Episode Details

Elizabeth (Liz) Gabay, Master of Wine, is the world's foremost expert on rosé and a big part of her career has been studying, writing about, and understanding rosé. Ben Bernheim, her son, is now learning from her wisdom and and is a specialist in his own right. The two of them have just completed the excellent book "Rosés of Southern France" (which is now available on Amazon for purchase.

Liz is largely responsible for shifting the tide on rosé and helping people to understand that this wine is its own serious category that deserves thought, study, and consideration. In addition to the new book, Liz is the author of "Rosé: Understanding the Pink Wine Revolution," and she is also a contributor on rosé in Decanter, The Drinks Business, The Buyer, SevenFiftyDaily, Meiningers, and many more prestigious publications.

Photo: https://www.elizabethgabay.com/about/

The wisdom these Liz and Ben have on the subject of rosé is vast, and they are so fun, engaging, and real, that they make it all so interesting and accessible. This is an incredible education on rosé and will enjoy every minute of listening to these fantastic humans.

Photo: Ben Bernheim, taken by me when we were partners in a Beaumes de Venise mini-class in the Rhone Valley 4/22

Here are the things we discuss in the show:

• Liz talks about her background and how she got into wine. She discusses how, when she took the MW, it was a professional certification, and how it has changed dramatically over time. She discusses how she got into rosé, and how Ben got involved in it as well.

Then we get into the nuts and bolts of rosé

• Liz and Ben define rosé (harder than you think!). We discuss he book's intro and what rosé is really about:

"We love rosé. We love its diversity, its complexity, and the infinite combinations of terroir, grape variety, vintage variation and winemaking that we find around the world. Many people think we're crazy. They see rosé as a pale pink lightly alcoholic swimming pool tipple that somehow tastes better if you're wearing a bikini. That isn't what this book is about. "

Photo credit: Canva

• Liz and Ben tell us about rosé winegrowing:
  • Grapes that are commonly used(red AND white!)
  • The role of terroir in rosé
  • The picking decisions and harvest parameters that matter in making rosé
  • Climate change and how it is affecting grapes for rosé
• We talk next about rosé winemaking
  • We discuss the various ways to make rosé – direct press, limited maceration and saignée
  • We talk about some of the key factors in rosé winemaking:
    • Time on the skin
    • Yeast strains
    • Co-fermenting with whites
    • Fermentation vessel (oak v. stainless)
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