Tasting notes decoded

Pomegranate

Pomegranates are said to originate from the Middle East, but today their juicy seeds are found in drinks and sweet or savoury dishes around the world. Their tart taste can be compared to that of sour cherries or cranberries.

Pomegranate can sometimes be expressed by fuller-bodied rosé wines, when their red fruit character combines with high acidity. Spanish rosés often display these characteristics, as with the Pyrene Rosado 2016 from Somontano – a blend of Tempranillo, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Or in this issue’s ‘Value red Burgundy’ feature (see p23), Tim Atkin MW highlights Domaine Truchetet’s Vieilles Vignes Bourgogne Rouge 2016, with its ‘intense raspberry and pomegranate fruit flavours’.

You can also find pomegranate notes in red wines with vibrant acidity and a ripe red fruit flavour profile. This could include Cinsault reds such as Tenute Rubino’s Lamo Ottavianello 2015 from Puglia, or fruit-forward Carignan wines from California, such as Lioco, Sativa Carignan 2013, with its ‘mouthwatering tastes of rosehip and pomegranate’.