Drink: Drink Pink

Drink pink

Rosé is having its moment in the sun - which is perfect since spring is now upon us. Gail Williams discovers more about this delicious taste of sunshine in a glass (and in a cake).

Subi wine lovers! If you can feel the gentle spring sunshine warming your back, it’s time to drink pink. It’s time to think pink. And it’s time to head to your favourite Subi watering hole and slink your little pinky around the stem of a beautiful, pink-hued glass of rosé, the light and cheerful accessory to joyous backyard barbecues, family picnics and watching the sun go down over the beach.

Think liquid Argyle diamonds, coconut ice, everlasting wildflowers or even as a “tender caress in the mouth”. However you describe it, rosé is on trend to be the number one tipple for those toasting to the season of re-birthing, joy and love.

Subi rosé lovers have been contributing to soaring sales of rosé in Australia over the past five years as they discover – and rediscover – the dangerously drinkable, pale and dry versions currently flooding the market.

Look to our local bars, and you’ll spot many millennials – among them dedicated males – sinking a quiet delicate-hued drop.

Liquor Barons’ manager, Vincent, says rosé sales at the Crossways outlet are giving sauvignon blanc a nudge as customers seek out affordable French rosé from Provence.

“Drinkers these days are much more discerning and are after that specific Provence-style of rosé which is pale pink and dry, minerally and delicately fruity,” he says.

We spoke to a few Subi-ites who are dedicated think pinkers enjoying the first blush of spring with a cheeky one in hand.

The Rosé Maker

Mark Bailey, senior winemaker, Howard Park Wines “La Vie En Rosé” He might have started out his winemaking career feeding a desire to make top quality chardonnay, but Mark Bailey can’t keep the effervescence out of his voice when talking about rosé, one of the favourites in his extensive stable of wines as Howard Park’s senior winemaker. Based in Margaret River, his enthusiasm for rosé flows all the way to Subiaco, where Howard Park Wines have a prominent office on Hay Street.

“Rosé . . . what a wonderful wine to be enjoying a renaissance,” he says. “It’s such a great wine to be drinking in spring. It really talks to our climate, it speaks to our way of life in Perth. It’s not too serious and is a fun, outdoors sort of wine. It goes with a lot of foods and does bridge that white wine or red wine thing.”

You’ll notice his Madfish, Marchard & Burch and Howard Park Miamup on wine lists around the suburb.

In the meantime, here are some Howard Park fun facts about the pretty pink stuff. • We may have the Greeks to thank for the invention of rosé. To try to maintain sobriety among drinkers, wines produced at the time were watered down and red and white wines were blended, creating the pink drink we know today. • The style migrated to southern

France, where Provence became the spiritual home of rosé, inspiring many Australian producers to emulate the style of reducing skin contact with red grapes such as

shiraz, pinot noir and grenache to give it a pink hue and lighter flavour. • Contrary to what you might think it is OK for men to drink pink.

There is a rapidly growing trend known as the Rosé Brosé. “It used to be high in sugar content,” says

Mark, but it is no longer seen as a woman’s drink. All sorts of people are drinking it. And loving it.” The Rosé Sipper

Subi local, Michelle Denny “Sip, sip rosé” Michelle Denny (pictured above) could easily wear the crown of Subi’s Queen of Rosé. After all, the longtime Subiaco resident shares some qualities with her favourite bevvie. She’s lighthearted, refreshing, beautiful, and is the perfect accompaniment to good times with friends.

Where to find her holding court with fellow rosé lovers? Bar Amelie, where she enjoys sipping Whispering Angel on the deck. But she also loves Cherubino City Cellar, a top spot to sip a pretty Domaines Ott Clos Mireille. It’s a world-famous number from Côtes de Provence which is more orange than pink, and is intensely perfumed, silky and focused on the palate with mineral-accented red berry and citrus fruit qualities and a deeper suggestion of white peach.

