SUNNY DAY ESSENTIALS
Endlessly versatile, these high-quality rosés are perfect with food or to cool down with as the weather warms up.
1 2021 COOMBE ESTATE ROSÉ
Wine region: Yarra Valley, VIC
Pinot on the nose, candied strawberry fruit with a touch of white peach, and rose water. A textural palate of strawberries and cream, complex oak spices and a dry refreshing finish.
What do you love about this rosé?
This rosé is light and delicate with musk stick lollies on the nose. Just 30 minutes on skins has given this wine a pretty, pale pink blush. A palate of homemade lemonade with a strawberries and cream finish.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
Enjoy on a beautiful spring day in the garden. Serve chilled alongside a goat’s cheese and fresh fig tart.
$30, coombeyarravalley.com.au @coombeyarravalley
2 202 2 MEDHURST ESTATE VINEYARD ROSÉ
Wine region: Yarra Valley, VIC
Pale copper blush and a vibrant pink hue. Jasmine on the nose, with subtle cassis and strawberry notes. Red fruits and a supple creamy texture on the palate. The finish is fresh with a lovely roundness and weight.
What is unique about this rosé?
This is the 19th straight vintage of our single vineyard hand-picked rosé. There is no expense spared in the vineyard (hand picking, pruning, canopy management) or the winery (gentle low-yielding champagne press cycle) so this wine is always hugely flavoursome, pure, intense and balanced.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
Alongside great company, King Island triple cream brie, quince paste and slices of crusty baguette. $30, medhurstwines.com.au @medhurstwines
3 20 2 2 V I CTORY P OI NT ROSÉ
Wine region: Margaret River, WA
An enticing blend of malbec, pinot noir and cabernet franc with aromas of red berries, white mulberry and orange blossom. Palate is minerally, with crunchy red fruit and a cranberry acidity. The finish is long and savoury.
What is unique about this rosé?
All varieties are grown in our non-irrigated vineyard in the Margaret River region.
The pinot noir is barrel fermented in neutral French oak for three months and the cabernet franc and malbec are cofermented in tank. The finished product is dry, lifted and structural and can be enjoyed with a variety of foods.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
This wine is best enjoyed chilled, overlooking the water and paired with a niçoise salad, Manchego cheese fritters, a watermelon and mint salad or crayfish brioche sliders. $30, victorypointwines.com @victorypointwines
4 2021 PENFOLDS MAX’S ROSÉ
Wine region: Adelaide Hills, SA
A burst of refreshing flavours explode across the palate led by white pepper, strawberries, navel oranges and jasmine blossom. A slatey minerality brings some austerity with a light phenolic grip which ties the whole package together.
What do you love about this rosé?
This pinot noir-dominant blend is sourced from the cool-climate vineyards of South Australia’s Adelaide Hills. It’s crisp, dry and textural with a restrained palate led by a burst of red summer fruits and a hint of rhubarb.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
Well-balanced, bright and crafted with early drinking in mind. This wine is best served chilled, between 6-11°C, and will pair effortlessly with grilled salmon and vegetables. $30, penfolds.com @penfolds 5 2019 TURNER'S CROSSING ROSÉ
Wine region: Bendigo, VIC
Made from 100 per cent cabernet sauvignon. The palate is full of fresh strawberry and raspberry flavours and is balanced by a fine acidity that gives the wine length and balance.
What do you love about this rosé?
We love this rosé for its unique ‘onion skin’ colour and crisp but full flavour of fresh strawberry and raspberry with a strawberry bon-bon confection, balanced by a fine acidity. The beautiful balance in this wine is in part due to the high-quality fruit grown during the 2019 vintage.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
This wine pairs brilliantly with grilled fish, pork or veal dishes. A perfect lunch wine on a spring or summer's day, served chilled. The 2019 vintage is ready to drink now, but will continue to improve for 2–4 years with careful cellaring. $22, turnerscrossing.com.au @turnerscrossingwine 6 20 2 1 AT L AS WINES CL ARE VALLEY ROSÉ
Wine region: Clare Valley, SA
Delicate and fragrant, with lifted raspberry, melon and rosewater on the nose. The palate is dry and refreshing with ripe strawberry, elderflower and delicate crisp acidity together with a textural creaminess.
What do you love about this rosé?
