Not the rose of your misspent youth!

Chef Scotty came over on Sunday, and he recounted a banquet he threw for a bunch of good ol' boys, in the awl bidness. He had paired the wines with the courses, and he greeted the execs at the door with a glass of chilled rosé.

Eyebrows were raised. Looks were askance. "Gotta beer?" was a typical response. He held firm. But Texas boys of a certain age are just going to have that reaction to rosé. In our misspent youth, we guzzled saccharine sweet rosé like it was kool-ade. What was it called, Mateus? Boone's Farm? I think it came in a cute bottle, always a prerequisite for wine selection.

Even until recently, I have personally been biased against rosés. When Gladys and I visited Napa in January, we went o the Sattui winery, and the tour host offered a glass of this rosato, the 2006 North Coast rosato. Gladys and I both had to be talked in to trying it.

Really spectacular! Chef Scotty's story reminded me we had this in our "cellar" (no one really has cellars in Houston, we have wine rooms). I am going to chill it and savor it. I remember that it was crisp, dry, just a hint of sweetness, and a delicious slightly acrid flavor like the dusty residue of crushed grape pips. I notice that the winery took the precaution of putting the word "dry" on the label.

Chef Scotty says the awlmen loved the rosé. He said the topper though was when he told them that all the wines he served were CostCo's proprietary line of meritage wines, Cameron Hughes, which are all priced around $10 or so. Even in these flush times, awlmen love a bargain.Even in these flush times, awlmen love a bargain. - Posted by Enrico Hale