The Little Things

One of the best things about this neighborhood is that I have a pizza/sandwich shop, just a couple blocks away. The pizza-by-the-slice is pretty good. But, the best part is that they have a reliably good caesar salad wrap! The price seems to vary depending on who rings me up, but now I've caught on and call them out if they try to overcharge me (it should be no more that $5.35).  Tonight is a caesar salad wrap night.  It's the little things.

Speaking of little things... some might say, details are little things. And they can be very important. For instance, when it comes to wine. The best way to find wine you like to is to try a lot. And keep trying. And actually taste it. And think about what you are tasting. My gateway wine was reisling. Not just any reisling, but a German Auslese. And when I discovered that's what I needed to remember to pick out a bottle I liked, my life became so much easier. Gradually, I moved on to other whites. I still wasn't super keen on reds after about a year of drinking wine. So, I decided that I would kill two birds with one stone and I signed up for a wine tasting class. It got me off of Brandeis's campus and out of Waltham one night a week, and it introduced me to a whole new world of wines. Two hours of tasting wine, every Wednesday for 8 weeks. By the time I left the class, I knew which varietals I liked best- and why.  Malbec, pinot noir, shiraz topped my list of reds. A few years later, I started working part-time in a wine shop-- nights and weekends aside from my full-time job.  And a whole new level of details opened up to me. The differences in pinot noirs and chardonnays depending the region/country/part of the world. What it meant for a wine to be classified as "dry", "full-bodied", "fruity". The importance of tanins. The importance of acidity. And all about the realities and myths of sulfites in wine. The misconceptions about rosé wine.

Let's talk about this a little more. Not all rosés are sweet. In fact, many are not sweet. They might be some-what fruity, depending on the region or the varietal/blend- but this is entirely different than sweet, in the world of wine. The spectrum of dry vs. sweet refers to the amount of residual sugar left after fermentation. But I digress.  Rosés are often thought of as a summer wine but, of course, can be consumed year round. A dry rosé, is one of my favorite wines so I continue to drink it even throughout the winter. It goes well with salmon and tuna- so consider this option the next time you're looking for a pairing. It also goes very well with salads, pestos, goat cheese...etc. It's also lovely to enjoy on its own, after dinner. Provence-style rosés are in their own special category. The Provence region in France is famous for their specific style of rosés. They are leaner on the fruit (so, less 'fruity') but still delicious. Crisp, light, and ...did I mention delicious? Other wine regions in the world may try to mimic them, with more or less success. So, if it's a Provence rosé, or a Provence-style rosé, the bottle is leaning towards a certain palate.  One of my favorite "non" provence-style rosés, seems to be relatively easy to find-- it's called Mulderbosch, and it's a rosé made in South Africa, from cabernet sauvignon. Smoke & strawberries.

Take home message: if you want to try a non-sweet rosé (and after all this, I know you do). I suggest remembering these two details- 'dry' & 'Provence-style'.  I would ask these two questions: 1) Is this wine dry? (It's not always obvious looking at the bottle).  2) Do you have any Provence rosés  or Provence-style rosés?  Then you know what you're getting. Try both the Provence-style and "non" -- they both offer different qualities to appreciate. Pair it with food. Have it on its own. See what you think.