2017 Skylark Wine Company, Rosé of Grenache, Pink Belly, Mendocino County.
Skylark’s Pink Belly is always a favorite Rosé of mine, since the 2007 vintage (their first) I have always had it and it just gets better with each vintage, with this 2017 really setting a new standard for quality and thrill, even after such a lovely fresh vintage in 2016. Robert Perkins, winemaker and John Lancaster (wine director at Boulevard Restaurant in San Francisco) are the men behind the label and are two of the nicest people, and talented, as you could ever meet, craft small batch wines with a core focus on Rhone/Languedoc style offerings including this Tavel like 100% Grenache Pink Belly Rosé and their Corbieres influenced Red Belly which is a gorgeous Carignane, Grenache and Syrah blend that melds a fruit forward palate with earthy tannins and dusty spices perfectly. The Pink Belly almost jumps out of the glass with it’s delicately pale salmon/pinkish hue and floral tones, it’s vibrantly crisp with tart cherry, watermelon and racy citrus fruits, steely mineral, lavender, rosewater and a little bit of jolly rancher and bubble gum, which is not sweet and is balanced out by a touch of wet stone and brisk acidity, it lingers with strawberry essences. Perkin’s employed a whole cluster pressing here and fermented the Grenche lots separately then blend together after primary are done, the fruit comes from two Mendocino sites, one at Kurt Ashurst’s Grenache vineyard in Hopland, our first pink vineyard, but to meet the demand of this tasty wine, Skylark added fruit from Charlie Sawyer’s stellar Grenache site above Ukiah, where they get their main Grenache Noir grapes for their Red Belly. Everything makes it a great poolside quaffer or porch-pounder, in my case a beach at sunset pounder! This 2017 is more expressive and upfront, but still is very dry and refreshing, it should be great for the long warm days of Summer and still tasty until next winter’s chill, don’t miss this stuff!
($19 Est.) 92 Points, grapelive

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