How can you be a serious winemaker when you make Rosé? Be serious about making Rosé, simple as that.

Poor Rosé, it gets a bit overshadowed by its big, red brothers & lithe, white sisters in the seriousness stakes. It’s the flirtatious pink one, fun and frivolous, suffering from the middle-child syndrome of the wine world. Crafting a good Rosé takes a lot of hard work and a whole lot of heart, so this blushing beauty certainly deserves more of our serious attention. After all, who do we turn to on a hot, summer’s day? Rosé. To soothe the palate after that fiery curry? Rosé. The perfect accompaniment to that delicious, Spanish paella, Vietnamese cold rolls, Christmas turkey, spiced pork belly or Insalata caprese? Rosé. Looks the best on a picnic blanket? Rosé. The perfect salve for yet another endless day once the kids are (finally!) in bed? Rosé (please don’t tell me that one’s just me.) Okay, I know, enough already. I think I have made my point here, Rosé has a serious place in our hearts, but why don’t we take it seriously?

Rosé in Australia is cheerfully mainstream these days, but back in 1994 it was another matter all together, yet it was in this climate that the very first Turkey Flat Rosé was produced. I can hear the question on your lips ‘But why?” Why would you create a light, fresh pink wine in a region whose lifeblood is the big, rich, blockbuster, red type? Of course, it’s just delectable, but interestingly, the conditions in which one achieves great success also favour the other just as well. The key here is Grenache.

I have waxed lyrical about our love of Grenache previously (really, what’s not to love?) For Rosé we prize the fleshy beauties originally grown for fortified wines. Placed in their rosey-cheeked starring role they shine, bringing pretty aromatics and bright, clean primary fruit characters. Raspberry, strawberry, sour cherry and oh-so-delicious.

Of course, it’s not as simple as just taking fruit from the right clone of Grenache, the right things have to occur in the winery to really make the magic happen. Serious attention must be paid. Turkey Flat Rosé is a good blend of the old and new worlds, France & Australia. In the Côtes de Provence AOC, Rosé is serious business, accounting for approximately 80% of their production. Here they focus on creating a very dry style typified by its pale, ‘onion-skin’ colour (incidentally, Spinifex make a great Barossa interpretation of this style). Taking inspiration from the French, we treat our Grenache like we would a white wine. After an early harvest it is hard pressed, cold settled & treated to a cold ferment. The Grenache wine produced in this way is very pretty, emphasising those desirable primary fruit characters, and with a balance achieved with less sugar it leaves a cleaner, crisper finish. Mmmm, lip-smacking & moreish.

This sounds delicious as it is, so why do we then blend it with other varieties? Like the French, who commonly blend with Carignan, Cinsault, Mourvèdre & Tibouren, we appreciate texture and tannin in our wines, including the chilled variety.

Here in the Barossa we do grow exceptionally good Shiraz, so in the way of the new world it’s only natural that we’d turn to it for our next pairing partner. Hang on, Barossa Valley Shiraz is big, dark, tannic & gutsy, isn’t it? Yes, it certainly can be, but with some more love & serious attention in both the vineyard and the winery, it too can be pretty & light. Site selection is crucial in the production of our Rosé, we choose those that naturally produce high levels of primary fruit flavours and less tannin. The fruit that these vines produce are destined only for Rosé – this isn’t a case of ‘whatever is left over’, No siree Bob, we’re much more serious than that.

To create Rosé friendly Shiraz we harvest early, with lower sugar levels comes lower alcohol (16% Rosé anyone? Ouch, no!) We begin the ferment on skins, extracting light, but supportive tannin as well as deepening the colour slightly from the French version, to a glowing Turkish delight. After pressing, the ferment finishes in the tank, keeping the pretty, blushing colour from turning dark and brooding.

Finally, the considered additions of Cabernet Sauvignon and Dolcetto (also treated in a similar method to the Shiraz) add intriguing elements of spice and herbaceousness that have come to be this wine’s hallmark.

In the ultimate declaration of our love for Rosé we package it in our beautiful, proprietary bottle, slender, elegant & wearing its brand proudly (I’m not even going to go into the detail and serious commitment that little project required!). Our “Prince of Pink” also has its own beautifully pink Turkey for the label, whose straw incarnation won us the best artistic scarecrow in the Barossa Vintage Festival competition earlier this year. Yes, we are Rosé producers and we are damn proud of it!

So, there you go, that pretty little pink wine really does have a serious side. It is time that we all proudly raise our Rosé-filled glasses and give a little more love to the wine that most certainly loves us back.

Cheers!

Emily Hay