The rosé wine producers of France, Italy and Spain have won their battle with the European Union to ensure that rosé wine remains the unblended specialty it currently is. This is good news for consumers, for rosé can be an excellent wine, but its reputation is not helped by cheaper, less interesting blended wines. The Telegraph in the UK runs a good article giving the background on the fight to maintain this as a wine made soley from red grapes.

Not everyone agrees, and perhaps they are right that a change in the law might not have forced the French to lower their standards. Belgian wine writer Hervé Lalau, president of the Federation of Wine Journalists, recently wrote to his fellow journalists:

“87% of the French people are opposed to the European project authorising the blending of white and red wines to make rosé”, says an IFOP-poll. Even if this wine were less expensive than today’s rosé, only 14% of the French would be willing to buy it”.

My question:

Do the French people in this poll know that Champagne rosés are white & red blends;  and if so,

a) How come they buy rosé Champagne today?

b) Will they keep on buying it?

Coming next: some of those wonderful pink wines from the south of France, just in time for summer. We may not all love the French for their attitudes about wine, but we definitely love much of their wine!