Wine Review: Left Coast Cellars Rosé 2018

I've done plenty of reviews of Left Coast Cellars' wines over the years, and you can read them all by clicking here. This winery is out of Willamette Valley, Oregon and was founded in 2003. With 350 acres of land and 130 acres of vineyards, they use sustainable viticulture to produce only estate-grown wine. They're LIVE Certified Sustainable, Salmon Safe Certified, and are one of fourteen wineries to complete the Oregon Environmental Council's Carbon Reduction Challenge. All of the power for the guest cottages, the front gate, and the vineyard irrigation is run by solar power, and use a big chunk of their land for their Oak Savanna Restoration Project. They are very environmentally conscious.

This time around I've got some of the brand new vintages just released in 2019! There's a quickie of the 2018 White Pinot Noir, a full review of the 2018 Rosé, a quickie of the 2017 Pinot Gris, and a full review of the 2018 Queen Bee Bubbly. (Hopefully I remember to update those links as they're published)

The 2018 Rosé is 76% Pinot Noir and 24% Pinot Meunier from sustainably farmed vineyards in Willamette Valley. What really makes this interesting rosé and different is that it was barrel fermented and aged for oak for six months in 100% French oak. Not something you see everyday, right? The final ABV is 13.7%, so it's a hell of a dry one.

The color of the wine is salmon pink. The nose is heavy with whipped cream, and beyond that there's strawberries, pink grapefruit, kiwi, cracked stone, and a touch of earthiness. On the palate it's medium bodied with a rich mouthfeel, a high acidity, and a little bit of astringent tannin. There's flavors of strawberry, watermelon, pink grapefruit, and an earthiness and grittiness that really separates this from any rosé that I've had in a long time. Then it finishes with pink grapefruit and vanilla and, again, that earthiness I'm loving so much.

I think this is just awesome but it's not going to be everybody's glass of rosé, especially your average consumer. The presence that the oak aging contributes adds a bit of rusticness and earthiness that might not be welcomed by everybody. But one thing is for sure... this is a real (how should I say it?) "wine appreciators" rosé that everybody who is really into wine will appreciate and enjoy.

QUALITY VS PRICE RATING

Price: $24

Rating: 3.5/5 = Satisfying / Recommended (what does that mean?)

The bottle used was supplied free of charge for the purpose of this unpaid review. To have your wine reviewed follow this link.