Rosé, Domaine De Cambis, La Vie en Rose 2008; $15

Following a rather slow night at the restaurant I came home to this. Brie cheese, strawberries, sliced pears, and of course a bottle of wine. This, my friends, is the ideal ending to good days, bad days, any day, every day. And yet something is askew in this picture, at least as I traditionally envision it in my dreams concerning fermented grape juice and aged cheese. No, the lightening isn’t off nor is this a doctored photo. The wine you see in the background is in fact a blush wine. Typically scorned by most serious wine aficionados, blush wines such as the American white zinfandel are generally consumed by individuals who want to enjoy a bottle of wine but who don’t want it to taste like wine. Given the market’s demands, vintners will and have produced wines that meet their customer’s expectations of simplicity and sweetness. However French rosé such as those from Provence are produced with passion and precision resulting in a wine that can be considered as serious as an aged Bordeaux. That being said and in the interest of full disclosure, I typically join my colleagues in demeaning any wine bearing the color that resembles a Crystal Light flavor. But this blog isn’t about wine snobbery. Therefore, this wine, like every wine (like every human being) deserves an opportunity to prove itself regardless of color.

The first thing that is most striking about it is not the aroma or apparent viscosity as it gently coats the glass, but rather the cork catches my attention before anything else. It's pink. This is not starting off well. But determined to judge after and not before I plunge my wine key into the “Hello-Kitty” colored, anti-oxidizing synthetic cork and gently remove it. As the wine comes to settle in my glass the color is noticeably different from the regrettable pink I initially assumed it to be, an observation that belies my obvious bias. Instead a pale color of amber or apricot offers momentary encouragement that this wine may have more to offer than I originally believed. Two things become immediately apparent as I vigorously swirl to release the aromas – strawberries, red raspberries and ethanol. Smelling dominant alcohol on a wine is an event typically reserved for the full-bodied products of Australia or California. I reach for the bottle; the innocent and unassuming wine label decries a meager 12.5% giving me further pause and skepticism. “Just drink the damn wine”, I say to myself. I do so and as the last remnants escape my mouth a thought emerges. “Is that tannin”? I look to Erika for confirmation and it quickly becomes obvious that she’s thinking the same thing. Complexity and a finish!? I’m shocked. The initial sour acidity that I was expecting and received on the front of my palate was not only pleasant and balanced but as it subsided gave way to a hint of tannic astringency on the back end. Tastes of sour to ripe strawberry and red raspberry are most prevalent. As the wine opens up the Syrah makes a subtle appearance with flavors of allspice and clove.

This rosé is pleasant, well balanced and perfect for the upcoming warm, humid days of the mid-Atlantic summer. Light and refreshing with mild flavors of red fruit it can be drunk alone or with an earthy, savory cheese such as the triple cream brie we enjoyed (though avoid acidic fruits such as those shown above as the wine will become overly and offensively sour). Rosé, Domaine De Cambis, La Vie en Rose, 2008 (80% Cinsault, 20% Syrah); $15.