Rose.
What a lovely word.
Shakespeare thought well of it.
Gertrude Stein versed well with it.
Bette Midler sang so well about it.
The short and expressive beauty comes to us courtesy of a few Old World languages, from the Latin rosa and a Greek word sounding much the same, which I’m unable to type here, referring to a red flower.
Rose. When you add that little slanty thing, called an acute, over the e, you enter another whole new world of beauty. French, of course.
Rosé.
Versions of this pale pink wine are now to be found all over the world, but it was not so long ago that for most people their first experience was on a warm terrace overlooking the Med, in Provence.
To help us find a path to the heart of Provence, we start in the heart of Sydney on a warm Spring day.
On the top terrace of Barangaroo House overlooking Darling Harbour, it is clearly laid out for us. At the entrance, we pause to fill a glass from the huge bottle in a rocker cradle elevated to pour gently by a small winding handle. This bottle will later appear on the shoulder of our host, Maison Saint Aix Global Director Jaap Sonnenmans, as he makes his way around the sun-warmed, and therefore thirsty, guests.
Aix rosé
The story of the wine he pours begins in 1880. The Domain de la Grande Séouve was founded in Jouques, Provence. In the early 1900s, the estate was converted from a truffle orchard to a vineyard.
In 2010, Eric Kurver from Amsterdam bought the property and renamed it Maison Saint Aix. His ambition is to produce a premium Provençal rosé to showcase the craftsmanship and charm of the district.
He invests in replanting vines and installing the latest winery equipment with pneumatic presses and temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks.
He now has 75 hectares of the traditional Provence grapes: grenache, syrah and cinsault.
Importantly, the estate, one of the largest in the Côteaux d’Aix-en-Provence appellation, is some 500 metres above sea level.
In daytime, the sun warms the grapes for maximum flavour, but in the cool of the evening at this elevation, they are able to retain the subtle acids necessary for the wine’s freshness in the mouth.
On this day in Sydney, with Asian-inspired nibbles passing around, we taste the Aix rosé.
It is a bright, but not bold pink. Perfectly pretty. We smell strawberries on the nose. In the mouth, a gentle whirl of summery fruits, melons, watermelon. Just a tingle of acid on the end for freshness.
It is the perfect summer wine with or without food.
Suddenly, a tray of Sydney rock oysters floats towards us.
Thankyou.
Now, these demand a glass of the Aix white, a blend of Rolle (also known as Vermentino elsewhere), Sauvignon Blanc, and Grenache Blanc.
Suddenly, our glass is swirling full.
This wine is floral and citrussy on the nose. So light and bright and welcoming. A touch of fresh pear in the mouth. Honey? Almond? Fresh and invigorating at the finish. What a combination.
Beau Viva
If there had been a drum, it would now start rolling, but a tap on the microphone has our attention. Jaap has something exciting to announce. A third wine. The result of years of trials and experiments. A pink sparkler with zero alcohol. It is called Beau Viva.
He gives great credit to his winemakers. To produce this wine, you first have to ferment a decent wine at maybe 11-12% alcohol. You then have to do a lot of precise scientific stuff to take the alcohol out and still have a decent level of flavour in the glass.
Why no alcohol? Jaap explains that his company respects modern consumers. Perhaps pregnant ladies, folks with a variety of health concerns, or those who want an appealing and celebratory wine on days they choose to skip alcohol.
In a champagne flute, the wine has a fine and gentle mousse and is a slightly more robust pink than its still sisters. Fruitier on the nose and sweeter on the palate than the Aix rosé. But there is lovely fruit to savour. Not strong but certainly more substantial. Yes, some of us miss the zing alcohol would give a similar sparkler. But this is a very nice refresher suited to the day.
Exceptional.
We make our way home, but we know a visit to our local bottle shop over the coming summer will have us back in Provence in no time
