Le Tempier Rosé Est Arrivé

Little needs to be said outside of “it’s here,” to excite people about Domaine Tempier’s Rosé. The 2009, like every previous vintage, is stunning, and lays down a serious argument for not just being one of the greatest rosés in the world, but one of the world’s greatest wines. It is just so good going down.

Like with top Bordeaux and Burgundy, many people can recount the specific moment they had their first taste of Tempier rosé. My story is neither sensational, nor romanticized in any way. My first glass was of the 2005 vintage, in April of 2007, while watching the Master’s golf tournament at my colleague Mark Congero’s house. I’d have to say that my favorite Tempier rosé moments have been at KLWM staff picnics, where water isn’t necessary and rosé is required.

The beauty of memorable rosé experiences is that most of the time it involves a shining sun, good food, and friendly company. Any rosé can set this kind of mood, but for some reason the Tempier consistently does it best.

And each vintage, our Tempier rosé sells out more quickly than the previous vintage, so you might want to act quickly so you won’t miss the 2009.

2009-Tempier-Rose-v2

Do you have any Tempier rosé stories? Please share in the comments below.

9 Comments

  1. william says:

    Sometime in 2003, I became very fond of rose. So fond that i enlisted 6 onto my wine list (including two by the glass). Unfortunately, the audience that I was working with was very “savvy.” Savvy to the degree that pink wine = white zinfandel and there was no way to convince them otherwise. Essentially, they would not be caught with pink wine in their glass. That’s when my industriousness came to be: i bought cobalt blue wine glasses and served all rose (even tempier) in them. Rose flew out of my cafe. I would sit and laugh at night, while the chef and I enjoyed a post-shift meal, and count all of the blue glasses that were filled with pink wine–wondering was it more entertaining knowing that they were all drinking rose or that they were deceiving their friends by drinking it out of blue glasses. sante.

  2. @EvanLewski says:

    It was a sizzling Sunday in the Dry Creek Valley back in 2008, and I must’ve been the most charmed harvest intern in the world, spending the day off (a rarity to be certain) watching my first bottle of Tempier Rose’ bob up and down in the ledge pool at the winery owner’s house. I had a commanding view of the valley and a few ridiculous Torbreck (our sister winery) compatriots to laugh at. What could possibly go wrong?
    I somehow tore my gaze away from the various vineyard blocks, recently harvested or very soon to be picked, and turned my attention to my recently emptied verre. I wasn’t comfortable with the vacancy, not to mention the fact that the glass was now cooking in the Dry Creek Sun in the absence of such pale goodness. To my dismay, I witnessed the filter claiming its next victim…it was, indeed, Monsieur Tempier. Well, dammit if I didn’t channel Baywatch David Hasselhof, or perhaps Flipper…either way, the rose’ needed rescuing. I pushed off the opposite wall, deep, torpedo-like, on my way to the other side. One large pull with both arms at my side, I was confident in my hero status and the glory it would bring, if not front page worthy, at least I’d be a bit boozier in a moment’s time.
    Unfortunately I had imbibed enough of the pink stuff previously to space entirely the fact that there was 360 degrees of seating ledge around the pool. Shame it was the LEDGE that reminded me…first my forehead, then the bridge of my nose. I hastily grabbed the bottle…then my face. It was too late, the Aussies had seen the blood streaming down my face, and I have yet to live it down.
    No dramas, however…I was a hero. Even today if I look closely in the mirror, I am yet reminded of the 2007 Domaine Tempier Rose’. Totally worth it. I’d incur much more serious battle wounds for a rose’ this absolutely smashable.

  3. Agreed and as you write,
    water isn’t necessary…

  4. No Tempier story but I recently tasted a Rose from Gascony and wrote about it.

    Here is the link
    http://www.sergetheconcierge.com/2010/07/southwest-rose-wine-harmonie-de-gascogne-2009-pre-4th-of-july-sampling.html

    Serge
    ‘The French Guy from New Jersey’

  5. Steve L. says:

    KLWM sales guy Rich Kading had a couple of favorite wines and Tempier’s rosé was unquestionably one of them. I benefitted, along with his other friends, from that favor as Rich could be counted on to bring a bottle–or a magnum–around whenever he could. Summer or winter, it didn’t matter: we enjoyed many good times with that wine year ’round. Rich is gone now but memories of the gatherings spent with bottles of that particular wine remain fresh.

  6. Dorothy Lyons says:

    Kermit introduced my husband and me to D,T. Rose several years ago (late 80″s ?) and it immediately became out favorite wine. On a trip to France we stayed in an inn in Bandol so that we could visit Domaine Tempier. I have a photo of me leaning against the sign out front as if I owned the place. While there we bought a case of the Rose.Since we were traveling in a rental car we figured that we could drink it with our picnic lunches and maybe bring a bottle to dinner at our Inn where dinners were included. Madam , the proprietor looked at us in great shock and said “It isn’t done!”We did what we could to drink up the wine while we still had the rental car but ended up having to smuggle the remaining half dozen bottles on the train to Salzburg, our next stop.

  7. Lauren Marsh says:

    Enjoyed my first glass of Domaine Tempier’s Rosé next to Scaggs Vineyard Grenache Rose last night at Bardessono – quite a treat!

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