Chateau d'Esclans Rock Angel 2021

A juicy, dense and round rosé, with exuberant flavors of white cherry and ripe raspberry grounded by flinty, chalky mineral depth. Reveals pronounced dried garrigue notes that play out across the creamy finish. Grenache, Rolle and Cinsault. Drink now through 2025.

The latest release of this wine in the range from Esclans is a ripe, full rosé. It has the crispness but the red fruits are warm and rounded. That gives a fine rosé that is definitely made for food and will be ready from 2023.

Neutral aromatics, still closed and youthful. Some dark berries and hints of minerality. The oak structure is much more evident after some air, and not so evident at all on first opening. It’s rich and opulent, the oak is very present and is providing almost all the heavy lifting – this is a nutty, dense wine that is not so reliant on fruit. The acidity is nicely balanced and well integrated. It has a lovely structure, but is lacking fruit on the nose - a good step up from Whispering Angel and a fantastic example of an entry-level oaked rosé with a premium story.

A very pure and incisive nose, with refined mineral chalkiness to the fresh strawberry and grapefruit aromas. Again, pure is the word to describe the linear, dry palate, which delivers crisp yet textured acidity, together with elegant, freshly chopped raspberries and strawberries. A truly outstanding rosé here! Drink now.

There is an initial hint of hazelnut and creaminess on the nose that precedes both lemon and red berry tones. The palate picks up the creaminess that is suggested on the nose and fills the mouth with textured lemony freshness. This is concentrated and rich, yet with a lovely pink grapefruit pithiness and real verve to make the mouth water on the long finish.