Blush wines are simply wines made from red wine grapes in such a way that
produces a lighter body, flavor and color. Almost any red grape can be turned
into a blush wine by only allowing brief contact with the grape skins. It’s the
skins that provide the color as well as the body and tannins in wine.
While American blush wines typically are sweet and uninspiring, there are
some very pleasant, dry blush wines from Europe. French blush wines are
called rosés. These wines are usually very affordable wines that are light, dry
and refreshing. Look for bottles from the Rhone or Bordeaux. They’re typically
made from Grenache, Mourvedre or Cinsault grapes.
White Zinfandel is the most widely known blush wine. It first made a splash in
the 1980s as a sweet wine sold at low prices. It was an easy-drinking
introduction to wine for the novice drinker. And while red Zinfandel, has
become commonplace, much of America's total Zinfandel production still
becomes white Zinfandel. High levels of residual sugar frequently result in
syrupy and overly-sweet wines.
The sales success of White Zinfandel has led to the unfortunate introduction
of other "white" blush wines including White Merlot and White Zinfandel.
Back to Wine Types.
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