ROSA REGALE
Have you ever gone back to someplace you loved and were taken back in time? For example, if you go back to your college town, even though you can now afford a tall glass of the best beer at an upscale restaurant, you go back to that little bar you used to sit at in between classes and have a plastic pitcher of that same cheap beer? You know, just because? Perhaps when you are with a group of particular friends, you have to have a martini even though you do not like them anymore, because it takes you back to those “girls night” single days? Maybe a certain sparkling wine reminds of your first date with the love of your life. Well, funny I mention that because that is today’s WABW is about.
Rosa Regale. It is a sweet dessert wine, and to be honest, a little too sweet for me. However, back in the days of, “Oh, just a white zinfandel for me, please,” I used to love it! That was when I first got into wine. It is also when I first met Michael, my husband. Did I ever tell you he was my competitor at work and that is how we met? Yep, we both worked in the wine industry and there was new guy that was hired as my competition. Well, the moment I met my competition, my heart stopped working. Well, ok, let’s be honest, I stopped working (stopped working as hard I could have) anyway. I could not concentrate on anything but that green-eyed boy and he, on nothing but this green-eyed gal. Ok, I know, enough mush…wait a sec, this is a wedding blog, I will continue! When we met, one of the wines he was trying to get into the market was this sparkling, sweet red dessert wine called Rosa Regale. He had the wine out, tasting to his clients, and asked if I would like a sip. I said,…I do.
Now whenever I see it on a wine list, I have to have it. Don’t get me wrong, it is very good, also. It’s a red, bubbly wine that is perfect as dessert. It is also perfect on a summer day with a straw in the bottle, but I’ll go for the classier picture in your head. It is 100% Brachetto grapes and it is grown at the single vineyard at La Rosa Estate. It is like tasting fresh-squeezed, sweet strawberries and the little bit of bubbles tickle your nose. It is definitely not as bubbly as champagne, just a little bit of effervescence. It takes me back to the day Michael looked at me with that cute, nervous smile and offered me a sip.
When I was searching for an image of the bottle, I found this little story on their website. Perhaps this is the reason I was so knocked head over heels when I met the love of my life... “Legend also has it that both Julius Caesar and Marc Antony presented Cleopatra with several gourds of Brachetto, (the grapes in Rosa Regale). The empress then had her lovers drink the wine in order to unleash their passion.” That sneaky little devil!