Hand-picked from 80-year-old grenache bush vines in Leasingham. Partially fermented and lees stirred in new French oak, the Atlas Rosé is much more than just a party starter.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
This wine has a textural complexity that lends itself to enjoyment all year round, and makes it a wonderful complement to foods. It is at its best when served chilled and then allowed to warm in the glass to release the wine’s delicate aromas. $24, atlaswines.com @atlaswines
7 2021 MITCHELTON GABRIELL A POSSUM NUNGURRAYI MOURVEDRE ROSÉ
Wine region: Nagambie Lakes, VIC
Lovely salmon pink in colour, with layered aromas of blueberry, strawberry and cream. Vibrant and appealing, with fresh soft red berry notes and an intensity on the palate.
What do you love about this rosé?
This wine is a celebration of art, mourvèdre and the Nagambie Lakes region. A vibrant and complex rosé with a balanced acidity and depth.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
A refreshing aperitif that pairs well with a cheeseboard, picnic lunch and all round good times. $39, mitchelton.com.au @mitcheltonwines
82021 PEPPER TREE LIMITED RELEASE MERLOT ROSÉ
Wine region: Coonawarra, SA
A refreshing, crisp style with rich strawberry and cream and notes of guava on the palate. A lively sherbetlike acid line and texture complements the finish.
What is unique about this rosé?
Rosé for us is all about targeting the right blocks to produce the best wines. In the winery we focus on making light, dry, crisp and refreshing rosé that expresses the fruit and shows our commitment to making good rosé.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
With its vibrant fruit expression and savoury texture, this wine is perfect for celebrating any occasion, especially during our warm Aussie summers. $30, peppertreewines.com.au @peppertreewines
9 2022 HANDPICKED WINES YARRA VALLEY ROSÉ
Wine region: Yarra Valley, VIC
A light-salmon colour from gently pressed grapes. The nose has vibrant red fruit and spice aromas, and there is juicy redcurrant and strawberry flavours that morph into savoury spiced notes on the palate.
What do you love about this rosé?
This wine is a fantastic example of sangiovese thriving in the Yarra Valley. It offers a combination of juicy fruit and savoury notes.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
A youthful wine made to drink while young and fresh, perfect for sipping on its own but will pair handsomely with a range of foods. We love this wine with pan-fried rainbow trout and garlic potatoes. $29, handpickedwines.com.au @handpickedwines
10 2021 LONGVIEW VINEYARD JUNO NEBBIOLO ROSATO
Wine region: Adelaide Hills, SA
A beguiling rosewater hue with a remarkable perfume of fresh red berries, pressed flowers, and nebbiolo's trademark whiff of star anise. On the palate, a refreshing hit of white stone fruit and a zippy citrus-juice finish.
What is unique, about this rosé?
One of the most awarded rosé’s in the country, Longview is home to some of the oldest nebbiolo vines in Australia. The famed 1-11 clone of nebbiolo makes up the majority of the blend for our Rosato. Known in Italy as the rosato clone, it ripens early and has an amazing perfume lift.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
With crab and anywhere the sun is shining.
11 20 2 2 T URKEY F L AT ROSÉ
Wine region: Barossa Valley, SA
A refreshingly dry, light, crisp and beautifully aromatic wine. With hints of strawberry on the nose and a delicate texture of fresh peach and nectarine on the palate.
What is unique about this rosé?
Our rosé is the result of nearly 30 years of refinement in technique. Grenache is the star of this wine, which is picked in multiple parcels across the vintage to create a balanced and refined wine.
How is this wine best enjoyed?
This wine is best served chilled and has the versatility to match any food style it meets. We think it is best enjoyed around a table with good friends, along with a charcuterie board, making for lazy long afternoons.
12 202 2 GROVE ESTATE AL DENTE ROSÉ
Wine region: Hilltops, NSW
A blend of nebbiolo, cabernet and merlot. Well balanced. Dry and crisp with delicious strawberry and rich berry undertones.
What do you love about this rosé?
We pick a portion of nebbiolo followed an hour later with a portion of cabernet sauvignon followed another hour later with the merlot. All the fruit comes from our vineyard near the village of Wombat. Rich, volcanic soil, dry land, no irrigation, at altitude – what terroir!
How is this wine best enjoyed?
Best enjoyed with friends on a warm summer evening. Dry, medium-bodied, drink slightly chilled.