RETHINKING ROSÉ
In the hustle of daily life, it’s easy to sink into comfortable drinking habits. When it’s warm outside, you drink rosé. When it’s chilly, you open a bottle of rich, mouth coating Cabernet. But we’ll let you in on a little secret…rosé is great any time of year because of its brilliant versatility with food. At Voyager Estate, our rosés are crafted with fresh elegance and savoury complexity – the ultimate pairing with the heartier dishes we love to eat in the cooler months.
We asked our Sommelier, Claire Tonon, to share why rosé shouldn’t be relegated to the realm of summer fun, and why it deserves a place on your dinner party table this winter…
What makes rosé great winter drinking?
“Rosé is generally light, fresh, and unoaked yet with a softer overall flavour profile than most classic summer wines (think citrusy, herbal Sauvignon Blanc!). It’s effectively red wine without all the red wine structure and weight, so it makes an excellent starter or first course wine for a winter dinner party. The berry notes and earthy savouriness of the Voyager Estate rosés are perfect with the warm richness of winter foods. They have great natural acidity too, a good balance for the rich, creamy sauces we all love when it’s cold outside!”
What’s special about the way we craft it at Voyager Estate?
“Crafting our Project Sparkling Rosé is a gentle, delicate process; every step revolves around retaining the elegant, fresh fruit notes of our organically certified Merlot and Shiraz. Early harvesting allows us to gently press out light-coloured juice with bright, fresh blood orange and red berry notes yet without any bitterness from the skins.
The Voyager Estate Rosé is a different story – instead, our team focus on developing texture and complexity. We use select parcels and various varieties to achieve this, Tempranillo for lively raspberry and delicate spice notes, Shiraz for floral aromatics and summer berries, and Merlot for a light strawberry lift. A small portion of co-fermented Viognier offers textural complexity. The result is a dry style with lifted floral aromas and a soft, textural palate with nice savoury elements.”
Your favourite flavour pairings…
“Light seafood like octopus or prawns, served either warm or cool, or with cured red meats, tartare, or carpaccio. It’s equally great with a creamy risotto or pasta. A couple of my favourite quick and easy dishes to make at home (whilst drinking a glass of rosé!) are Beetroot and Gorgonzola Risotto or Salmon, Cherry Tomato, Rocket, and Caper Pasta.”
Pop the bottle straight from the fridge…or is there another way to serve rosé during the cooler months?
“When pairing the Voyager Estate Rosé with warm dishes, I recommend serving it at around 12-14 degrees (perfect oaked Chardonnay temperature) so there’s less temperature contrast between food and wine. That way, you’ll be highlighting fruit and the wine’s interesting savoury notes, rather than the bright acidity.”
Can we expect a rosé-inspired pairing on the upcoming SOLI Menu this July?
“Absolutely! We’re still in the development phase, so I can’t reveal too much…but our chefs are currently curing and seasoning some amazing local venison as the inspiration for our 2021 Project Sparkling Rosé pairing. As I’ve already mentioned, we’ll be serving this dish early in the menu, keeping it light with just enough creaminess to balance the bright acidity of the wine…it’s going to be pretty special.”
