Rosé Wine, by Jennifer Simonetti-Bryan, MW ~ Brilliant

Rosé Wine, by Jennifer Simonetti-Bryan, MW ~ Let me start with the finish.

Loved the book, read it to this very last statement on the back cover: If you’re a beginner, Rosé Wine offers the ideal starting point, and it also serves as a great resource if you’re an enthusiast looking to expand your horizons. Here’s to drinking pink!

Jennifer Simonetti-Bryan has learned much more than the average person within the wine business, for instance, when it comes to this type of wine. And, as a brilliant educator, she now has written the quintessential book on Rosé.

So, let me tell you how I would have added a bit more to the final thought above: If you’re a beginner, Rosé Wine offers the ideal starting point, and it also serves as a great resource if you’re an enthusiast looking to expand your horizons. As a wine pro, this book belongs in your wine book library, because it’s a perfect reference, when you need to review anything about Rosé. Here’s to drinking pink! 

Rosé Wine is now carefully stored with my other wine books, and it’s not going anywhere. (No sharing. I’ll buy you a copy, if you want one, friends.)

Some of my favorite nuggets

1.  Provence France: “This region has been producing wine since the ancient Greeks colonized the area around 600 BC and brought wine with them. That long history makes Provence France one of France’s oldest wine growing regions in addition to being one of the world’s largest regions specializing in rosé.” p. 90
2. In “A Short History of Rosé:” In the Twelfth Century, France began exporting wine from Bordeaux to England. It was called a clairet. This means it was more of a rosé than the inky, brooding Bordeaux wines we know of today.
3. Mateus wine – did I even know it was a rosé, when we were chugging it in the 60s? I have an image in my mind of being at a party my brother had thrown at our summer home (unbeknownst to my parents, of course). The bottle was passed around the room, as if it were a joint. And, did I even know it was from Portugal? Did we even care back then?
4. White Zin
   1. 1980 – 25,000 cases
   2. 1986 – 1.5 million cases
5. Gen X moved Pink Moscato forward
   1. 2011-2014 increased sales by 42 percent
6. As comprehensively as I’ve written about terroir, I’ve never written about elevation having an impact. It does, and I was completely reminded, when I read Jennifer’s word “altitude.” (Hit my head moment.)
7. Merlot is named for Bordeaux’s blackbirds, who are called “merles.”
8. I know about cold soaking grapes, during the wine making process. I didn’t know it was at 53 to 59 degrees, which makes sense, but first you have to ask or read about it, right? Never had the time or curiosity to ask the question.
9. To have vintage Champagne, it has to be 24 months old.