Out and About July 2022 issue199

40 | OUT AND ABOUT COSTA BLANCA
Whining on
with Steve
With summer now in full flow,
today’s wine sipping turns
to Rose or more accurately
Rosado here in Spain.
A chilled Rosado is a lovely crossover
as we move into the hotter days. The
three we have chosen to taste are Flor
de Muga, Pago del Vicario Petit Verdot
and Marques de Riscal Rioja rosado, all
delightful and each very different.
Rose wines are very often associated
with France and in particular Provence
where you find some lovely pink wines
perfect for a warm summer afternoon.
As with all wines however Spain is a
great producer of beautiful rose wines
in a variety of shades and flavours.
The three we are looking at today
offer a great insight into the variations,
delicacies and strengths.
Rose or Rosado wines, although
seemingly popular to a modern audience
are actually some of the oldest wines
produced. These wines are made from
red wine grapes produced in the same
way however the time spent fermenting
(or macerating) with the skin is reduced,
the shorter the time together the paler
the colour.
As result of this, from a flavour
perspective Rosado tends to resemble a
light red but with brighter crisper tasting
notes, primarily red fruits, flowers and
citrus depending on the terroir.
Despite the similarities with red wine
most Rosados are better drunk young to
fully appreciate the youthful fragrance
although some standout Rosados can
age for up to 10 years.
Blush wines are actually not the same
as these are made with a combination of
red and white wines.
Our first example to try is Flor de
Muga Rioja Rosado, this is a really
delightful delicate Rosado made from
Garnacha grapes using only the flor
must with a short maceration that
creates it’s delicate pale, elegant colour
and flavour. It’s wonderfully smooth
and incredibly drinkable but be warned
despite it’s subtle appearance it packs 14%
alcohol. This is a great wine not unlike
good Provence Rose, the price is around 20
euro but very well worth it.
The second option we have is Pago del
Vicario Petit Verdot Rosado, this is a great
option for red wine drinkers who find it
hard to let go of their drink of choice. A
deep red Rosado this is a really interesting
wine, full bodied and yet light it packs all
the punch of a red with all the summer
freshness of a Rose whilst topping off with
an impressive 15% alcohol! This wine is
100% Petit Verdot from grapes grown near
to Ciudad Real. At around 7 euro it’s a
very interesting option to try.
Our third choice today comes from
the well know Marques de Riscal. This
fine Rosado sits comfortably between
the last 2 in both colour and taste. This
is an example of a blended wine, using
Garnacha, Viura and Malvasia all from
young vines producing a very pretty and
balanced soft pink wine with aromas of
strawberry and raspberry and balanced
acidity to taste. This is a good allrounder
that should suit most tastes.
So if you are dining light this evening
with a wonderful vista before you I would
opt for a Flor de Muga, to accompany a
delicate plate of fish perhaps a Marques de
Riscal or gathering around the barbeque
maybe a Pago del Vicario.
Whichever you choose…. Enjoy, as it’s
my birthday this month I’ll take the Muga!
Un Salud
Until next time, Salud!
Our wine term for today is corked!
This is the term used to describe a musky
smelling wine that has been tainted by TCA
or trichloroanisole, this is usually transferred
into the wine via a cork that may have come
into contact with both chlorine and mould
so developing TCA. Many wine producers
have tried to reduce the instances of cork
taint by adopting alternative stoppers such
as plastics or screw caps!