How is Provence far more diverse as a wine region than just Rosé? Why has Rosé struggled to be taken seriously by wine professionals despite its enormous popularity with consumers? Does Provence make the best Rosé in the world or simply the best Rosé in its style?
In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I'm chatting with Liz Gabay and Ben Bernheim.
You can find the wines we discussed at https://www.nataliemaclean.com/winepicks.
Giveaway
Two of you are going to win a copy of Liz Gabay and Ben Bernheim's terrific book, The Wines of Provence. To qualify, all you have to do is email me at natalie@nataliemaclean.com. I'll choose two people randomly from those who contact me. Good luck!
Highlights
What surprised Liz and Ben most when they started digging deeper into the wines of Provence?
How do Provence's mountains, valleys, rainfall, and winds create dramatically different wine regions within a relatively small area?
How have the wines of Provence changed since Liz first started visiting vineyards there 40 years ago?
Why did Provence wineries once use unusual bottle shapes to distinguish their wines?
What was the hardest part of becoming a Master of Wine for Liz?
Why has Rosé historically struggled to be taken seriously by wine professionals despite its popularity with consumers?
How did growing up around wine and competitive blind tasting shape Ben's approach to writing about it?
What happens when a mother and son with very different writing styles collaborate on a wine book?
Why do Liz and Ben disagree over whether Provence should focus so heavily on Rosé?
Could some of Provence's best wines actually be reds rather than Rosés?
Why does Liz believe Provence-style Rosé is not necessarily the best in the world?
About Elizabeth Gabay MW & Ben Bernheim
Elizabeth Gabay MW entered the wine trade in 1986, founding Elizabeth Gabay & Partners. She became a Master of Wine in 1998. She has lived in south-eastern France since 2002, and is currently based in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Since 2020 she has been working with her son Ben Bernheim. They write for numerous magazines with a global readership, largely, but not only, about rosé and are regular speakers at wine fairs and competitions. Elizabeth is the author of Rosé: Understanding The Pink Wine Revolution in the Classic Wine Library series, and Rosés of Southern France, which she co-authored with Ben Bernheim. Gabay and Bernheim make their own wine in Slovakia, in partnership with Vladimir Magula and have consulted with other producers on Rosé, including Kylie Minogue. Together they organise a rosé writing competition and trade events, including their Fine Rosé Day.
To learn more, visit https://www.nataliemaclean.com/405.
