With six months of autumn and winter weather ahead, I’m loth to let go of summer just yet, and despite what I said last week about not laying in supplies of rosé, I’m still up for the occasional bottle. Particularly seeing as we may not be able to get hold of any after 31 October. (Actually, that’s unlikely, I must admit: retailers have been stockpiling for months. It’s after Christmas that we’ll feel the pinch if we crash out of Europe without a deal, but more of that anon.)
Backtracking yet again: remember I said most people weren’t mad about dark-coloured rosé? Well, I’m going to recommend exactly that. Autumn food needs something more substantial than the whispery, pink Provençal rosés we were all drinking in May and June. And that means rosés – or rosados – with a little more heft. These are wines you can drink with the last of the season’s barbecues or with a salad that includes cooked vegetables and grains, rather than crunchy, young veg. Deep, fruity rosés also work well with spicy food, which is, after all, a year-round pleasure. (Never tried an Indian takeaway with a fruity rosé? You should give it a go.) And their production is simply a question of the winemaker leaving the juice in contact with the skins for a little bit longer, or picking the grapes when they’re a bit riper.
And while you wouldn’t have touched a rosé aged in oak or concrete back in the heady days of spring, consider it now. But serve it a little bit warmer than you would a lighter rosé, much as you would (I hope) serve a white burgundy less chilled than a pinot grigio in order to allow its more complex flavours to shine through.
You can get half-bottles of the fabulous Domaine Tempier Bandol Rosé (13%) for £14.95 from Lea & Sandeman (or for £13.95 a bottle if you feel like splashing out and buying it by the case) to test the theory out. Bandol is, in my opinion, the most interesting of the Provence rosé appellations, and is perfectly suited to this time of year.
And what about pink fizz, which for some reason seems to have more year-round appeal? There’s plenty of it about, particularly from English winemakers, who are cashing in on the bumper 2018 harvest. One that’s been around for a while is the Balfour 1503 English Sparkling Rosé (£19 Morrisons, £20 Tesco; 12%), which has an appealing, savoury note, rather than just tutti frutti, red berry fruit. And, for an English wine, it’s reasonably priced to boot.
Four rosés that stand up to autumn
French Organic Rosé
£6.99 Aldi, 12.5%.
A darker Languedoc rosé to enjoy with a pork chop. And at a good price, too, considering it’s organic.
Corent Côtes d’Auvergne 2018
£9.50 Wine Society, 13.5%.
A robust wine from a rosé-only appellation. Great with grilled lamb.
Rosado Cellar de Silos Ribera del Duero 2018
£14.95 Berry Bros & Rudd, 13%.
Full-bodied Spanish rosados tend to be more full-bodied than southern French rosés, and this one could certainly take on a paella.
Masseria Pietrosa Primitivo Rosato Salento 2018
£9.25 Morrisons, 12.5%.
This off-dry rosato would work with milder Indian and Cantonese food.
• For more by Fiona Beckett, go to matchingfoodandwine.com
