Previously, the very typical “grapefruit” rosé wines have won medals but that is no longer the case, now it should no longer be so-called thiol-dominated tones but a mixture of thiol cuvées and amyl cuvées, of course, right?!? All according to a study carried out at the Centre du Rosé de Provence in Vidauban and referenced by Vitisphere.
Without being sufficiently knowledgeable in chemistry, I will try to give a simple explanation:
– Thiols also called mercaptans. “Volatile” thiols are a specific class of sulphur-containing compounds that are found in wine in very low concentrations. The concentration and type of thiol, and thus its aroma, are affected by a number of factors during viticulture and winemaking, where one can be which yeast is used during fermentation as the yeast can convert one thiol type to another.
A well-known thiol aroma in wine is the description “cat’s pee on a gooseberry bush” for Sauvignon blanc from New Zealand which is obtained at high concentrations of the thiol 4MMP.
For rosé wines, the thiol 3MH may be of interest as it gives citrus aromas (lime, grapefruit, orange) and A3MH which gives aromas of passion fruit, guava and gooseberry and it is primarily the grapefruit aroma that has been very popular for rosé wines so far.
– Amyl compounds (fr. amylique) Compounds, esters, which are formed during fermentation and which give various fruity notes to the wine and which often dominate in the young wine but which disappear over time.
Aromas that can be obtained at lower fermentation temperatures, down to 10 degrees, are pineapple, melon, pear, and banana. The banana note was previously common in Beaujolais Nouveau when the special 71B primary yeast was used, at higher levels of the compound, notes of English confectionery are obtained instead. Another amyl compound can instead give aromas like nail polish, which is then a wine defect.
So according to the research report, the winning Provence rosé wines should no longer be thiol-dominated with a lot of grapefruit, but should be a blend of thiol cuvées and amyl cuvées, in an approximate proportion of 40/60. According to the report, aromas of red and tropical fruits, such as pineapple and passion fruit, are then obtained, and which is also more food-friendly. Since amyl compounds decrease over time, this is taken into account when blending so that the amyl cuvées are slightly overdosed to find a balance with the thiols over time.
Considering the above article about terroir wines that can be aged with increased complexity, one might wonder whether the wines according to the “recipe” here belong to the category of terroir wines or whether they rather belong to the category of technological wines, i.e. those created in the wine cellar!
Source: Vitisphere, https://winemakersresearchexchange.com/learn/varietal-thiols-in-wine-interventions-in-the-vineyard-and-winery , https://lesvignoblesedonis.com/fr/lexique-amylique
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Provence expert Göran Boman, Author of the books ” Provence – Vita, röda och även roséviner” and “The Wines of Provence – Tricolour”. Easiest to buy is via sending an e-mail to me: provencebook@gmboman.se
