Fall can be a tough season to weather in Miami, especially for those who love a change of season and relish feeling a slight chill in the air. Yes, South Florida does have football and Halloween celebrations, but for a real taste of fall we must hop on a plane and head out of state. Chasing an authentic autumn can be pretty expensive for us!
Though the leaves on our palm trees stay a healthy green year-round, we can celebrate the colors of the season in another way. For wine lovers, this may mean choosing some bottles that fit the theme. How about a mix of orange and dark rosé wines for a fall celebration?
It may not be sweater-weather outside, but these bottles will always taste best served with a little chill. Plus, you don’t have to purchase a plane ticket or a new wardrobe to experience them.
(Château d’Aqueria)
Château d’Aqueria Tavel is available for purchase at Mr. D Wine Merchant in Miami.
What Is Orange Wine?
Most importantly: It is not a wine made from oranges. Orange wine is the term to describe wine made with white grapes that undergo some extended skin contact at the beginning of the winemaking process, producing an “orange” tint in the finished product. This color may vary depending on the grape variety and how long the juice stays in contact with the skins. The easiest way to think about this category of wine is to think of it as simply “skin-contact” white wines.
Most grapes have clear liquid inside, regardless of skin color. It is the contact with the skins that gives red wine a red color. Usually, white wines are pressed with minimal contact with the skins to provide that clear yellowish color – which can be lighter or deeper depending on other winemaking techniques such as the use of oak or the age of the wine.
When it comes to orange wines, the skins of white grapes, much like the skins of red grapes for red wines, affect the color of the liquid and the structure of the wine due to the different parts of the grapes macerating together for days or even months. This technique heavily influences the aromas, flavors and tannins that become defining characteristics of the resulting wine.
Orange wine may be emerging as a popular style, but it is far from a new category. The method for making orange wine represents the oldest style of winemaking around. Ancient production techniques that date back thousands of years to the birthplace of wine in the country of Georgia resulted in orange-tinted wine. Of course, this was way before modern fining and filtration techniques, so wines were likely colorful and cloudy more than not.
(Lubanzi Wines)
The grapes in Lubanzi’s orange wine spend seven days on the skins to achieve the “orange” color.
Lubanzi, Orange Wine Is Skin Contact, 2022
Swartland, South Africa
$26 at PlumMarket.com
Orange Wine is Skin Contact is a golden orange color and has aromas and flavors of white flowers, citrus fruits like lemon and tangerines, dried peach and apricots. This is a full-bodied wine with ripping acidity and a fresh finish. Sip casually on a warm autumn evening. 86% chenin blanc, 14% viognier
The Vice Orange of Gewurztraminer, Brooklynites 5.0, 2022
Los Carneros, California
$34 at TheViceWine.com
Sweet peach and floral aromas lead into the palate bursting with flavors such as lychee, clementine and tropical passion fruit. Fresh acidity and a slightly sweet finish give this bottle flexibility to complement a spicier dish or just sip slowly on its own. 100% unfiltered gewürztraminer
Tavel Rosé
The wine of kings and the king of wines! These deep-colored rosés are undoubtedly reminiscent of the shade of red marking the leaves of the season.
A rosé-only region located in the southern Rhône Valley in France, Tavel is where some of the most special rosé wines are made. In fact, several former kings of France are said to have preferred the wines of this region over all others. Hence, Tavel’s moniker as the “king of wines.”
Tavel is very different from pale pink Provençal-style rosés. These fuller-bo
(Alain Jaume)
The Jaume family has been dedicated to the art of wine growing since 1826.
died, more structured gastronomique wines that are deserving of a feast. But darker does not mean sweeter. The hue comes from more prolonged contact with the skins of red grapes such as grenache, syrah, cinsault or mourvèdre. The saignée method of making rosé here is like a “bleeding” of the dark pink-colored juice from the red grape skins. Wines from this royally admired region are dry and delicious, and many are age-worthy, too.
Alain Jaume Tavel, Rosé Le Crétacé, 2021
Tavel, France
$22.99 at CalvertWoodley.com
Ripe cherry, raspberry and strawberry on the nose and on the tongue. This wine is medium-bodied and concentrated, with red fruit and melon flavors lingering for a mouthwateringly refreshing finish. 60% grenache, 30% syrah, 10% mourvèdre
Chateau D’Aqueria, Tavel Rosé, 2021
Tavel, France
$24.70 at MrDWine.com
Rich red fruits, black currant and spice on the palate. Medium-bodied, balanced and full of fresh acidity, this is an appealing food-friendly rosé. 45% grenache, 20% clairette, 15% cinsault, 8% mourvèdre, 6% syrah, 4% bourboulenc, 2% picpoul