{"id":292137,"date":"2025-06-14T04:22:03","date_gmt":"2025-06-14T04:22:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/uncategorized\/the-corkscrew-concierges-summer-2025-rose-picks\/"},"modified":"2025-06-14T04:22:03","modified_gmt":"2025-06-14T04:22:03","slug":"the-corkscrew-concierges-summer-2025-rose-picks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=292137","title":{"rendered":"The Corkscrew Concierge\u2019s Summer 2025 Ros\u00e9 Picks"},"content":{"rendered":"


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It\u2019s June and summertime for all intents and purposes. It\u2019s hot as hell where I am, so of course, the ros\u00e9 has been flowing. Yes, I drink ros\u00e9 year-round (we love it for Thanksgiving), but there is something about summer and ros\u00e9 when you see all of the new vintages hitting the shelves, not to mention the beach outings and pool-side sipping. Ros\u00e9 just hits different in the summer.<\/p>\n

As I do every year, I participated in a blind tasting of American ros\u00e9 wines hosted by The Drunken Cyclist<\/a> and had to choose my favorites. From that, I created my own list of summer 2025 ros\u00e9 wines.<\/p>\n

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Photo Credit | The Drunken Cyclist. Clearly he has a bit more \u201cleverage\u201d than me!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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It\u2019s not fair if it\u2019s not blind!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Ya gotta have a wine crew to get through this many wines!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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For the most part these were \u201cintentional\u201d ros\u00e9 wines meaning that the winemaker pressed the grapes with the intention of making ros\u00e9. The other major way to make ros\u00e9 is what they call \u201csaign\u00e9e,\u201d where while making red wine, some of the juice is \u201cbled off\u201d (the meaning of saign\u00e9e in French) to make a more intense red wine. The juice that is removed is then fermented separately into ros\u00e9. So it\u2019s sort of a by-product of red wine production. By-product or not, I\u2019ve had some good ros\u00e9 made in this method. These wines tend to be darker hued, more robust, and more fruit-forward than the direct press ros\u00e9s. All good in my book.<\/p>\n

As for the tasting, I definitely gravitate towards the ones with a good amount of acidity (but not bracing) and prominent fruit characteristics. I like my ros\u00e9 easy and laid-back. I\u2019m ok with herbs, etc. but when it gets to be more savory than fruity, these tend not to be the style that I prefer. All told, we blind tasted 52 wines this year. In years past, it\u2019s been as many as 74!<\/p>\n

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Yes, it\u2019s a lot of wine! But you take them four at a time, spit (not optional), take notes, have a snack, and move on to the next flight until you get to the end. It\u2019s definitely harder than many folks realize.<\/p>\n

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There\u2019s definitely method to the madness!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here are my standouts for this year\u2019s edition. It was cool that a couple showed just as well from the previous vintage. And I love that they came from different regions and in different price points. For a deep dive on tasting notes on the full lineup, be sure to check out The Drunken Cyclist\u2019s summary<\/a> of all of the wines we tasted.<\/p>\n

2023 Clif Family Winery<\/a> Grenache Ros\u00e9, Mendocino County, CA ($30)<\/h4>\n
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Yes, the same folks that gave us Clif Bar. Love that they are a certified B Corp, and wholly embrace organic and sustainable agriculture and fair labor practices.<\/p>\n

2023 Alma de Cattleya<\/a> Rose of Pinot Noir, Sonoma County, CA ($20)<\/h4>\n
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I absolutely adore winemaker Bibiana Gonz\u00e1lez Rave. Love her story, her determination, her spirit, her smarts, and her wine!<\/p>\n

2023 Pisoni Family Vineyards<\/a> Lucy Ros\u00e9 of Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands, CA ($24)<\/h4>\n
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Y\u2019all know I have much love for SLH<\/a><\/strong> and its first family of wine! This is made from 50% whole cluster pressing and 50% saign\u00e9e. And one dollar of each bottle sold goes to breast cancer research.<\/p>\n

2024 We Know Jack<\/a> Zinfandel Rockpile \u2018Riff Raff\u2019 Ros\u00e9, Rockpile, Sonoma County, CA ($34)<\/h4>\n
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I equally love the regular Zin which made my top wines of the year<\/strong><\/a> in 2023.<\/p>\n

2024 Covenant Wines<\/a> \u2018Red C\u2019 Ros\u00e9 (Grenache), Lodi, CA ($35)<\/h4>\n
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During a previous tasting<\/a> of their portfolio, I learned that all of their wines were kosher wines. Definitely not what so many of us thought that kosher wines were!<\/p>\n

2024 Penner Ash<\/a> Ros\u00e9 of Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, OR($40)<\/h4>\n
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Is it even a tasting without Willamette Valley Pinot Noir? I\u2019m being a little dramatic (maybe) but I find their Pinot Noir to be ethereal. So yeah, not shocked about loving the ros\u00e9 too.<\/p>\n

2024 Lange<\/a> Estate<\/a> Ros\u00e9 of Pinot Noir, Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley, OR ($29)<\/h4>\n
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Jesse Lange was in Houston recently<\/strong><\/a> to have dinner with some of us wine peeps and I was so impressed with his wines. He also has a wine that he bottles in a recyclable bottle! So I was thrilled that his wine was one of the ones that rose to the top for me.<\/p>\n

2024 Girasole <\/a>Vineyards<\/a> Ros\u00e9, Mendocino County, CA ($20)<\/h4>\n
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Photo Credit | Girasole. Somehow I missed getting a good photo!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A blend of Zinfandel, Sangiovese, and Pinot Noir that is $20 y\u2019all!! I\u2019ve previously had their Chardonnay and one of the red blends and loved them. Crazy what they do with organic grapes at these price points!<\/p>\n

2024 Matanzas Creek Winery<\/a> Ros\u00e9 of Malbec, Sonoma County, CA ($45)<\/h4>\n
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I love, love their Merlot, so thought it was kinda cool that they had a Malbec ros\u00e9 that was so tasty.<\/p>\n

2023 & 2024 Rodney Strong<\/a> Pinot Noir Ros\u00e9, Russian River Valley, CA ($25)<\/h4>\n
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Every year, every blind tasting and Rodney Strong makes my list. Every single year! This time we tasted two different vintages and yes, both made the list. And the $25 is just the suggested retail price. I routinely see it for around $15 at the store.<\/p>\n

OK, so I was trying to limit my list to 10 (even cheating with combine the Rodney Strong wines) but there were a couple others that could easily have made my list.<\/p>\n

2023 Smith Madrone Ros\u00e9, Spring Mountain District, Napa Valley ($30)<\/h4>\n
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This unusual blend of 50% Merlot & 50% Cabernet Franc required a \u201cdo over\u201d for me, but I came to appreciate it after tasting it on its own. It has more \u201coomph,\u201d including tannins, but is a great example of a ros\u00e9 that breaks the mold.<\/p>\n

2024 La Crema Pinot Noir Ros\u00e9, Monterey, CA ($25)<\/h4>\n
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Wines that you can snag lots of places, including the grocery store, aren\u2019t always the best wines. La Crema manages blow that theory out of the water with their sustainable wines. Another wine that can be had for around $15 retail. They also make a sparkling brut ros\u00e9 that I so enjoy!<\/p>\n

Peace, love, and summer 2025 ros\u00e9 y\u2019all!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n