What's the difference? Rodi Rosé & Rosé | Archer Roose
Let’s talk wine! Archer has scoured the world’s most celebrated winemaking regions to return with the most splendid sips for your lips. Our Provençal Rosé and Rodi Rosé are just two fine examples of her commitment to low-intervention, consciously crafted wine. But, what is our Rodi Rosé and how is it different from our Provençal Rosé?
Our Rosé hails from Luberon, France in the heart of Provence (that’s why we call it Provençal, it means “of Provence”). The vineyards are surrounded by lush fields of lavender and the soils are calcareous and sandy. The grapes for our rosé are quickly harvested at night to safeguards their freshness and prevent the grapes from taking on an oxidative profile. This is all to say, our winemaker Benjamin Mei goes to extensive lengths to ensure the quality of each grape is maintained, and that the final product meets his quite experienced standards!
Rosé is a household style of wine, though many folks aren’t entirely sure what makes a rosé! While Archer is mostly frolics and whimsy, she is quite concerned with spreading the ways of wine! The color and profile of Rosé results from taking red wine grapes and allowing the skins to remain in contact with the juice - though at a reduced time compared to red wine production. The result is a wine that is lighter in color and flavor than red wines! “Genius!” says Archer.
We’ve achieved a lovely Provençal Rosé that boasts a traditional palate; it’s dry and fruit-forward, with notes of strawberry, raspberry, and apricot compote! Sounds absolutely delicious, right?
Now in comparison, our Rodi Rosé has many key differences in both production and profile. Our Rodi Rosé hails from Naoussa, Greece and is made in a traditional skin-contact style. This wine is made differently from the rest of our portfolio for a few ways. First, it is wild-fermented with native yeasts, which has a whole slew of technical characteristics but the long and short of it is the development, or manifestation of, spicy undertones (yes, you read that right!) Second, our rodi rosé is made with skin-contact, much like we do with our Provençal rosé, but for this style of wine the skins and juices are in contact much longer during fermentation. This is precisely how we achieve the lovely orange hue and distinct tannin compared to typical rosé!
We like to describe our Rodi Rosé as similar to a traditional, farmhouse apple cider - the tannins from the skins provide the “grippy” sensation on the tongue, and the notes of dried apricot and melon round out the experience!
Our rosés are complex while still easy-drinking, and their stories are nearly as romantic as the views from the vineyards! As always, drop questions to our wine team at hello@archerroose.com