Rosé

I’m a big fan of St Supéry wines so it was great to see a Rosé from them pop up at my Costco priced at $12.99.  If you’ve ever driven through Napa, you’ve likely seen their property on Highway 29 in Rutherford.  It’s a beautiful plot of land nestled in between a bunch of top …

I’ve been meaning to get around to trying this Costco Rose.  It’s been a reader favorite, a frequently mentioned wine across the social networks and was priced at $18.99 at my Costco, which I think is an ok price (I’ve seen it elsewhere closer to $15).  We decided to pair this on a summer day with …

By Redneck Wine Guy I’ll let you in on a little secret – wine is not my career.  Rather, I’m a sales guy who travels the globe selling my wares hoping that the next commission check will be enough to buy a case-or-two of the good stuff to collect, store, and share with family and friends.    Today was an incredibly long day.  I am in Florida, and in one day traveled over 350 miles.  Upon arriving back to my hotel, the last thing I felt like doing was getting myself put together to end up sitting alone at a restaurant bar to eat most likely subpar food while drinking well-level booze and mindlessly surfing on my iPhone.  The brilliant idea of grabbing some snack foods and a bottle of wine to sit comfortably in my room was much more appealing.  Tonight I was looking for easy drinking – not cheap, just easy.  I was drawn to the Oyster Bay Pinot Noir for several reasons – it was reasonably priced at $12, it had a screw top so I did not have to buy a wine opener/borrow a wine opener from the hotel, and there are some “hella good” (that is a Southern colloquial phrase shorting the expression “Hell of a Good”) wines coming out of New Zealand.  It was worth a shot.

In color, this wine is light….like, a tad bit darker than a Rosé.  The legs are quick – if it was a woman, she would run a lot faster than a courting man could chase her.  The nose is very floral, and hints of ripe berries, vanilla, and a tad bit of spice.  This wine drinks young, and only opens slightly over time.  Upon first taste, this wine needs a bit of time to hang out.  This wine is 13.5% alcohol and rather unfortunately I think the taste of alcohol is too pronounced and slightly acidic.  The resounding profile I kept going back to time-and-time again was strawberry.  Abita Brewing Company out of Abita Springs, Louisiana makes a phenomenal seasonal lager called “Abita Strawberry Harvest Lager.”   There are a lot of parallels in my opinion to this wine and that beer.  The finish is moderate – you will not forget it after first sip, but it will not linger long into the night.  Absolutely a good buy at the price point.

Redneck Wine Guy Rating: 88 Points

Winery: Oyster Bay Vineyards

Varietal(s): 100% Pinot Noir

Vintage: 2011

Region: Marlborough, New Zealand