Tiberio Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo Rosato 2020
Background
There are a wide range of rosé wines out there. From the bubble-gum sweet California Zinfandels to the pale, tart minimal skin contact rosés from northern France. Despite the major differences, most rosé wines tend to all get lumped in the same category and consumed in the same way. If you drop the convention that it should only be an aperitif and you start opening bottles of rosé with your meals, you’ll find that the distinct and different styles of these wines are a whole world within themselves. The Cerasuolo wines of central Italy live on the line between darker rosato (rosé) wines, and light reds. They have bright and perceptible fruit aromas, and that extra little bit of time of skins gives these wines a textural appeal that makes them GREAT with food.
Abruzzo is a mountainous region in Central Italy that borders the Adriatic sea. Think of it as East-Coast Tuscany. Its wines are underrated and thus a great value! Trebbiano D’Abruzzo (white) and Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (Red) are their calling cards. Montepulciano d'Abruzzo should not be confused with Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, a Tuscan wine made from Sangiovese (see, wine is easy! haha thanks Italy!).
Christina Tiberio has been the head winemaker since 2011 when she took over from her father, who settled here in 2000 when a rare block of 80-year old Trebbiano came up for sale. She was educated in Champagne, Chablis and Mosel, three of the best white wine making regions in the world. She is making fresh, modern wines in an area rich with wine and food culture. Keep your eyes peeled for her name on restaurant wine lists in the city. You won't be disappointed.́
Tasting Notes
The Rosato wines are made with the same grape, hand harvested from all of Tiberio’s southern-facing limestone vineyards. Instead of the usual pressing under lots of pressure, the grapes for this wine are left in the tank without pressing. The weight of the grape bunches themselves helps to exude the juice from the skins. This gentle extraction method ensures that most of the tannin stays in the grape skin and doesn’t get pressed into the juice. So while this looks like a lighter red wine, the tannin will be soft and round, and give the wine a beautiful texture.
Food Pairings
Ketchup Chips – This kind of rosé (or skin-contact red?) is great with the sour/sweet balance and bright ‘red’ flavours of ketchup. The wine has the acidity to balance that twang of acid in the chips and the bright red fruit in the wine mimics ketchup’s sweetness.
Pesto – Italian Rosato is a no-brainer with an herb-heavy pesto. This wine is lively, bright and complex. Just like a rustic pesto with herbs, cheese, and nuts. Fruity aromas will bring out the sweet flavours in the basil, and contrast the richness and saltiness of the nuts and cheese.
Bits & Bites / Party Mix – Bright red fruit flavours go really well with the imitation cheese flavour in a lot of snack foods. So don’t be afraid to opt for the Nacho Cheese! Party Mix rules apply here: No picking your favourite pieces out of the bowl. If everyone does that you’ll eventually just end up with a bowl of pretzel sticks. You take a handful, and you get what you get!
Interested in getting to know some delicious wines a little bit better? Subscribe to our newsletter and get access to great offers on carefully curated wines as well as live, in-person seminars. All wine packages come with a small booklet containing not just tasting notes but also cool factoids about wine producers, regions and food pairings.