Domaine Raab-Ramsay, Pinot Noir-Gewürztraminer Rosé Sparkling Wine NV, Méthode Ancestrale, Quilpué, Chile

Tasting Note: A fun, organic sparkler from Chile to try to see pinot and gewürztraminer grapes paired together in sparkling-rosé- form.

This intriguing, salmon-colored, pinot noir and gewürztraminer rosé blend has a nose that leads with pinot noir’s signature red fruit.

On the palate there is a prune-infused effervescence that is somewhat startling at first but ultimately pleasing overall.

Unlike the traditional method in which additional sugar is added in the second fermentation, Domaine Raab-Ramsay’s employs the ancestral method which only uses sugar produced by the grape itself.

This means the base still wine with residual sugar is fermented in the bottle without the addition of sugar in the secondary fermentation stage (i.e., no liqueur de tirage).