Would you buy your dad a bottle of rosé for Father’s Day? I guess it depends how old he is. If he’s over 60, maybe not, but most blokes I know enjoy a glass – although few, admittedly, regard it as a serious wine, and view it more as a wine for a barbecue than a dinner party where you want to show off to friends.
Yet the price of rosé these days seems to suggest the contrary. At recent supermarket tastings, I’ve been fascinated to see how many now hit the £15 mark. Consumers who would balk at paying more than £10 for a white wine seem to become price-blind when it comes to rosé, particularly if it’s one made in the pale, Provençal style (and they practically all are nowadays).
It seems it has to be from Provence, too, though that could well change (remember when sparkling wine had to be champagne?). You can find equally good rosés from Languedoc and Corsica now, as you can see in today’s pick. (The Wine Society also has a really excellent, own-label 12.5% Corsican rosé for £10.50, though, unless you live near its HQ in Stevenage, you won’t be able to get it by Sunday.)
So, should rosé be taken more seriously? And is it ever a great wine? Well, if you define great by an ability to age, maybe not. Though some rosés do, most are designed to be drunk within a year of release, which, for most of us in the northern hemisphere, means 2021. Though I did taste a 2022 the other day from South Africa’s enterprising Babylonstoren wine estate (£18.99 The Newt in Somerset, 13%) that was excellent. Does it matter that it took weeks rather than months to make? Not to me.
The other thing to suggest that men don’t drink rosé is that most of the marketing is unremittingly girly, from the colour (pink, obviously) to the product names: Bijou, Pure, Love … The label of The Pale, the latest release from the clever Château d’Esclans (which is now releasing second labels, presumably to allow it to charge more for Whispering Angel), is festooned with flappers in fascinators, for example. Interestingly, however, the sophisticated new Gerard Bertrand collaboration with Jon Bon Jovi (see today’s pick) doesn’t go down that route.
Personally, I’d like to see more variety in colour and style of rosé, such as tavel (there’s an excellent one just landed at Tesco) and the cerasuolo I wrote about last week, but I’m not holding my breath. For the time being, boudoir-pink rules.
Five rosés to buy for Father’s Day
Laurent Miquel Vendanges Nocturnes Cinsault Syrah Rosé 2021 £6.69 (on offer, down from £8.99) Waitrose, 12.5%. A classic, Provence-style rosé at a decidedly un-Provençal price.
Casanova Costa d’Oru Corsican Rosé 2021 £7.50 Co-op, 12.5%. Maybe a bit tongue-in-cheek for a Father’s Day gift, but the old man might be flattered.
Taste the Difference No 8 Côtes de Provence Sainte-Victoire 2021 £13 Sainsbury’s, 12.5%. Expensive-looking, chunky bottle, and not a bad price for this textbook Provence rosé.
Gérard Bertrand Hampton Water Rosé 2021 £16.99 (or £12.74 on mix six) Majestic, 13.5%. A classy-looking celebrity venture between Jon Bon Jovi and Languedoc winemaker Gérard Bertrand.
Château Barthès Bandol Rosé 2021 £13 Co-op, 13%. Bandol produces some of my favourite Provence rosés, usually at twice this price. Drink with rare roast lamb with garlic and rosemary.
For more by Fiona Beckett, go to
matchingfoodandwine.comThis article was edited on 20 June 2022. The Tesco tavel, which we’d been told was due to be in stock from August, arrived in store early.
