Summer picnic taste test: rosés, cremants and pet nats
Chosen by Majestic
Rosé pays d’oc
£9.99, majestic.co.uk
This one smells quite funky, but fun. Quite interesting. It’s got a really lively texture, and underneath lots of classic red fruits. A little bit creamy, a little bit strawberries and cream. This is more on the natural side, but it’s very lifted, very clean. I would definitely take this to the park. It almost feels like a sparkling. Very dry.
★★★★
Aldi Specially Selected
Rosorange rosé
£9.99, aldi.co.uk
Not much on the nose, but that’s not the end of the world with the rosé. Really fresh texture, really well integrated, nice herbaceousness, feels quite hydrating. Very dry, but really invigorating and definitely suitable for picnic foods.
★★★★
Cave des Roches
Mediterranée rosé
£6.50, tesco.com
Lots of sweet red fruit on the nose, berry compote – the bouquet jumps out at you. Truly, it’s pretty pleasant. I imagine that’s going to turn out to be the most conventional wine, but it does taste nice.
★★★
Exquise
Grenache prestige rosé
£7.49, lidl.co.uk
Has this aqua smell that’s a bit like being in a holiday swimming pool, in a good way. Really nice balance of texture and flavour. Very harmonious, very well integrated between acid and fruit.
★★★
Asda Extra Special
Malbec rosé
£7.75, asda.com
This one is the most blue pink. It’s malbec, isn’t it? That’s the purple colour. A really interesting balance of sweet and savoury. You’ve got some really sweet fruit, this kind of blueberry pie thing going on. Very picnicable, actually. It’s got a really nice texture.
★★★
Athlon
Assyrtiko syrah rosé
£9.99, aldi.co.uk
It has that kind of freshly struck match smell, which tends to lift off quite quickly. Very dry, very spritzy, a little smoky, doesn’t feel super harmonious on the palate. A little too dry for my taste.
★★
Co-op Irresistible
Côtes de provence
£10.50, coop.co.uk
Pretty fun; very dry. Kind of watermelon … almost a little bit like Haribo Tangfastic. A little sour, but in a nice way. Some nice kind of tangerine-orange fruit as well in the mid-palate. I do like this one.
★★★
Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference
Bandol natu roque
£16, sainsburys.co.uk
Really nice and multidimensional for a rosé; reminds me of papaya. Dry base, very crunchy. Extremely fruity on the nose, very light and kind of spritzy. It’s almost like mineral water, like in a really good way, nice balance of flavours, no bitterness edging out in any direction.
★★★★
Best buy:
M&S Found
Susumaniello
£9, M&S
Definitely Italian, this one. I really like it. Lots of nice white spice. Very dry, but very mineral. A perfect poolside sipper. Very quenching.
★★★★★
Tread Softly
Rosé
£9.99, waitrose.com
Really beautiful; really well balanced; lovely and dry. Probably the most interesting wine we’ve had. It’s really savoury, intriguing. I like wines that make me think and go “what?”. It’s very nice.
★★★★
Vilarnau ‘Gaudi’
Organic rosé cava brut reserva, penedès
£13.99, majestic.co.uk
Incredibly persistent bubbles, quite overwhelming in the fizz. But not necessarily a bad thing, it means you can keep it open for quite a long time. Fine, sherbety, refreshing. The bubbles might be too much and actually detract from the flavour.
★★★
Tesco Finest
Prosecco rosé
£8, tesco.com
Almost caramelised on the nose. Kind of like a sweet fudge or a creme caramel. I like that. It’s delightfully dry. The bubbles are at a perfect level. It’s very smooth; really nice finish. Really interesting and balanced.
★★★★
M&S
Rosé pet nat brut
£15, M&S
Smells like Eton mess. And actually a little like grapes. It’s probably the first rosé we’ve had that could actually have come from a grape. I really like this. It has a lovely creamy texture. Not just refreshing. It’s got kind of blue fruits, blueberries. An autumnal kind of hedgerow taste, a little bit of spice. I like that it’s cloudy. Very dry. That’s a pet nat, isn’t it?
★★★
Cuvée Royale
Crémant de limoux rosé
£15.49, waitrosecellar.com
Quite cheesy on the nose, not in a bad way at all. Intriguing. Fairly savoury; it has quite a piquant level of acidity. Definitely more savoury elements than sweet. The elements of the wine are a little bit disjointed, I think.
★★★
Sainsburys Taste the Difference
Nerello mascalese rosé vino spumante brut
£9.75, sainsburys.co.uk
Fairly light on the nose, but really pleasant – kind of like an English hedgerow in a breeze. A little more obvious on the palate, some cantaloupe. Even though it’s dry, feels quite fruity, but the texture is nice. No bitterness. I’d be happy to drink a bottle of this with my mum.
★★★★★
Honey Spencer is co-owner of Sune, London E8. Her new book, Natural Wine, No Drama, is out now (Pavilion, £25)
