Domaine des Blaïs Côtes de Provence Rosé 2017

The 2017 Domaine des Blaïs Côtes de Provence Rosé truly captures the beauty, scent, and warmth of the sun-drenched Provençal countryside along with the region’s rarified air and illuminated landscapes, all of which shimmer beside the sparkling Mediterranean Sea. Domaine des Blaïs is bottled in a strikingly elegant flute bottle known as a “flute à corset,” a distinctive sensual Provençal bottle that recalls the region’s fecundity, colorful outdoor cafés, and fun in the sun. Delicate in color, much like old-fashioned pink roses, the 2017 Domaine des Blaïs Rosé enchants the eye as well as the nose and palate. Delicate scents of cherry blossom, rose petal, and apricot delight the nose and seep surreptitiously into the wine’s sensual core. This is a dry, scented, savory rosé whose delicacy and evanescence render it unabashedly attractive. Not unlike the Provençal countryside, there is a fleeting, yet timeless quality about this rosé. Because there is no oak, no hard angles, no smoke or mirrors, the 2017 Domaine des Blaïs Rosé is just plain fun to drink and enjoy. To fully appreciate the delicacy and flavor of the 2017 Domaine des Blaïs Rosé, we suggest only moderate chilling (40° F).

In Provence, whether one is sitting along the rocky coast of Saint Tropez or overlooking the vineyards of the Vaucluse and nearby craggy heads of the towering Dentelles de Montmirail, Provençal rosé is the wine to drink with abandon, with or without food. And, most assuredly, rosé will begin every feast or festivity in its native land. The 2017 Domaine des Blaïs Côtes de Provence Rosé is the wine to sip to while away the hours, watch the sea roll in, or just plain relax. It’s also the ideal wine for a picnic. It pairs nicely with charcuterie, ham, cheeses, salads, and smoked fish, as well as such Provençal classics as Bouillabaisse. It also provides a superb companion to Chicken and Broccoli and other stir fries, including spicy Pad Thai and Vietnamese noodles. Grilled fish and chicken make fine companions, too, but then almost anything seems to take to Domaine des Blaïs’ hauntingly beautiful Provençal rosé. Bon Appétit!

Editor’s Note: The International Wine of the Month Club is proud to offer our Premier Series members the 2017 Domaine des Blaïs Côtes de Provence Rosé, a special wine from the Mâitres Vignerons de la Vidaubanaise. Provençal rosé enjoys immense popularity today, and we continue to receive numerous requests for the highest quality Provençal rosé.

Domaine des Blaïs is an ancient Roman estate and villa in the heart of Provence, known as the Var. The Domaine des Blaïs Côtes de Provence Rosé is a dry, delicate wine that is much more a white wine than a red wine, as it is produced like white wines with minimal skin contact and no time in oak barrel. After harvest, a portion of the grapes undergo a cold maceration at various temperatures and lengths of time according to the grape variety in order to preserve the wine’s delicate aroma. The remaining grapes are vinified by a direct pressing, which imparts a slight pink color from the skins of the dark grapes. The wines are then blended and their élevage (upbringing) takes place entirely in stainless steel tanks until early February, when the young rose-colored wine is bottled for maximum freshness. Rosés are again this year’s “hottest” wines and the quality of the 2017 Provençal rosés is extremely high due to reduced yields.

Provence elicits visions of scintillating landscapes, eye stopping vistas, and undulating fields of lavender and massive cypress as they wave in the winds that wash the countryside clean. Provence is also the birthplace of troubadours and Provençal, the lyrical language of poetry, and the planet’s most endearing wines. And as anyone who has visited this enchanted land knows quite well, Provence is home to this planet’s finest rosé wine, and nary a meal or conversation among friends in Provence begins without a bottle or two of the region’s ethereal, spritely rosé.

More than 140 million bottles of wine are produced annually in Provence, a region famous for its wines since the Roman era, and over 105 million bottles (75% of that entire region’s wine production) is rosé. Established in Vidauban in 1922, the Mâitres Vignerons de la Vidaubanaise, the producers of Domaine des Blaïs, fashion one of the most charming of all Provençal rosés from their domaine on the limestone foothills of the Maures Massif in the heart of the Appellation Côtes de Provence. Situated between the gleaming blue of the Mediterranean Sea and the last outcropping of the Alps, Domaine des Blaïs benefits from the region’s Mediterranean climate, which is ideal for the cultivation of traditional Provençal grape varietals such as Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Cinsault, Carignan and Rolle. The Domaine des Blaïs Côtes de Provence Rosé emanates exclusively from the domaine’s holdings, yielding an aromatic, elegant, dry rosé of distinction.

Maitres Vignerons’ wines annually win awards at prestigious competitions, including France’s Concours General Agricole and Mondial du Rosé. Their wines are also featured regularly in the French wine press, which includes France’s celebrated Guide Hachette.