Jeff’s Corner 

Well, after numerous drum rolls and endless anticipation, it’s finally time to check out our brand new Rose’ of Sangiovese and Ramato. Jason has wanted to produce a dry rose’ for sometime now, and here he is with not one, but two; and just in time for spring.

Not only are these a style of wine never before produced at GCV, they are packaged with a subtle change in our label designed by Jason himself! We have our traditional black label, but the usual copper trim has been replaced by bright silver. Contrasted with the beautiful color of these wines, the result is stunning.

“Ramato” is a style of wine dating back hundreds of years to northern Italy, and is a rose made from Pinot Grigio. In one sense, Ramato translates as “coppery” or “coppered”, and these are often referred to as orange wines. The skins of Pinot Grigio grapes are a pale purple-grey, and with limited contact with the juice after crush, we see wine with lovely coppery/orange hues.

I stopped into Jason’s office a few days ago to get the lowdown on these two exciting new wines. The grapes for both are from Andy Timmons’ Lost Draw Vineyards by Brownfield in the High Plains AVA, and both are 100% Sangiovese and Pinot Grigio.

Maceration time (contact between juice and skins) was about 24 hours for each, and Jason suggested a serving temp between 50 an 55 degrees. I asked him if there is anything else he’d like to add, and he replied “They’re *&^#><#” good!”.

The Rose of Sangiovese is bright pink in color, with vibrant aromas of watermelon, raspberries, cherries, and rose petals. It smells like springtime in a glass. The palate shows bright red fruit and citrus, and reminds me of a cherry 7UP from the soda fountain at Patt’s Drugstore when I was a kid. The finish is a rich balance of moderately high acid and fruit.

The Ramato is a textbook coppery orange, and smells like fresh baked sourdough bread along with pear, banana, cranberry, and pink carnations. These aromas transition into flavors that are both delicate and complex, with subtle hints of minerality. With slightly lower acidity than the Rose of Sangiovese, the Ramato finishes with more fruit.

And, after all this, I still have about half a bottle of each for dinner tonight. Kathy and I will try them with some crab cakes sautéed in our GCV Citrus Cilantro Grapeseed Oil, alongside some crisp snap peas and a spinach salad. How spoiled we are!