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Everything’s coming up roses

By Richard Goodine

Published 4:03 PDT, Wed June 3, 2026

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RICHARD GOODINE
Culinary & Wine Ambassador

Everything’s coming up roses

The change in weather is always a welcome treat in Vancouver. Not just because the rain has come to an end and the days are getting longer and warmer, but because it also signifies that it's rosé season. This may be my favourite season of all. There's something about sitting in the sunshine with a glass of rosé on a patio that makes you feel like you're somewhere on the coast of the south of France, eating mussels and not thinking about anything that matters.

Rosé does something no other wine quite manages. It has the character of a red, the structure, the suggestion of fruit that makes you feel like you're drinking something with a bit of weight to it, but it carries the freshness and brightness you want when the temperature climbs past twenty degrees and a heavy Cabernet starts to feel like a bad idea. In all fairness, a lot of whites get you part of the way there, but rosé splits the difference in a way nothing else does. It just works.

The colour in rosé comes from the skins. That's the short version and honestly, it's all you really need to know. Red grapes go into the tank, the skins sit in contact with the juice for a matter of hours rather than days, and the winemaker pulls them out before the wine gets too dark or picks up too many tannins. The shorter that contact, the paler the glass. Some of the most beautiful rosés I've had are barely pink at all, more of a faint copper, and they're electric.

Skin contact equals colour, and the winemaker decides how much of both they want. Simple.

One thing worth clearing up: rosé is not sweet. I don't know where that idea came from, but it has stuck around a lot longer than it deserves. The good stuff, the rosés worth seeking out, are dry, crisp, food-friendly, and a lot more serious than people give them credit for.

France makes the most of it, and Provence in particular has basically made rosé its whole personality - ninety percent of what they export is pink wine. But Languedoc-Roussillon, just up the coast, is producing some seriously good bottles that most people walk right past in the wine shop, usually because they're too focused on Provence. That's what the magazines tell you to buy, so that's what people buy. And in doing so, they're missing some pretty amazing wine. Italy's doing interesting things with it, Spain too. The world has caught on, and that's a good thing for everyone's patio.

When it comes to food, rosé goes with almost everything you'd actually want to eat on a warm evening. Seafood, obviously. A good cheese board. Anything off the grill. I've had rosé alongside a plate of charcuterie that was one of the better pairings I can remember, and I wasn't even trying.

None of the four bottles below are going to break the bank. We're talking the kind of price point where you buy two, because one is never quite enough when the evening is going well.

So get out there and find a patio. Pour something pink. The season is short and the sun, when it finally shows up in Vancouver, doesn't wait around.

Tasting Notes

Hampton Water Rosé, Languedoc, France
Grenache, Cinsault, Mourvèdre | $29.99

Delicate and pretty, subtle fruit with a hint of savoury character. Perhaps a little too easy drinking, but on a hot sunny day, is that actually a bad thing? Worth mentioning that Jon Bon Jovi is one of the people behind this wine, which either means nothing to you or means you're buying a case.

Tormaresca Calafuria Rosato, Puglia, Italy
100% Negroamaro | $29.99

Fresh and easy drinking with a delicate pink colour and an aromatic hit of ripe fruit and floral notes. Crisp acidity, a savoury finish, wild strawberry, citrus, and what I can only describe as a hint of ocean breeze. The reds from this producer are awesome and full of character too. Just saying.

Cedar Creek Pinot Noir Rosé, BC
Pinot Noir | $26.00

An interesting one. Made in BC using grapes from Oregon, which is an unusual combination worth paying attention to. It had the most sweetness of the four, but not in a bad way, just enough to give it a fuller palate. Ripe berries, flowers, great mouthfeel. A little different from the others and worth trying for exactly that reason.

Côte Mas Rosé Aurore, Pays d'Oc, France
Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah | $16.99 (1L)

This wine screams value and sings fly me to the moon. Soft red fruit, some stone fruit, great balance, ridiculously easy drinking. Nobody is going to be upset when you show up with this. And at that price for a litre, you should probably show up with two.