Just had this last night and it is a smoking bargain. 2010 Bieler Pere et Fils Rose from Aix-En-Provence. Depending on where you are in the country this should wholesale for $7.50-$8.00/bottle (it’s $93/case in Oregon). I’m not much of a “it’s ok but it’s cheap so it’s good” sort of drinker so I don’t try to talk myself or others into wines based solely on price. This wine drinks way above its price though. This is as good as lots of $12 wholesale Roses. I tend to find that cheap Rose has a little too much in common with white Zin for my tastes (fake sort of fruitiness, bad balance, boring, etc.) but this wine is perfectly light salmon in color, has nice strawberry and floral aromatics and spot on Provence Rose flavors. Over the next 5 months (providing the sun ever comes out) we’ll go through 15 cases of Rose so this will be a nice addition. I highly recommend seeking this one out and stocking up.
You are correct. See my full disclosure below, but the Triennes without a doubt has been my favorite after tasting dozens over the last few weeks with distributors. It will be making-up a large portion of my Rose consumption this summer.
Full Disclosure - we sell this wine, so take my recco with a grain of salt. ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
For those that have not had the Triennes do not take his recommendation with a grain of salt. That wine is freaking fabulous and if Jeremy says the 2010 is superior to the 2009 then that is going to be one great bottle of Rose and it is not very expensive (sub-$20 at least on the '09). Can’t wait for it to hit the market.
Mostly Cinsault, near equal parts Grenache and Counoise, and a smidge of Mourvedre. Always a solid qpr. I see someone has a taste for Peter Weygandt’s roses…
Bruno Clair Rosé Marsannay. The '09 just got here but this is a killer every year!
Hi Suzanne,
Indeed, that is the same Triennes. Domaine de Triennes is now just Triennes as part of our business (for the Rosé and a cuvee of white called les Aureliens) is negociant. We began purchasing fruit and wine for the Rosé about 5 years ago, from memory, so as to better accommodate demand.
For clarity and full disclosure, my family has been partners and running Triennes, 46 ha of vineyards + purchases located in Provence, since its founding in 1990. So in saying that the 2010 is better than the 2009, I am far from disinterested, but I am trying to assess is as objectivel as possible as I know that you will not fail to point out any shortcomings the wine may have if it turns out I have been talking out of my, err, ass (pardon my French).
Once again, thank you for the support from all you Triennes drinkers.
Jeremy (and all)- thanks for the notes. I will seek out the 2010 Triennes. Off topic, but your thoughts on the reds? They’re a great value, but don’t seem to show up in our market as often as the rosé
I just remembered another favorite from last year: Mas de Gourgonnier from Les Baux-de-Provence.
Looks like the 2010 is available now. The one CT note up doesn’t sound promising, but given previous performance, I’ll track down at least one bottle to try for myself.
Minuty prestige cuvee
M de Minuty
Bailly de Minuty
Chateau des Annibals
all Provence rose!
regards,
Etienne
Thanks for the clarification, I did not have the variety breakdown in my notes.
I’m a big fan of nearly all the rosés Peter brings in (and most of the reds, too). There are a lot of stylistic similarities that are in line with my palate. Got very familiar with his Burgs and Rhones (as well as Bobby Kacher’s, another favorite) as our local retailer championed them for years.