Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/518118
38 / the tasting panel / june 2015 ROSÉ L ike a prima ballerina who makes dancing on pointe look effortless, rosé wines may seem effortless, but like ballet, the wines of iconic Château d'Esclans require a studied technique. Old vines grown at increasing levels of altitude in the rocky, limestone hillsides near the Gorges de Pennafort in Côtes de Provence and state-of-the art vinification techniques are combined to create a family of rosés that demand respect. With d'Esclans, self-described rosé specialist Sacha Lichine, former owner of Château Prieuré-Lichine, and winemaker Patrick Léon, whose tenure at Château Mouton Rothschild and Opus One informs the style and quality of the estate wines, have established a benchmark for the ultra-premium rosé category. During a tasting held at Waterbar in San Francisco, Jim Allen, who has retired from Southern Wine & Spirits and now consults for the estate, had 2014 Whispering Angel served from magnum, a format that slows any signs of development to a crawl, so the wine showed at its freshest. by Deborah Parker Wong / photos by Stephanie Secrest Château d'Esclans's Whispering Angel and Garrus on display during a tasting at Waterbar in San Francisco. Rosé Reinterpreted THE ULTRA- PREMIUM ROSÉS OF CHÂTEAU D'ESCLANS