The finish hangs on, leaving suave floral and mineral notes behind.

“I’ve been drinking rosé for over a decade now,” says Michelle. “I like to drink it chilled on a hot summer afternoon or evening. I love it with seafood, a charcuterie board or a cheese board.”

If you’re lucky, you could spot Penelope at Cherubino City Cellar enjoying a Domaines Ott Clos Mireille Rosé . . .

The Rosé Cook

Penelope Whitcombe, Subi resident and stellar home cook. “Stop and smell the rosé” If you haven’t been invited to a Whitcombe dinner party in Subiaco, don’t worry, there’s still time to make the guest list of this lovely local identity who has achieved legendary status as one of the suburb’s most accomplished cooks. But where to find her? If you’re lucky, you could spot her alongside Michelle Denny at Cherubino City Cellar enjoying a rosé, when she’s not slaving away in her kitchen.

Having a few oenology units up her sleeve as well, it’s no surprise to find that she knows a thing or two about rosé which can – and does – find its way into her jaw-dropping cakes. She might even have the odd sip for the cook, especially if she’s using Domaine Terrebrune Bandol Rosé, another favourite.

“It’s light, crisp, minerally and loves to be invited to long, lazy summer gatherings with family and friends,” she says. “It goes beautifully with grilled seafood, salads, Asian food - the foods I love. I first started drinking rosé on a trip to Nice about 15 years ago. We met up with some friends for a late lunch in a restaurant on the waterfront and were introduced to the local rosé. We have been great mates ever since.”

And if you really want to be invited around for a Whitcombe dinner, you could always get in first and invite her to your place, especially if the night is balmy and you have a back garden with a grape-laden trellis. She might even bring her Sparkling Rosé cake.

Serve with Domaine de Terrebrune Bandol Rosé 4.5 cups plain cake flour 8tsp bicarb soda 375g butter, at room temperature 3 cups caster sugar 1.5tsp vanilla extract 9 egg whites 750ml bottle sparkling rosé

PUPA FAST

Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan forced. Grease three NUTRITION 6cm deep, 20cm round cake tins and line base and sides with baking paper.

Sift the flour and bicarb soda into a large mixing bowl. Using a stand mixer, beat butter, sugar and vanilla in a separate bowl until very pale and creamy. Reduce speed to medium. Add egg whites, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Add flour mixture and wine alternately in three batches, beating well after each addition. Tint pale pink with food colouring. SUGAR FREE ENERGY TEAS

Divide mixture evenly among prepared cake tins and DAIRY FREE PROTEIN SMOOTHIES bake for one hour or until a skewer inserted in the centre PROTEIN ICED COFFEES comes out clean. Stand cakes in pans for 10 minutes. Turn onto wire racks to cool completely.

To make Swiss meringue buttercream, start by cutting butter into cubes. Whisk sugar and egg whites together in a heatproof bowl until combined. Place over a saucepan of simmering water and whisk continuously for about eight minutes until mixture reaches 70°C on a candy thermometer, or is hot to the touch. Transfer mixture to a clean bowl of a stand mixer. Beat for 10 162 Rokeby Road, Subiaco minutes or until mixture has cooled and is almost at Mon - Fri 9am to 5pm | Sat 9am to 3pm room temperature. Reduce speed to medium. Gradually

Sparkling Rosé & Vanilla Naked Cake add butter, one cube at a time, beating well after each addition until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Beat in vanilla. Place one cake, cut side up on a cake rack. Spread with ¾ cup buttercream, top with the second Pink food colouring gel cake and repeat. Top with remaining cake, and, using a Flowers to decorate palette knife, spread remaining buttercream over the top Swiss meringue and sides. Using the edge of the palette knife, scrape off buttercream some of the buttercream to create the “naked” effect. 250g butter ¾ cup caster sugar 4 egg whites 2tsp vanilla extract

The Rosé Cocktail Mixer

Will Roser, Cherubino City Cellar “The world looks better through rosécoloured glasses.” On a rare day off, Will Roser, the popular bar manger at Cherubino City Cellar, might start his day with a negroni sbagliato. That’s a negroni made with prosecco instead of gin. But Will uses a Cherubino rosé instead of prosecco, making it an ideal breakfast drink. Isn’t that what you’d expect from a guy with rosé in his name?

