Announcing the Rosé Results from the National Wine Awards of Canada
The run for rosés turned out to be a horse race
Anthony Gismondi
From dry to sweet and everything in between rosé is back in vogue with wine drinkers and the very best examples are often only exceeded by the worst, which is likely the best indication a category of wine is really hot.
This year we set a record for entries at The Nationals (nee the Wine Access CWAs) with 61 submissions. Canada is hardly a haven for rosé given our long winters and the early onset of west coast rains but when the sun comes out and the temperature rises no one is quicker to get to the patio than Canadians either in restaurants or at home. It’s this zeal that drives the rosé market and Canadian wineries are responding in droves.
If and when the warm weather finally arrives consider serving your pinks out-of-doors in the setting best suited to the nature of these wines. The driest versions can be served with fish or fowl, white meats work, so do grains and pasta and most summer produce. The off-dry and sweet bottles which tend to dominate the shelves are another choice and the advice is to serve them the same way you might use a riesling or a chenin blanc. They need to be thoroughly chilled and then mingled with big barbecue sauce covered burgers or ribs, aromatic curries and a variety of spicy Asian fare. Remember the younger and fresher the better.
At the Nationals we were impressed by some of the top scoring pinks. None tipped the gold bar but if any wine is under scrutiny at a blind competition it’s rosé. The judges were looking for freshness and balance, residual sugar isn’t a huge issue if the wine is balanced. Colour appears to be more and more of an issue, as in the lighter the better, whereas the grape variety used is not an issue at all as long as the wine is lively, fresh, and inviting on the nose and palate. If we wanted our rosé to be on the heavier side we would choose a light red hence the scoring and selection in 2013.
As we head into the depths of summer it makes no sense to delay the rosé results so we are announcing them now. We want to remind you that you will see these wines again when they are embedded in the official results of the WineAlign 2013 National Wine Awards of Canada to be released online at 1PM EST, Wednesday, September 4 at www.winealign.com.
There was no gold award this year but the top six wines were all awarded silver medals and the split was 50/50 from British Columbia and Ontario. New this year to the results are the top five best value wines in the category, in this case $15 or less.
The Silver Medal Winners:
Flat Rock Cellars 2012 Pinot Noir Rosé
Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario $17
Gray Monk 2012 Rotberger
British Columbia $16
Peller Estates Niagara-on-the-Lake 2012 Private Reserve Rosé
Niagara Peninsula, Ontario $16.75
Red Rooster Winery 2012 Reserve Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $22
Trius Winery at Hillebrand 2011 Trius Rosé
Ontario $15.75
Volcanic Hills Estate Winery 2012 Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $19
The Bronze Medal Winners:
Arrowleaf 2012 First Crush Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $15
“Best Value $15 or less”
Baillie-Grohman 2012 Blanc de Noirs Rosé
Baillie-Grohman Vineyard, British Columbia $19
Chateau des Charmes 2012 Rosé Cuvée d’Andrée
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario $15
“Best Value $15 or less”
Covert Farms Family Estate 2012 Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $17
Featherstone 2012 Rosé
Niagara Peninsula, Ontario $15
Fielding 2012 Rosé
Niagara Peninsula, Ontario $15
Gaspereau Vineyard 2012 Rosé
Nova Scotia $16
Haywire Gamay Noir 2011 Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $19
Huff Estates 2012 Rosé
Prince Edward County, Ontario $18
Inniskillin Niagara Estate 2012 Pinot Noir Rosé
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario $15
“Best Value $15 or less”
JoieFarm 2012 Re-Think Pink Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $21
Kraze Legz Vineyard and Winery Speakeasy 2012 Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $20
Lang Vineyards 2011 Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $15
Mission Hill Family Estate Five Vineyards Rosé 2012
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $15
“Best Value $15 or less”
Moon Curser Vineyards 2012 Nothing to Declare Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $22
Nk’Mip Cellars 2012 Winemaker’s Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $18
See Ya Later Ranch 2011 Nelly Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $16
Southbrook Vineyards 2012 Triomphe Cabernet Franc Rosé
Niagara Peninsula, Ontario $20
Spierhead Winery 2012 Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $19
Tawse 2012 Rosé
Niagara Peninsula, Ontario $16
Therapy Vineyards 2012 Pink Freud
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $16
Thornhaven Estates 2012 Rosé
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia $17
Union Rosé 2012
Niagara Peninsula, Ontario $14
“Best Value $15 or less”
