Summer signals a more relaxed style of eating accompanied by a glass of chilled, fruity rosé. Wine editor, Joelle Thomson, has rustled up four great-tasting pink wines, fit for any outdoor occasion.
Summer is the season to spend outdoors entertaining and enjoying the long days and warm nights. That calls for light, fresh, seasonal fare including juicy fruits, pan-friend line-caught fish and a glass of New Zealand rosé. Below Joelle Thomson’s educates us on the best summer pinks and what to serve with a glass.
Mahi Rosé $25
Marlborough winemaker Brian Bicknell and his team use grapes grown on a vineyard at the cool end of the Wairau Valley where chilly nights preserve fresh acidity in the grapes, providing refreshing wines with great length of flavour.
“The 2020 vintage is one that we will never forget as picking and winemaking were partly dictated by Covid-19,” says head winemaker Brian Bicknell, founder and owner of Mahi Wines. “While it was difficult to work the ‘virus vintage’ (and we are hoping that it will be the only one) the overall vintage was saved by having such great growing and picking weather.”
Graze with: Slices of watermelon and goat’s cheese
Serve with: Feta, mint and melon salad
Joelle’s rating: 17.5/20
Greystone Organic Rose North Canterbury $25
A small winery with a big focus on quality, Greystone wines are 100 per cent certified organic, which shines through in every aspect from production at this outstanding winery in North Canterbury. This rose is dry in flavour with red fruit notes, such as red apples and summer berries. It was tank-fermented at cool temperatures to preserve its fresh fruit flavours. The short time on lees for three months, adds texture to the wine.
Graze with: Fresh asparagus (if it’s in season) or gherkin with proscuitto slices.
Serve with: Salad nicoise
Joelle’s rating: 17.5/20
Astrolabe Rose, $25
Astrolabe Wines was founded by winemaker Simon Waghorn and his wife Jane-Forrest Waghorn in 1996 and is now run by far larger team, including their children. A family affair from the quality of grapes grown in the vineyard to the design of labels (and this label is so beautiful) and bottles is the brainchild of Arabella Waghorn. This rosé is a blend to pinots 85 per cent pinot noir and 15 per cent pinot gris. It’s smooth, dry and fruity in taste; a great wine to drink chilled on a warm afternoon.
Graze with: Spinach filo mini pastries
Serve with: Vegetable kebabs and green salad
Joelle’s rating: 17.5/20
Jules Taylor OTQ Pinot Noir Rose $35
Jules Taylor made this 2020 medium pink rosé with grapes grown on the Branken Hill Vineyard in Marlborough's Southern Valleys. The grapes were left with skins on, for a couple of hours to give this wine a soft pink hue. Fermented at cool temperatures to retain fruit purity, which shines through in this dry, medium-bodied and super refreshing wine, which happens to be a favourite with editor Trudi Brewer.
Graze with: Summer fruit watermelon or peaches, and soft, mild cheese
Serve with: Pan-fried gurnard with a squeeze of lemon.
Joelle’s rating: 17.5/20.
