23-05-2025
From ‘happy juice' to claret: the rise of dark rosés and pale reds
Our wine expert on the rise of the summery 'inbetweeners'
At a recent tasting of wonderful wines from Poland, Hungary, Slovenia, Georgia and Greece, I got chatting to one of Hungary's most interesting young winemakers, whose wines I've previously recommended.
Zoltan 'Zoli' Heimann Jr of Heimann & Fiai is building on the reputation of his parent's winery in Szekszárd, southern Hungary, but focusing his attention on modern, low-intervention, terroir-driven interpretations of indigenous grapes.
His delicate Kadarka and richer Kekfrankos (aka Blaufrankisch) are as poised as ever, but I love his new addition, which is today's wine of the week: a very pale red wine which he describes as 'happy juice' to chill lightly for a refreshing summer's glass.
He is proud of the low alcohol (not easy to achieve in a warm climate like Szekszárd), and juicy, well-balanced but restrained flavours achieved with gentle extraction and whole-bunch complexity. It's the perfect bottle to have chilling in your fridge, ready to take out about half an hour before pouring.
There's been an uptick in wines described as a dark rosé or pale red — you decide: summer quaffers with the freshness and aromatic red fruits of rosé and the savoury character, weight and tannic structure of red wine, if delicate rather than dense. Wine writer Jamie Goode describes them (on as 'in-between' wines, and an emerging fifth category of still wines alongside red, white, rosé and skin-contact (aka amber or orange) wines.
He includes 'vin gris' in this bracket: made from pink-skinned grapes typically used for white wines, like Pinot Gris/Grigio, but fermented in contact with their skins like a red wine. This arguably makes them an orange wine — except the pink ('gris') hues of the skin makes them look more like a rich pink-orange rosé. Bosinakis Aspela (MacCurtain's Wine Cellar, €40) is a charming Greek example made from Moschofilero grapes.
Clarete is another in-between style with traditional roots enjoying a modern revival. This ancient pre-cursor to rosé sees white and red grapes co-planted, co-harvested and co-fermented like a red wine. Short maceration times keep things light, while ageing in large old barrels, often on the lees, develops complexity.
They have a little (if light) tannic structure, unlike rosé, plus lots of freshness. Traditional to northern Spain's Ribera del Duero and Cigales, today's example is from Bierzo. Or try Albamar Clarete (€33, Lilith Wines), made from Mencia, Caino and Albarino grapes in coastal Rias Baixas, or clarete's Portuguese equivalent of 'palhete' from Folias de Baco's Uivo Renegado (€23,
Wines of the week
Heimann & Fiai Piros 2024, Szekszárd, Hungary, 11.5pc, €24
A light red so pale it's rosé, with herbal-floral red fruit notes (pomegranate, hibiscus and rosehip) drinking soft and easy with juicy, peppery moreishness, this 70:30 blend of Kekfrankos and Kadarka was direct pressed for gentle extraction of flavour, colour and tannin (rather than crushing the grapes and macerating the skins) and fermented and aged in concrete like a rosé but with whole berries and stems for complexity. Delicious chilled. BaRossa Wines, Blackrock Cellar, Cooper's Bottleshop, Clontarf Wines, Delgany Wine Cottage, Pinto Wines;
Lavina Aladasturi 2023, Kakheti, Georgia, 11pc, €30-€33
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A pale, light and chillable fruity red made from Aladasturi grapes, one of 500 varieties indigenous to Georgia, where winemaking production goes back at least 6,000 years. Expect red cherry, raspberry and pomegranate notes, with a herbal perfume and light tannins. BaRossa Wines, Lilith, Redmond's of Ranelagh, The Wine Pair, The Wine Buff, Blackrock Cellar;
Casa Aurora Pepink Clarete 2022, Bierzo, Spain, 13pc, €23.80
A joyous, bright red field blend of Palomino (the neutral white grape in sherry) with 10pc red grapes (Mencia, Garnacha Tintorera, Garnacha, Trousseau), co-fermented like a red wine, aged in amphora under flor and large old barrels, as was the daily tipple of the winemaker's grandparents. Lilith Wines,
Weninger Rózsa Petsovits MMXXII, Burgenland, European wine, 12.5pc, €25
Fragrant with vibrant redcurrant, raspberry and rosehip and savoury hints of balsamic and white pepper, this very pale yet fleshy red is an organic cross-border blend of Austrian-grown Blaufrankisch and Pinot Noir with Hungarian Syrah and Zweigelt. BaRossa Wines, Cooper's Bottleshop, Delgany Wine Cottage, Blackrock Cellar, Martins, Sweeney's D3, Pinto Wines;
Foradori Lezer 2022, IGT Vigneti Delle Dolomiti Rosso, Italy, 12.5pc, €25.95
A pale dusky 'vin de soif' red from Trentino, blending Teroldego with Schiava, Merlot and Lagrein and offering heady wild hedgerow flowers and fruit, light tannins and gorgeous mountain freshness. Certified organic and biodynamic. Seagull Bakery (Waterford), Dodi Stockroom (Lahinch), L'Atitude 51 (Cork), Blackrock Cellars, Sweeney's D3, Lilith (all Dublin),
