There's nothing more alluring than a cold bottle of Rose.
Pulled from the fridge, ice bucket or the bottom of the cooler, condensation immediately pools on the clear glass, giving the pink contents an even fresher, frostier and more mouth-watering appearance.
You can't wait to crack the bottle open, pour this nectar of the gods into a wine glass and sip your way to bliss.
Is that laying it on a bit too thick?
The answer should be 'no' because Rose done right is so damn delicious.
Plus, tomorrow is National Rose Day, so we have to wax lyrical about the pink drink.
Like all annual days declared for particular varietals or styles of wine, National Rose Day is essentially made up by wineries or marketers to sell more product.
In this case, Bodvar, a company selling five different Roses from the Provence region in the South of France, founded National Rose Day in 2014 to fall every year on the second Saturday in June.
The timing is inspired.
We're on the cusp of summer, the weather warms, the living is easy and, all of a sudden, all we want is pink in the glass, be it on the patio, on the deck, at a picnic, at a barbecue, on the boat, in a park, with brunch, lunch or dinner or just because.
Rose was born in the aforementioned Provence, where the wine has been refined into a glamourous and pale must-have drink.
Thus, the best Roses made anywhere else in the world tend to be light in hue, tasty and elegant in homage to Provence.
The ideal pink is achieved when red grapes are crushed and the broken skins are allowed to soak in the resulting juice, but just for a short time.
In between a red and a white, well-made Roses typically serve up aromas and flavours of strawberries and cream, a splash of pink grapefruit and a faint and pleasing dried-herbs complexity.
You can't go wrong celebrating National Rose Day with one of the following seven pinks -- six from the Okanagan and a sparkling one from Italy thrown in for good luck.
- Chain Reaction 2022 True Colours Pinot Noir Rose ($27) from the Naramata Bench
This winery is named after the owners' love of cycling (a bike chain, get it?) and the reaction of coming to Penticton to peddle and eventually starting a winery.
- Bottega Rose Prosecco ($21) from Italy
A bubbly from Europe to add some international flair to the list.
Fresh, light, yummy, affordable.
- Mission Hill Reserve 2022 Rose ($26) from West Kelowna
Elegant and dry, but with a pleasing perception of sweetness.
- Moraine Pink Mountain Rose 2022 ($27) from the Naramata Bench
Wow to the pink-grapefruit-and-
- Moraine Isla Frizzante 2022 ($28)
More pink grapefruit here, as well as raspberry, in this juicy sparkling.
- Tantalus 2022 Rose ($24) from Kelowna
Aromas and flavours of the classic strawberries and cream with a blood orange citrus jolt.
New chefs at Poplar Grove
Chefs Stacy Johnston and Minette Lotz have brought their 'what grows together, goes together' philosophy to The Restaurant at Poplar Grove Winery on the Naramata Bench.
That means their dishes are always made of fresh, seasonal and local ingredients and thus pair perfectly with Poplar Grove wines crafted from grapes grown in adjacent vineyards.
Johnston was recently hired as executive chef, Lotz at chef de cuisine.
Both previously worked at the Naramata Inn, just 13 kilometres up the road, and both also did a stint as resident chefs at the National Art Centre in Ottawa in 2022, earning them 'Canada's next star chefs' status on a list by the Globe and Mail.
Sunset Groove & Wine
What an aptly named bunch of events.
CedarCreek Estate Winery in Kelowna is launching a Thursday Sunset Groove & Wine Series starting June 15.
Every other Thursday, starting at 6 pm, there will be live music, food and, of course, wine outdoors on the lawn overlooking Okanagan Lake.
Admission is $25 for CedarCreek wine club members, $30 for non-members, and includes a welcome glass of wine and the mini concert.
Snacks and small bites will be served up by winery restaurant Home Block and additional glasses and bottles of wine will be available for purchase.
You can make reservations at www.cedarcreek.bc.ca to make sure you get in, otherwise walk-ins will be accepted if there's space.
Some of the musicians playing through Aug. 24 are Nevaeh Dyson, Joshua Smith, Aidan Mayes and David Barber.
Steve MacNaull is a NowMedia Group reporter, Okanagan wine lover and Canadian Wine Scholar. Reach him at [email protected]. His wine column appears every Friday afternoon in this space.
