Ambyth Estate Rose (90 Points)

DATE CONSUMED

Sunday, January 29, 2012

VINTAGE

2010

WINERY/PRODUCER

Ambyth Estate

WINE NAME

N/A

TYPE OF WINE

Rose

COMPOSITION

51% Mourvedre, 34% Grenache, 15% Counoise

SUBNAME/NICKNAME

N/A

VINEYARD DESIGNATION

Stonecross & Mark’s Vineyard

REGION/A.V.A.

Paso Robles

ALCOHOL CONTENT

13.6%

PRICE PAID

$27.00

WHERE/WHEN BOUGHT AND/OR HOW PROCURED

We visited Ambyth’s winery in June, 2011 before Paso Robles’ “Pinot & Paella Festival.”  We discovered Ambyth’s fascinating wines during Paso’s “Rhone Rangers” seminar earlier that year and I just HAD to visit them to get a complete tasting of their fantastic wines.  We took my parents along for the ride and had, by far, the most interesting, fascinating, and rewarding wine tasting experience of my life!

We arrived on a cold, blustery afternoon and were met by Ambyth’s winemaker/owner, Phillip Hart, who told us, in essence, “It’s way too cold; let’s go into the house and we can do your tasting in there.”  We were treated to a tasting of Ambyth’s complete lineup, along with their delicious olives and oils, in the middle of their gorgeous home that overlooks their vineyards.  The wines were incredible, the home and views were fantastic, and the warmth and hospitality of Phillip and Mary (along with their adorable 6-year-old-ish son) was absolutely unforgettable. 

After we completed our wine tasting in the home, we went down to the tasting room and did some barrel and vat tasting of an incredible Zinfandel and a fabulous white blend.  As we left, we couldn’t help ourselves and had to buy half a case of their wines and a bottle of olive oil.

If I live to be 150 years old, I will NEVER forget that incredible/unbelievable wine tasting experience! 

BOUQUET

I drank this rose out of a white/sort-of-Chardonnay glass and didn’t get much of a bouquet.  I detected the faintest hints of rose petal, strawberries, and savory herbs, not too surprising given the Rhone varietals used in this rose blend.

TASTING NOTES

Upfront disclosure: I HATE comparing one wine to another; I often find those comparisons unfair, biased, uneven, and just downright not right.  Having said that, I’m about to compare this wine to a VERY similar rose from my favorite California winery, Tablas Creek, also out of Paso Robles.  I opened a bottle of Tablas Creek’s 2010 Rose about two weeks ago, which has a VERY similar compositional blend as Ambyth’s Rose (TC’s Rose consists of  59% Mourvedre, 30% Grenache, and 11% Counoise, almost identical (well, sort of) to TC’s Rose).  If I remember correctly, TC’s Rose was almost 15% alcohol, resulting in a heavy, almost-leaden mouthfeel.  It was a very interesting and, if approached with the right frame-of-mind, tasty Rose. 

While I prefer Pinot Noir Rose’s (read: Lynmar’s 2010 Rose of Pinot Noir, which was by far my favorite rose for all of 2011), this Rose is easily my second favorite rose of the last year or so.  Though similar to TC’s Rose on a varietal basis (as well as blend percentages), this wine couldn’t be more different.  While TC’s Rose was heavy and thick, Ambyth’s Rose is light-bodied, fruity, creamy, and delicious beyond belief!  Part of Ambyth’s philosophy is to make wines without sulfites (whenever possible/feasible), to produce wines at lower alcohol levels (thank you very much), and to be as true and pure to the land and fruit as possible by being Demeter and biodynamic certified (thank you very much again!).  The end result?  An interesting/delicious Rose with strawberry, sour cherry, and raspberry flavors up front, followed by savory herbs and fantastic acidity.  The wine lingers nicely and exhibits a backbone of cream and earthy terrior (it may be psychological, but I believe the Demeter/Biodynamic certification can be “tasted” in the bottle; with low alcohol levels and clean/pure farming principles, along with unfiltered and unfined winemaking, this wine has an essence of purity and “truth” that few wines dare approach).

Bottom line: this is a fantastic, fruity, creamy, earthy, “clean” Rose that most other Roses would die of jealousy and envy if compared to this wondrous beauty.

PAIRING SUGGESTIONS

We paired this wine with pan-seared salmon steaks and veggies; it was a PERFECT pairing!  I’ve always found Roses difficult to pair with an appropriate food but salmon often seems to be Rose-friendly and such was the case in this instance.  Whether it be a Pinot-based Rose or a Southern Rhone blended Rose, you pretty much can’t go wrong with pairing a quality Rose with a perfectly-cooked salmon steak.

AGING POTENTIAL

Roses are meant to be drunk young, so I would suggest drinking this wine before the end of the year.  At the moment, it’s drinking beautifully right now, but if you have this bottle in your cellar, put it in the fridge to stop the evolution/aging/maturing process and drink this beauty with a seared salmon steak as soon as is feasible.

SCORE

90

Q.P.R. (QUALITY-TO-PRICE RATIO) (POOR, FAIR, GOOD, EXCELLENT)

GOOD – EXCELLENT

WINERY WEBSITE

http://www.ambythestate.com/