Oregon wine: 2017 STEDT Wines “or rose” rosé of Gamay sparkling brut

2017 STEDT Wines “or rose” rosé of Gamay sparkling brut

Dauenhauer Farms,
Willamette Valley,
Oregon

12.5% alcohol

Cork and cage closure

Dosage: 2 g/liter

Méthode champenoise

I’m not usually a big sucker when it comes to wine labels… but just look at this one! This wine’s color reminded winemaker/owner Chris Lubberstedt of rose gold, or “or rose” in French. Add that to the fact that this rosé was made in Oregon (OR) and or rose really is a double play on words!

Color:

These bubbles are the exact shade of the inside of a Cara Cara orange.

Bouquet:

I don’t think I’ve ever tasted bubbles made using Gamay grapes! Mineral notes of gravel dust danced around fruity aromas of watermelon rind and bing and sour cherries. Candied orange zest and a whiff of bitters reminded me of a Grand Old Fashioned cocktail, made with Grand Marnier, bitters, and a brandied or maraschino cherry.

I also smelled raspberry jam and oddly enough, crayons! After a little more research, I discovered that one of the binding ingredients in crayons is beef fat… something I DID NOT KNOW! After pondering this idea a minute, I realized that Gamay usually has notes of cooked or smoked meats… so beef fat is not much of a stretch after all. Mystery solved!

Palate:

With gentle bubbles and good acidity, this wine was made using méthode champenoise, the very same technique used to make champagne. It went through a second fermentation in the bottle, then spent a year in tirage, with all the spent yeast and sediment. After all that spent yeast and sediment was removed using a process called disgorgement, each bottle was then topped off with more wine dosed with 2 grams per liter of sugar. The finished bottle of sparkling wine tasted of fruity wild strawberries, cherries, pomelo marmalade notes combined with caramel apples, and plus an earthy finish of smoked meat.