What makes a good rosé wine?

Rosé wine, the summer drink of the south of France

Formerly known as vinum clarum and then clairet, rosé wine is the oldest of wines. Indeed, the cultivation of the vine, and consequently the production of wine, first appeared in Antiquity in the south of France where the Greeks had settled. It is therefore no surprise that our country is today the world's leading producer of rosé wine.

Fresh, fruity, light… Rosé wine is the true star of summer, but it is all too often wrongly considered a simple "summer thirst-quencher". Yet nothing could be further from the truth… It cannot be said enough: rosé wine is not a blend of red wine and white wine.

Made primarily from black grape varieties (the same as for red wine: Syrah, Grenache, Pinot Noir, Gamay, etc.), rosé wine is the result of a specific winemaking process (by direct pressing, maceration or saignée) which gives it a colour with more or less pronounced hues. For example, direct-pressed rosé wines are characterised by a pale colour, while saignée rosé wines have a denser and deeper colour. There is thus a great variety of rosé wines!

To find out more about Gérard Bertrand's rosé wine

How to enjoy a good rosé wine

Often enjoyed as an aperitif, rosé wine also pairs wonderfully with spring and summer meals based on white meats and grilled fish, Mediterranean vegetables and other composed salads. It should be served chilled, between 10 and 12 degrees, like a white wine, to preserve the richness of its aromatic palette.

If Provence is inseparable from rosé wine, other French wine-growing regions hold their own with the production of more elegant and complex rosé wines. Among them, the rosé wines of the Languedoc-Roussillon. Labelled AOC (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée) or AOP (Appellation d'Origine Protégée), they are at the forefront of the rosé wine revival in France. These Languedoc appellation rosés are generally distinguished by a vibrant colour and pronounced floral and red fruit notes. Gérard Bertrand offers a wide range of rosé wines ideal for discovering them… Or rediscovering them!

If you are still hesitating, know that the Languedoc-Roussillon region was the most awarded at the last edition of the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles in the rosé wine category!

To find out which is the best rosé wine.

Discover all the red wines from our finest appellations:

Pic Saint Loup wine

Corbières wine

Fitou wine

Banyuls wine

Minervois wine

Discover also:

The white wine

The rosé wine

The red wine

The orange wineOr also to contact Gérard Bertrand.