Why Am I Drinking Rosé?

Excellent find!
He first drank rosé when his father, who was then married to the actress Arlene Dahl, took him to Monte Carlo during one of those summer vacations. "We stayed at the Hôtel de Paris and drank rosé at lunch every day by the pool at the beach club," Sacha recalls. He also drank rosé at the Prince's Palace with Grace Kelly, and with Prince Rainier on his yacht, which seems like the perfect apprenticeship for a man who would eventually become an international ambassador for the pink wine of Provence.


While a college student, Sacha served as a sommelier at Anthony's Pier 4, a now-closed Boston institution that had one of the best wine lists in the U.S. "It was a fantastic place," he says. "There were three full-time somms, and we sold 8,000 bottles a month. I learned so much."


The recession of 2008 offered an opportunity for affordable wines. Château d'Esclans sells two rosés for significantly less than those of Domaines Ott, traditionally the best-selling Provençal domain. Whispering Angel is Lichine's largest-production and lowest-priced offering; Rock Angel, which has more body and structure, is my favorite for everyday drinking.


Whispering Angel, meanwhile, has become practically ubiquitous in fashionable watering holes in such places as South Beach, Nantucket, and the Hamptons, judging from the production figures, which have risen from 11,000 cases in 2006 to 260,000 last year. Whether that will be enough to satisfy the collective thirst this summer remains to be seen, but it couldn't hurt to stock up now, just in case.
 
What a surge in sales. It was Andy Hall from the Hideaway who touted us on to Whispering Angel.
 
We found it at On the Rocks one night and have become aficionados. Didn't know it has become so popular. The wine store in Gustavia, near the harbor, got us going on Rock Angel.
 
We visited the vineyard last fall. At the vineyard, a bottle of Whispering Angel sells for 17 Euro. At Total Wine in Wilmington, Delaware a bottle fetches $20 with no sales tax. A bottle at Taiwana is 85 Euro.
 
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Sacha Lichine speaks of rosé for year round drinking and of a new found respect for it as a serious table wine. He's hardly alone with that thought.
Here is Ch. Pibarnon's micro cuvée Nuances, which M. de Saint Victor produces from 100% Mourvèdre from among his best parcels and vinifies for age worthiness and more table-worthy attributes. His rosé cuvée normale is, of course, one of the best on the planet.

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The fabulous domaine:

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Just picked up a case of WA and a case of Carib to kick off the summer season on the boat.....the Carib came to 34 bucks and the WA came to 189.60.....but then he took fish in trade which reduced me down another 25 bucks

I ll take it
 
Recently turned on by my alcohol vendor to some Chateau Saint-Maur Cote de Provence. Really delish. I think I have a new favorite. Not sure that I have seen it on SBH. Has anyone had this before?
 
Islander should know it. (Situated in Cogolin, just north of St-Tropez) We've had it before, but it's been some time. There are so many good rosés from the various Provençal appellations.
 
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