The 2009 supply is here! Last year,
the Hautes Cances Rosé
sold out in three weeks. And because the 2009
vintage has growers hopping about with joy,
so is there any reason at all why you
shouldn't be buying two cases?
After all, summer days are now on the horizon
and one of the best ways I know of to enjoy
them is to slip
your hand around a sweating, cool neck of
shimmery salmony-pink Rosé and get that
corkscrew twisting. It's like a sunset in
your glass. Suddenly you're on
v-a-c-a-t-i-o-n. Uh, I'll have a second glass
if anyone's getting up...
But, here's the very important part: there
are a lot of Rosés out there - some with those
ultra-modern abstract labels that just don't
seem very authentic and they certainly can
taste very boring or poorly made. They are
nothing like this Rosé born in Provence where
the sun splashes over the vineyards all day
long and folks know what a good Rosé has to
taste like to warrant the name.
The Rosé from Domaine les Hautes Cances was
named
one of the best Rosé in all of France and
it's no surprise. This Rosé comes from 50
year-old vines. Nobody does that! That's
right, 50 years old.
Anne Marie and
Jean-Marie, the proprietors of Domaine les Hautes
Cances don't make their Rosé from leftovers
or inferior plots as a lot of winemakers do.
They reserve a special parcel of old-vine
land just for their Rosé.
This is a Rosé that's made just like a very
expensive red wine. It's 37% Syrah with some
Cinsault, Grenache and Carignan in the blend
too. The soil is that perfect combination of
clay and limestone. The yields are an
amazingly low 35 hectoliters per hectare and
every grape is sorted through meticulously to
eliminate all the bad ones. Does this sound
like Rosé? Yes, it's just a very
extraordinary Rosé.
Oh, and if I haven't convinced you by now
that this isn't some hosed-out factory stuff.
There are only about 900 bottles made. I
bought
nearly the whole production. I wanted more,
but the cellar had run dry. This Rosé is made
without chemicals and pesticides. Anne-Marie
and Jean Marie are environmentalists.
By the way, do you know how they make Rosé?
The best Rosé is made by pressing the grapes,
the way you normally would for any red wine.
The juice is allowed to sit with the grape
skins picking up color, but also tannins,
pectins and proteins which give the wine
structure. Then the juice is drained off, put
into another vat without the skins and the
fermentation proceeds. This process is called
saignée.
The best Rosé shouldn't taste like pink white
wine; there should be always be a slight red
wine presence. But, the most important thing
is that little zing of acidity on your
tongue. That's what makes great Rosé. That
and the crisp, freshness which makes it
perfect for a hot day.
Start that Rosé chilling. Cynthia
Hurley