“It gives it a fun, spring twist,” he says. An ideal day would also find him drinking one on a yacht, listening to Michael Bublé with a prawn cocktail in the other hand. If you can’t get to a yacht, head to Cherubino City Wine Cellar and Will will mix one for you.

He says there are so many rosé drinkers in the bar now they have renamed their golden hour to Rosé Hour.

“On Saturday afternoon, our bar tends to have a blush reflection due to the amount of rosé being splashed in the glass,” he says. Here’s Roser’s recipe:

Popular Subi spots to say “Hooray Rosé!”

Village Bar

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20 ml Contratto Bitter 20 ml Contratto American Vermouth 20 ml Amara Blood Orange 40 ml Cherubino Rosé Build over ice and add blood orange wedge for garnish. The Village Bar The vibe? This homey bar has long been a great spot for a Domaine de Cantarelle, from Côtes de Provence in south of France. Goes with? Crab croquettes and The Village squid salad with vermicelli, spring onion and coriander. How does it make you feel? Like you are lying on a sun lounger facing the Mediterranean while toying with seafood.

Bark Bar At Bark, you’ll find regular gaggles of happy gals drinking Marq Serious rosé on the al fresco deck. The name might be serious, but the vibe Marq rosé creates is anything but.

The winemaker, Mark Warren of Marq Wines in Yallingup, just happened to take out the rosé trophy at the Margaret River Wine Show for this particular wine and he gets to wear the pink jacket trophy forever.

The wine, inspired by the rosés of southern France, is described as “residual sugar dry, yet with a vibrant fruit sweetness. The flavours follow from the aroma with lots of cherry and strawberry. Lifted floral, cherry and strawberry characters with hints of citrus.”

Says Cassie Barrett, who serves it up: “It’s fun, it’s sexy, it’s a daytime wine in summer, providing nothing but good memories. A drink for gals having fun in the sun.”

Lums Wine Bar The Lums crew have a special affinity for 2021 Luminoso Rosé from Eldorado Road, in Beechworth, Victoria.

It’s a dry, savoury number made from Italian varieties of Sangiovese, Dolcetto and Nero d’Avola, giving it a beautiful copper salmon colour along with a textural mouth feel.

Ariane DuBois, venue manager at Lums says it is as close to perfect as

a savoury style rosé comes and should be served chilled to perfection along with fresh bread and a big helping of your favourite feta.

Bar Amelie Bar Amelie and rosé go together like . . . well, like a wink and a smile. And if you drive up Rokeby Road on a sunny afternoon you’ll see groups of friends doing just that while sipping a French Trienes, the rosé which is the third most popular wine by the glass served at Bar Amelie.

This summer, punters will be queuing for a HoneyBomb Frosé, a colourful cocktail made with rosé, which is so cool it could also serve as dessert. It’s just the thing to go with their high tea (recipe, right).

Says Kat Dehavilland, its creator: “Spring is all about colours and freshness, and by adding this to our spring cocktail menu, we also felt it was a more on-trend version of the traditional frozen strawberry daiquiri.”

And keep watching this space for a Rosé Laneway during the Subi Spritz festival next March.

And one final quote on beautiful rosé.

“You can’t buy happiness, but you can buy rosé, and that’s close enough.”

Especially if you live in Subiaco.

HoneyBomb Frosé

45ml strawberry liqueur 45ml strawberry puree 150ml Devil's Lair Honeybomb Rosé 1.5 scoops of ice Whizz the lot together in a blender and serve garnished with a strawberry.

Bark