I hope you are enjoying your summers, drinking lots of delicious rosé and orange wines like me!  Here were a few of my favorites, enjoyed at wine dinners, outdoor concerts, and while sitting on a dock in the Thousand Island beside the St. Lawrence River. 

My two favorite rosés this summer were Liquid Geography from Spain, a Mencia rosé, and Von Winning Spatburgunder from Germany, a Pinot Noir rosé.  Unfortunately, you may have trouble finding these in the stores by the time you read this.  As I’ve mentioned in previous columns, once the limited bottles of rosé produced are gone, you are out of luck for the rest of the year.

I first had Liquid Geography three years ago in Rehobeth, loved it, and then sadly could never find it again. Lo and behold, it showed up at Super Buy Rite in Deptford, NJ this year!  When I saw it on her Instagram account, I immediately texted Andrea and asked her to set some aside for me.  The wine is a collaboration between wine makers, and 100% of the profits are donated in equal parts to: the TJ Martell Foundation in its search for cancer cures, the South Bronx Educational Foundation to help children with challenging academic backgrounds, and Wheeling Forward, which helps people with disabilities experience life to the fullest.  Liquid Geography is a dry rosé wine made with mencía grapes 50+  years old vines in the region of Bierzo in northwest Spain.  The wine is fermented in stainless steel vats and sees no oak.  The dominant flavors are red berries, and it goes with everything from seafood to pizza.  If you can find it, stock up.  It’s currently available from Bottle Kings in North Jersey for $10.

The other rosé I’m hoarding is Von Winnings’ Spatburgunder.  The Von Winning winery is located in the Pfalz region of Germany (southwest Germany, along the border with Alsace, France).  I was lucky enough to attend several wine festivals in the Pfalz region in 2006, which I recommend over Octoberfest, if you must choose.   The winemaker, Stephan Altman, bleeds some of the juice after pressing Pinot Noir grapes to make this dry rosé.  German Pinot Noir has come a long way, with recent help from global warming.  Lots of tart red berry fruit and bright acidity make this a mouth-watering treat.  Pairs well with spicy food.  I found this at Super Buy Rite in Deptford, for $20/bottle.

Finally, I’ve made two road trips to Maryland this summer, and made sure to stop at State Line Liquors in Elkton to pick up a couple bottles of this Greek semi-sparkling orange wine in the funky, squat bottle:  Paleokerisio from Domaine Glinavos in Ioannina, Northwestern Greece.  This wine is produced from an indigenous white wine grape variety called Debina, fermented with skin contact (what makes it “orange wine”) with a tiny percentage of Vlahiko and Bekari, red indigenous grapes, added in.  This semi-sparkling, semi-dry wine is the style of wine traditionally made in Ioannina (Paleokerisio means “old fashioned”).  Peach, apricot, nutmeg, clove in the nose and mouth.  $16/bottle at State Line Liquors.

Enjoy the waning rosé days!  Gia Mas!