Hollywood Wine Done Right – Miraval Rose

There are a lot of celebrities out there with their own labels – Drew Barrymore, Fergie, Dave Matthews and Antonio Banderas to name a few. I haven’t tried their wines, but I definitely have my doubts about a few. On a whim, and because I was very curious, I opened up a bottle of Brad and Angie’s (that’s Pitt and Jolie) much hyped about rosé yesterday. And, in honor of Hollywood’s power couple, I paired it with brie and US Weekly just because.

Surprisingly, I was impressed with this wine. Props to Brangelina for partnering with the Perrin family of Chateau de Beaucastel fame (they make some pricey Châteauneuf-du-Papes) and actually using a real winemaker to produce their 2012 Château Miraval Côtes de Provence Rosé ($22). The grapes for this wine came from the 150 acres of vineyards on the Jolie-Pitt’s Provence Estate, Château Miraval, and were grown using organic techniques. This particular wine is a blend of Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah and Rolle (Rolle is also known as Vermentino in some places).

First off, you might notice the bottle is very different from normal rosé bottles — it looks more like a Champagne bottle. They are really classin’ it up, those Jolie-Pitts. And the color of the wine inside the bottle is a really pretty pale salmony pink. It had bright aromas of cherry blossom, watermelon, peaches and tangerine, along with flavors of white peaches and raspberries and a slightly creamy finish. It’s smooth, refined and refreshing and I was not expecting to enjoy it so much. Nick kept referring to it as “tasty” and typically he’s not a big fan of rosé. Success!!

At $22-$26 for a rosé, it might be a little steep, sure… you can certainly find good rosés that are a few bucks cheaper. Though, for the overall package (bottle, color, aromas and flavors) I think it’s worth the extra money (plus it’s a conversation starter!). This is a gorgeous wine, and it tastes great too. It’s no wonder the first 8,000 bottles sold out in 5 hours! If you can find it, drink it outside in the sunshine and imagine you’re in Provence eating local food and living like a celebrity.

**Wine Notes**

Fun Facts: Their Côtes de Provence White is being released this month, and the Red blend (Syrah/Cab) will be released in March 2014.