Where do you find these wines in GA? Letters to Jane Garvey June 1st, 2006 Coming Up Rosés

The other night I walked into a great Decatur wine and coffee bar (Java Monkey) with a cacaphony of students tapping on their laptops. In the wine bar area, a young construction guy named Mike was sipping a rosé--yes, a PINK wine. He swirled, sniffed and sipped like a pro. And, as it turned out, he had worked in a winery and knew his way around rosé.

But when I saw him initially, I thought, "Wow! A young good-ole-boy type sipping a rosé in public and treating it like the serious wine it is. Times they are a changing."

The young man revealed that he had worked for Atlanta's own California winemaker, Matt Garretson, a true blue rosé champion, and that was how he'd learned to respect the genre. Led by his bold enthusiasm, I tasted the Hermanos Lurton Rosado 2004 (Grapefields) from Tierras de Castilla (Spain), made from Garnacha and Tempranillo, and enjoyed its voluptuous strawberry fruit and clean, crisp, dry finish.

Rosés have long been a personal favorite, but it often required serous arm-twisting to prevail upon my guy friends to try the things. Once they tried dry ones, they, like the young man with the Lurton, were convinced.

Now, in classes, I notice that when I ask how many attendees expect a pink wine to be sweet, fewer and fewer hands hit the air. And those who do express surprise, and delight, to find the wine dry. Now there's a role for sweet wines, so don't get me going on that one. But dry rosé is among the most food-friendly wines you can find.

Nobody knows this better than two California guys who make serious, barrel-fermented rosé. So committed are they to this genre that they've dubbed theirs SoloRosa (meaning "only rosé"), placed for distribution with Ultimate Distributors in Atlanta. Jeff Morgan and Daniel Moore's wine has been available in this market, and hopefully the new vintage will arrive soon.

A longtime advocate of dry rosé, Morgan says the name came to him in a dream. Whatever inspired the name, it's a spicy, juicy, rich and dry fuscia-colored wine, and it will handle everything from spicy chicken wings to pizza to seafood terrines to fried catfish and even mildly seasoned Indian dishes. Cuban sandwiches, chorizo, fajitas, calamari, and lighter meat dishes all respond to this wine. Morgan is so enthralled with the genre he's "cooked up" a delightful book on the subject: Rosé A Guide to the World's Most Versatile Wine, with F. Ruffinach. (Chronicle Books, 2005; $19.95).

Morgan recognizes that we're not talking here about blush wines. Blush wines or white Zinfandel, which kept Zinfandel from completely disappearing, may look like rosé, but lacks the acidity, character and complexity of a good rosé. While the book's preparatory matter deals with sundry rosé issues, the balance of the text covers a wide range of recipes to pair with various rosés, creating a thorough disquisition on the subject.

For years I've disrespected the notion that rosés were only to be savored in summer. Since we get the Southern hemisphere examples when they're ready in the early part of the year, why not enjoy them when they're fresh out of the chamber? Besides, if I'm having fajitas, and there's an ice storm going on outside, why should I change my wine choice? Mercifully, now, rosé is no longer bound by seasonal considerations. Oh joy!

If you become as maniacal about rosé as I am--and as many winemakers are--you may want to join R.A.P., Rosé Avengers and Producers and attend the San Francisco edition of Pink Out! on July 17, 2006. Only dry rosé will be poured (why are we so afraid of residual sugar anyway?). The New York edition of Pink Out! was held for the first time in May, and probably will be slated again for New York next spring. Both still and sparkling dry rosés are featured from around the planet.

Serve rosés moderately chilled, about 60 degrees, to capture the spicy fruit flavors. Riedel has developed a rosé glass, but they're hard to get. Otherwise, use a tall tulip-shaped white wine glass such as Riedel's Zinfandel glass or Spiegelau's white wine glass.

Jane Garvey

Food Pairings: Grilled garlic shrimp (or with Rémoulade), assorted tapas (croquetas; chirizo, jamцn serrano, stuffed red peppers); pisto manchego (peppers, tomatoes and zucchini), roast chicken, black beans, barbecue, burritos, mild Malaysian curries with chicken or fish, ham steak, paella

Price: $9
Wholesaler: Bacco Fine Wine

Food Pairings: Doesn't like strong flavors; steer clear of garlic: Hummus; fried chicken and catfish; grilled shrimp with not-too-spicy Rémoulade sauce; crab cakes; crab and red pepper pаté (Summer Sweet); grilled chicken or salmon; tomato-based salads; grilled ham steak; paella

Price: $14
Wholesaler: Grapefields

Food Pairings: Aperitif wine with all manner of light appetizers, including grilled shrimp, crab and roasted red pepper pаté (Summer Sweet), chicken or ham croquetas. Also fish/shellfish stews, tomato/Vidalia onion/red pepper salad (and lots of other salads), fried chicken, dishes with eggplant, tomato and roasted red pepper; Whole Foods' lemon chicken with garlic and black olives (great!); pizza, vegetable lasagna or quesadilla

Price: $15
Wholesaler: Empire Distributing

Food Pairings: A whole bunch of good food: Tabbouleh; hummus; pasta salad with hefty garlic and smoked mozzarella (Whole Foods); salami, chorizo, deli meats; chicken salad wraps; mildly seasoned Malaysian chicken or seafood dishes; shrimp Rémoulade; rabbit or chicken chasseur; Cajun fare if not too spicy, such as crawfish salad (Harry's Whole Foods Alpharetta); salmon salad; fried chicken (even with some spice); grilled or smoked sausages or sausage rolls; pizza; barbecue with slightly spicy tomato-based sauce

Price: $18
Wholesaler: Quality Wine & Spirits

Château Mourgues du Gres "Les Galets Rosés" 2005
Costières de Nîmes (Rhône), France

Score: 90 Points

Tasting Notes: Medium-bodied dry rosé wine; medium reddish pink. Aromas of red fruits (strawberries) and cinnamon hearts, with cinnamon heart notes keeping the fresh strawberry flavors lively. Fruit flavors balanced by crisp acidity and a clean, dry finish. Lovely balance. A saignйe of Syrah and Grenache.

Food Pairings: Pasta dishes with hefty garlic, garlic grilled garlic shrimp with mild (not too spicy) Rémoulade; wood-grilled salmon steak; ham steak; grilled asparagus salad; barbecue with mildly spicy tomato-based sauce; ratatouille and other eggplant-tomato dishes; vegetable lasagna or quesadilla;

Price: $15
Wholesaler: Unique World Wines

Food Pairings: Shrimp Rémoulade, creamy garlicky pastas, salamis and cured deli meats (not too spicy), tomato-Vidalia onion-bell pepper salad (and other salads); barbecue (shredded with mild sauce), black bean dishes, ham steak with roasted potatoes, burritos; chicken, rabbit or pork with mild curries; mild fish or chicken tagines; cous cous (hold the harissa); paella

Price: $18
Wholesaler: Quality Wine & Spirits