For Mother’s Day, Give a Bouquet of Rosés

Every year there’s a spike in flowers in the early part of May for Mother’s Day. And why not? Who doesn’t want to do something special for their mom on Mother’s Day? Flowers, chocolate, maybe a spa treatment… These are all great ideas, but by this point, they’re all tired, too. You’d be better off making her a macaroni picture or gluing some shells to a picture frame.

Or you can get her something she would actually enjoy, use and appreciate. I am talking, of course, about some dry Rosé. Virginia is starting to make more Rosé and what it’s producing is startlingly good. Rosé is also becoming more and more popular in other wine-growing areas - and with good reason. Rosés are light, crisp, refreshing and complex. Often with an abundance of strawberry, raspberry and cherry flavors, Rosés are perfect for the spring and summer, and your mom will likely love them, too.

A few really good Rosés coming out of Virginia are Ingleside Winery’s Rosato di Sangiovese, a 100% Sangiovese Rosé, Fabbioli Cellars’ Rosa Luna, which is also 100% Sangiovese, Bluemont Vineyard’s “The Donkey” Dry Rose which is a blend of Nebbiolo, Viognier and other grapes and Tarara Winery’s Dry Rosé which is a blend of all the red grape varietals that they grow. Hume Vineyards is also expected to release a Rosé later this spring, which I am looking forward to. Hume’s owner and winemaker is from the Loire Valley, which is home to some of my favorite Rosés. One that Caitlin and I have been drinking with some regularity this spring is the Bougrier Rosé D’Anjou, which is primarily Cabernet Franc.

All these Rosés are extremely drinkable and each of them is helping to dispel the myth that pink wines are artificially sweetened fruit juice for grown-ups. What’s more, your mother - as well as everyone else - will love them. Bring your mother some Rosé on Mother’s Day and become her favorite child. The only problem is that roses will last longer than Rosés after people get a chance to taste them.

Reconnecting with Wines from the Loire Valley

One of the biggest complaints I hear about wine is it never tastes as good back home as it did the first time a person tried it. Could it be that the experience of discovering a great boutique winery in Napa, talking to the owner, and enjoying their barrel-select cab while looking over the golden hills of Northern California for an afternoon could have provided a better experience than uncorking the same bottle after getting back to a small apartment after a long day at work and having to fight with people on the Metro before settling down on the couch to watch Dancing with America’s Next Top Chef? The point is that the whole experience of trying a wine for the first time can greatly influence your feelings about it. It might not taste as good, because you don’t have the same scenery around you, but if it is a good wine, it can take you back, momentarily, to the place where you tried it before returning to your regularly-scheduled programming.

I was eager to try one of the bottles Caitlin and I got on our honeymoon – a Rose from the Touraine region of the Loire Valley. We stumbled upon the winery somewhat haphazardly – I think I got us lost – and there was a dog lying down in the middle of a village road that just happened to lead to a winery, which was open. An older gentleman greeted us and took us into the wine cellar where he poured us his wines and showed us pictures of his family, who had owned the winery for generations. It was a great wine tasting experience. The wines were very, very good and reasonably priced. We bought a sparkling, a white and a rose, which the Loire is known for.

The Rose we decided to pair with pizza recently, and much to my delight, it was just as good as I remembered it in France. The wine itself is light, crisp and well-balanced with flavors of strawberry and red cherries that has subtle hints of flowers and then some nice, light minerality on the finish. The first glass was at room temperature and the second glass was a bit more chilled. The wine tasted very good served at both temperatures. I have not found the wine stateside, and that is a shame, but the bottle was able to take me back.

Wine stores in the area are starting to carry at more selections from the Loire Valley, and Touraine roses are becoming a bit easier to find. They are wonderful alternatives to both reds and whites, and are versatile enough to be paired with just about anything. While Bordeaux and Burgundy will always be the most prestigious wine regions in France, great wines- and great wine values - from France's other wine-growing regions are becoming easier to find stateside.