Whether you call it rosé in France, Portugal, or English-speaking countries, or rosado in Spanish, or rosato in Italian, with Rosé Day on the horizon the second Saturday of June, plus summer gatherings and other warm weather events, now’s the time to showcase rosé, a pink wine made from red grapes with little or no skin contact following pressing.

So to celebrate, how about three sparkling rosé wines from Italy that are unusual– and at three price points from affordable to special occasion? 

Italian Sparkling Rosé WINES

• Riondo Vino Spumante Rosato Extra Dry 
• Berte & Cordini Metodo Classico Rosé Oltrepo Pavese DOCG 
• Ferrari Rosé Trento DOC Metodo Classico

MENU for Rosé 

• Strawberry Salad
• Pizza

Riondo Vino Spumante Rosato Extra Dry 

ABV 11.0%
SRP $10
Grapes Glera, Pinot Noir 
Importer: Terlato
purchased at Grocery Outlet 

Generally, when we think of sparkling wine from Italy, Prosecco from the Glera grape comes to mind. But only recently has Prosecco had a rosé offering– it just wasn’t allowed before, but now a little Pinot Noir can be added to the glera to give it a rosy pink color.

Color: Pinkish copper, salmon, rose gold. 

Aroma: Very light nose, potpourri, dried roses. 

Palate: Fruit forward without being sweet, sweet tart, strawberry, nice bubbles, fizzy strawberry, simple on the palate, easy to drink, there is nothing off putting with this wine, but it is relatively simple. 

Pairing: Great cocktail wine, would be perfect for brunch. Asparagus brie and proscuitto pizza brings out lovely fruit in the wine. Great budget meal that is perfect for this budget wine. Pizza elevates the wine quite nicely. The salt in the food brings out the fruit and the creaminess of the brie balances out acidity in the wine. Cured meat works well with the wine, but the proscuitto and asparagus is such a perfect pair it is hard to beat. Loves the bitter arugula in our strawberry salad. This wine was very nice with the mushroom brie based pizza which was cooked on the grill. Not only did the flavors in the pizza go well with the wine, but cooking it on the grill enhanced both the flavors of the wine and the food together. This is a great wine for our dessert pizza. It loves the herbs, loves the fruit, and loves the rich cheese as well as the smoke from the BBQ. This was one of our pairing mysteries.

Who knew that this wine would do so well with this dessert of grilled fruit pizza?

Berte & Cordini Metodo Classico Rosé, Oltrepo Pavese DOCG 

ABV 
SRP
Grapes Pinot Noir 
sample for my review

A few months ago, we wrote about two Pinot Noir from Oltrepo Pavese. I had also received this wine, but the label was so destroyed from breakage from other wines that were resent that I resisted writing about it, and we decided to focus on the Pinot Noir. However, Sue and I thought it would be fun to compare these three wines so we chilled it down and opened it up– and we’re glad we did! 

It’s hard to find wines from Oltrepo Pavese but if you can, you’ll be glad you did!

Color: Very translucent copper

Aroma: Dirty socks, mossy river, forest floor, duff, creekside, burnt forest, raspberry, strawberry, the river moss becomes yeasty as it opens. 

Palate: Very crisp and dry, clean minerals, brioche, strawberry or raspberry croissant, this is not a wine that should be in a champagne flute, it deserves a good glass where it can develop and shine. 

Pairing: Think grilled salmon, or croquet Monsouir for a lovely brunch pairing. Our salad was not perfect with the wine. It did not appreciate the mint, fruit, arugula, or dressing like the other wines did. Our margarita pizza was a hit with the wine. The sweet tomato, basil, and fresh garlic were absolutely perfect with the wine. Simple affordable meal to go with this lovely meal. It brings out beautiful strawberry fruit in the wine. OMG was what was said while we were pairing this wine with our dessert. Perfect with the fresh fruit, the bright herbs. working so well with the strawberry. The fruit cuts through the richness of the brie. Kind of like having strawberry cheese cake without the sweetness, and with the wine it is elevated so perfectly. This wine and dessert pairing is all about the fruit. Strawberry dessert meets fresh strawberry in the wine. 

Ferrari Rose Metodo Classico Trento DOC 

ABV 12.5%
SRP
Grapes Pinot Noir 
sample for my review

Disgorged in 2021, this wine will remind you of wines from Champagne which is not surprising because it is made from the same grapes you’ll find in Champagne and made using the same intensively laborious method. The difference is where the grapes are grown — Champagne in the north of France and Trento in the north of Italy– and that contributes to subtle but noticeable differences worth discovering for yourself. 

Color: Coppery 

Aroma: Nice yeast, brioche, a bit of river moss, quiet nose, very light.

Palate: Lovely soft bubbles, gentle foam, the mouthfeel experience is perfect, brioche up front, fruit croissant,  macerated fresh fruit, strawberry and raspberry finish, clean, mineral rich, granitic clean stone. 

Pairing: While this wine is such a lovely wine and does not need much to elevate it higher, our mushroom brie based mushroom pizza was fantastic with the wine. We know Pinot Noir loves mushroom’s earthy flavors and this wine is no exception. The strawberry mint green salad was a perfect companion with the wine. It loved not only the ingredients in the salad, it also loved the lemon honey salad dressing and the touch of toasted walnuts. Very nice with our triple cream brie asparagus procuitto pizza. The fleshiness of the asparagus is such a hit with the wine. Also stellar with our margarita pizza loving the bright sweet tomato and basil. 

What will you be opening for Rosé Day this year?  Will you go with classic French? Or try something different? 

More rosé tasting notes and pairings :

• Rosé Day 2021: Featuring Wine From Puglia, Italy 
• Rosé Day 2020
• Rosé Day 2019
• Rosé Day 2018
• Rosé Day 2017