2011 DEFINE Wines Napa Valley Rose
Mission Codename: Of Love and Meaning
Operative: Agent Red
Objective: Respond to reports of a new, ultra-premium Rosé producer in the Napa Valley. If the wine is as great as reports suggest, procure an ample allotment for our thirsty Operatives.
Mission Status: Accomplished!
Current Winery: DEFINE Wines
Wine Subject: 2011 Rosé
Winemaker: David James
Backgrounder:
The Wine Spies are always on the hunt for the best wines that we can find. When it comes to Rosé , we are extraordinarily difficult to please. Today’s wine is a new Wine Spies favorite, DEFINE Wines, whose remarkable Rosé offers an exquisite, ultra-premium Summertime drinking experience.
Wine Spies Tasting Profile:
Look – Dark salmon hues, with perfect clarity. Coloration is perfectly even, from core to glinting pink edge. After swirling the wine, tall clusters of skinny, slow moving legs saunter down the glass.
Smell – Lush and complex for a rosé, with darker aromas than the color might suggest. The wine leads with dark cherry, fresh young strawberry, dried French herbs and subtle pink grapefruit. As the wine warms, additional aromas of white peach, subtle slate and dried pink flower petals follow on.
Feel -Right out of the chiller, the wine shows a soft effervescence at the tip of the tongue. As it warms, even slightly, it becomes soft and round on the initial attack. Then, as the wine crosses the mid-palate, it becomes softly grippy. This grippy feeling becomes more pronounced as the wine warms, contributing to a wonderful complexity. A mineral-laden dryness spreads from the tip of the tongue to the rear of the palate, the lips and the cheeks.
Taste – Sweet pink grapefruit and young strawberry mingle with tart cherry, fresh lime, dried rose petals, subtle dried herbs and flint.
Finish Very long and filled with sweet and tar flavors, the fruit take a long time to tail off. As it does, a flinty dryness slowly spreads around the palate. At the very end, an intriguing flash of subtle white spice appears, hanging around for a long time.
Conclusion – This is a truly remarkable Rosé that our tasting panel went absolutely crazy for. Out of the chiller, this wine is fresh and bright and filled with classic, delicious California flavors. As the wine warms, though, it takes on new character and complexity. Each successive sip becomes more flavorful and more elegant than the last. Each sip becomes more fun. Overall, this wine is intriguing, delicious and very interesting. Kudos to David James on his inaugural rose release. We’ll be keeping an eye on this very promising young winemaker. You should, too. Stock up on this wonderful Summertime sipper!