60% Grenache, 30% Cinsault and 10% Syrah fruit from vines on average 30 years old and planted to the clay and limestone soils of the Mont Saint-Victoire at elevations of around 250 mètres. Alluring delicate sunset pink in color with what the Famille Sumeire call « peach reflections » and aromas of « fresh violet and wild strawberries »; back here in Austin we noted its ultra-fresh aromas suggesting taut red berry fruits, peach and pith of watermelon, a palpably delicious equilibrium and vivid mouthwatering quality with gentle but lasting intensity of flavor on the finish. All in all, we all found this to be another winner from (perhaps?) our favorite source for pink wine - oui - c'est la Provence.

If certain bottles are emblematic of KLWM’s early history — Tempier’s Bandols and Joguet’s Chinons, to name just two — Anne Amalric’s rosé “gris” is one of the essential cuvées that have come to define the second half of our five decades in business. Kermit discovered it about fifteen years ago over lunch at the base of Corsica’s Monte Grosso, in a corner of the island so rural and rugged that cows grazed in the restaurant’s parking lot. It didn’t take long for it to become one of the wines that causes a stir among the staff when it lands in Berkeley. For starters, it performs a mesmerizing kind of trompe l’œuil: two red grapes, Sciaccarellu and a splash of Syrah, have produced a white wine? No, it’s a rosé, all right, but it has a nearly transparent hue because pressing the grapes very gently draws only the faintest hint of color. I haven’t tasted another vin gris that is so simultaneously weightless, ethereal, and full of character. A gentle wave of peach, melon, and spring flowers rolls over the palate and lingers long past your last sip. As is true every year, it’s a strong contender for Wine of the Summer. Tom Wolf, Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant

Produce of about ⅔ Mourvèdre and ⅓ Cinsault (sometimes with just a dash of Syrah) fruit hand‑harvested from hillside vineyards planted to clay/limestone soils on a variegated marl subsoil with a northern exposure. The grapes are picked earlier than those intended for red wine production in order to keep more aromatic freshness and to achieve a lower alcohol content. They are cooled before going (direct) to press. The wine is aged on the fine lees and goes through malolactic fermentation, which gives finesse on the finish and allows the Mourvèdre fruit to strut its stuff, giving a rosé a good deal more gourmande than most. Coppery/pink to sunset orange in color with aromas that well suggest its Mediterranean origins, say fleur de sel on melon d'Antibes, peche de vigne along with a subtle fresh herbal scent from the Cinsault; at once supple, ample and rounded on the tongue with an underpinning of saline minerality and a bursting mouthwatering flavor that lasts and lasts. Un autre verre, s'il vous plaît.

Produce of 50% Grenache, 30% Syrah and 20% Cinsault from the typically stony soils of the Costières de Nîmes, a splendid somewhere between Châteauneuf‑du‑Pape and the Mediterranean Sea. Copper/pink with sunset orange reflections in color with discreet aromas that suggest a kiss of red berry, an underlying salt sea minerality and a touch more left to the imagination (Henry noted a blood orange-like citrus quality); at once, both ample and minerally crisp on the tongue with a bursting berry fruit and a saline mouthwateringness. And while we all agreed that, given its volume, this is a rosé wine most useful at the dinner table, its sheer saline refreshingness is simply undeniable, too.

The first vineyards at Domaine de Fontsainte, in the Corbières appellation, were planted by the Romans. Artifacts found in these vineyards such as an old coin dating from the time of Marcus Agrippa in 25 A.D. are a testament to its antiquity. The original domaine was built around a thermal spring, which was later named for the local, twelfth‑century patron saint, Saint Siméon; hence Fontsainte — the saint's fount. Yves Laboucarié’s family has been making wine here since the seventeenth century. The Fontsainte vineyards surround the hamlet of Boutenac in the area known as «The Golden Crescent». This swath of land is one of the sunniest in the appellation of Corbières, enjoying south/southeast exposures, and protection from the cold, northeast winds by a large 500-hectare forest. The cool sea breezes from the Mediterranean help this sun‑soaked terroir achieve balance as well. Their Gris de Gris rosé has been an important part of our rosé offerings here for years now. Produce of the hand-harvested fruit of 90% Grenache Gris, 5% Carignan and 5% Mourvèdre vines planted to silica, clay and gravelly limestone soils with large galets (rounded stones). A portion of the juice destined for red wine production is drawn off while still only pink in color (this is known as the saignée method of rosé production). After a 24-hour débourbage or settling of the must, alcoholic fermentation takes place at cool temperatures for 35 days. Malolactic fermentation is blocked and the wine is allowed to rest for one month before bottling to preserve freshness and aromatic intensity: pale sunset orange copper pink in color with fresh powdery citrus and red berry aromas; very primary intense vivid berry flavors burst wildly on the tongue leaving the palate both stimulated and refreshed.

No estate expresses the salt‑kissed limestone‑driven terroir of the idyllic Provençal seaside village of Cassis like Domaine du Bagnol, and the current generation, Sébastien Genovesi, crafts a rosé of scintillating energy, chiseled calcareous musculature, and gleaming red fruits. Comprising 50% Grenache, 30% Cinsault, and 20% Mourvèdre, Bagnol's Cassis Rosé is pressed directly and rapidly (in under two hours) to extract as little color as possible, and the bottled wine (certified organic) contains only 20 milligrams per liter of total sulfur — a factor which contributes to its gorgeous purity of texture and intense evocation of limestone soil. ‑ https://rosenthalwinemerchant.com/