It Turns Out Millennials Were Right About Rose The Whole Time

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Rosé is having a bit of a kale moment. Or should we say cupcake moment? Or is unicorn food having a rosé moment? Suffice it to say, the pink-hued wine is a certified Food Trend, joining the likes of rainbow bagels and food in jars — just as Instagrammable as they are consumable.

But as it turns out, rosé is far from just a pretty pour. We were recently chatting with wine expert, and founder of Wine Savy, Sayle Milne when she mentioned how much she loves rosé this time of year — and every day of the year. In fact, her advice is as follows, "You should be drinking rose when you wake up. You should have it at lunch, you should have it at dinner. You should have it with a straw." Sounds like a girl after our own heart.

As it turns out, rosé's reputation for primarily being the number one beverage of the so-called "basic" among us (we have The Fat Jew to thank, at least partially, for that) isn't exactly deserved. According to Milne, the pink-hued wine deserves a whole lot of credit for being not only delicious, but a great value as well. So, here are six reasons why you should be proud of your membership to the "rosé all day" club.

1. It's Versatile
Milne describes rosé as a "red wine that drinks like a white," making it great to pair with just about anything. "You can have it with barbecue, you can have it with sushi," she explains. There's also a wide range of rosés you can buy. Some are lighter, others are heavier. Milne says if anyone thinks they don't like rosé, they just haven't met the right one. "It can be light, lean and fruity, or it can be hefty and pack a punch." In other words, go forth, experiment, and be safe. There's a (rosé-colored) lid for every pot.

2. You CAN Drink It Year-Round
Spring and summer are rosé season in America, but there's no reason to cut back in colder months. Because it can be made with virtually any grape, winemakers can make rosé year-round. Rosés from 2017 are already available from the Southern Hemisphere, from countries like South Africa.

3. It's A Great Value Wine
You can get good rosés for $9.99 — and, advises Milne, if you go up a few bucks, to the $12.99-$18 range, you can really hit what she see as the sweet spot for really delicious, value-driven wines. It's also a great wine to buy in a box, another way to save. Boxed wine, like rosé, can get a bad rap, but Milne says the French have been doing it for years, and boxed wine is great for varieties that aren't meant to be aged (like, you guessed it, rosé).

4. It Doesn't Play By Other Wines' Rules
When buying rosé, Milne says there's one major thing to watch out for: the date. While we are trained to think aged wines are better (and be really impressed by anyone whose been able to hold onto a wine since 2007), with rosé the opposite is true. Rosé is not meant to age and should never be more than a year old when you drink it. So if you see 2016 and early 2017 vintages, that's fine. But anything that says 2015 (or, "God forbid, 2015" as Milne emphatically told us), stay away.

5. It's Often Lower Alcohol
Wait, don't leave — hear us out. There's a reason you might actually prefer low-alcohol wines. While there are exceptions, high ABV (alcohol by volume) in cheap wines can be an indicator that the winemaker added in more alcohol at the end to mask a not-so-great taste. Lower alcohol in wine means you can actually taste and enjoy it — maybe even enjoy it for a couple more glasses than usual.

6. It Tastes Great
We didn't need a wine expert to tell us this, but versatility, price point, and ABV aside, it's just damn delicious.
So, drink it from a glass, box, or forty, all summer (and fall, and winter...) long because while its Instagrammability might not last forever, the rosé trend is here to stay.

BY MARSHALL BRIGHT
APRIL 11, 2017
REFINERY 29. COM