ALDI Exquisite Collection Cotes de Provence Rose’ 2016

The ALDI Exquisite Collection Cotes de Provence Rose’ 2016  is a $7.99 ALDI exclusive that is best known as the Rose’ that won a silver medal and the Best Wine Under $10 award at the International Wine Challenge blind tasting in England. ALDI’s wine has a very good reputation in Europe, so winning awards there is, for them, fairly commonplace. But ALDI in the US has yet to achieve that status and the novelty is causing this awarding winning Rose’ to fly off the shelves in record time, like the hottest concert or a Broadway play. The wine went on sale Wednesday, Sept. 20, I got to ALDI about 11am and their first display had sold out and they were restocking the shelf and didn’t expect the supply to last the day. I am somewhat amused by all this because there are hundreds of wine competitions all over the planet and people rarely pay any attention to any of them. If you go to your local supermarket and look for wines in the $7 dollar range, you will find several with multiple awards from wine competitions. Plus, while $7.99 is a very good price for a Cote de Provence Rose‘, many quality bottles can be found for under $15. A good Provence Rose’ is not expensive, people who buy expensive Provence Rose’ do so because they can, not because they need to. But, I guess all the hype worked because they got me and hundreds, maybe thousands of others in an ALDI’s on a Wednesday. As for the wine, I believe the blend is Grenache, Cinsault, and Syrah, The Cote de Provence AOC region of Provence extends from Saint-Tropez on the French Riviera to the foothills of the Alps. This is a young wine meant to be enjoyed within the first year or so of its release (because of the stampede at ALDI, I think most of these are being consumed tonight) and the alcohol content is 13%.

The color is cotton candy pink with an amber tint. The nose is delicate, apricot, peach, strawberry hard candy, apple, and a light floral edge. This is a dry Rose’ with a firm body, balance and seriously solid minerality. Minerality is one of those things that is hard to describe because people generally don’t go around tasting different minerals and rocks, but if you taste it, you know it. It tastes of peach, sour cherry, a salty sensation, Bosc pear, and stone fruit. The mid-palate adds ripe strawberry, a hit of minerality, and a touch of spice mixed with a creamy texture. The acidity is in the pocket, pair with the types of food you eat in the south of France or chill it and sip it. The finish is light but never fades away.

My apologies to the International Wine Competition for doubting you the ALDI Exquisite Collection Cotes de Provence Rose’ 2016 hits hard for 8 bucks. Rose’ is all the rage lately and Provence is basically ground zero for Rose’ wines and this $8 wine sets a solid bar for other Rose’ measure themselves against. If you didn’t buy a bottle or two today, don’t email asking me where you can find it, because it is probably all gone. Rose’ is not a shouty wine it more whispers in your ear, so don’t expect to be blown away. Spend a little quite time with a chilled bottle and I think you will come away impressed.