La vie en rosé – Chapter Five

I have paid as little as two Euros for a NoName wine at a gas station in France, and as much as $AUD 50 for a Bandol Tempier in Melbourne.

I found more rosés than I had time to drink at Dean and De Lucca’s in Georgetown. I vowed to return as soon as possible, Reader, to pursue knowledge for you.


V. My data base has rosés from the world: Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, England, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, New Zealand, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, and United States. Two of the Argentines were downed in a Washington D.C. restaurant. Another emerged from El Capitane Torres Resaturant and delicatessen on Liverpool Street in Sydney’s Spanish zone. I found more rosés than I had time to drink at Dean and De Lucca’s in Georgetown. http://www.deandeluca.com/
Still others came forth at the Wine Emporium in Des Moines Iowa and the Grape Experience in Omaha. Still others came from two fine outlets in Honolulu. The Canadians have all come my trips to Montréal, Ottawa, Quebec City, Toronto, and Vancouver. One German was on the shelf at KdW in Berlin. berlin-kdw.jpg Another – in a novelty bottle (all the alarm bells went off at the sight of that but duty prevailed) that is supposed to look like a cat that chanced my way in Ottawa in an Ontario Government Liquor Store. I had to go to Japan to know Japanese rosé. The first Greek was from a huge wine emporium in Bloomington Indiana (which had more to offer than I could try, sadly), and was a jewel compared to the Indiana rosé I had the previous day. (Nothing will be said of the Amana rosé from Iowa. Utopian it was not. Oh, oh, I said something.) Another Greek arrived from Europa (in Melbourne). I have had many, many French rosés in Paris with the Whittons, bought at the Galieres Lafayette or the local gas station. A few more turned up in Brussels; turned up; I went looking for them with my usual dedication. The first Lebanese was spirited out of Beirut by a friend. I picture diplomatic bags and trench coats, and slipped to me in Utrecht in The Netherlands. The second was in Berlin. Some of the New Zealanders were shipped to me by Tom Angelo via his trusted courier, others were imported by my Kate, returning from conferenceville. I have prowled bottleshops the length and breadth of Sydney, from Palm Beach http://www.palmbeachwineco.com/ in semi-tropical north to the gritty city streets of Leichhardt to Amato’s, http://www.amatos.com.au/ In Adelaide I made use of local contacts. I have ransacked web sites and established a long distance relationship with two suppliers in Melbourne, who deliver to my door. One of them – Jeremy – is so well organized he emails me when he gets a new shipment of rosé. http://www.europacellars.com.au/ The other, Nick, leaves the initiative to me. http://www.nicks.com.au/index.aspx
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The Greeks do have something to answer for. One day in Amato’s (a local independent wine seller in Leichhardt with cut-throat prices, commended to me by Judyth Sachs, to whom a thousand thanks) I found something pink in a bottle with the word “Rose” on it. The rest of label was Greek to me. All right, I said, I’ll try it. Amato does have a two liter bottles of Greek rosé but I have never been able to commit myself to that volume, so I thought this 750 milliliter bottle would do. Home it went. It had a stelvin top (screw cap) that defeated me. I couldn’t get it open, and believe me when I say I have bottle opening tools. I applied one and the cap came off, and so did the top of the bottle. I had broken its neck. Worse was to come. I strained it to avoid cutting my own throat with glass and poured a glass, the realization slowly dawning that this was not wine, but Rose water. Yep. Great in tea.
I have paid as little as two Euros for a NoName wine at a gas station in France, and as much as $AUD 50 for a Bandol Tempier in Melbourne. bandol.jpeg Then there was a 100 milliliter tetra pack I bought at a Chinese takeaway in a Paris Metro station for Euros 1.50 to have with a le sandwich for lunch with Georgie Whitton. It was tasteless but it is on the database nonetheless. Hit the currency converter if you want to figure out what that range is.
http://www.xe.com/ucc/
Jeremy (see above) said he had tasted one for his shop that retailed at $AUD 80, but he did not stock as he thought no one would pay that. Wrong! I told him I would buy it, at least for two bottles, just to taste it. He values my custom but not quite enough to buy a gross just to sell me two bottles.
To be continued.