Ah, the heat of summer is here! What do you like to do cool down from the summer heat? Swimming? Staying inside? How about a nice cool Rosé? Oh yes, I love a crisp, cool Rosé on a hot summer’s day. I have been blessed to receive (and share with you) many high quality Rosés this summer, and here is another: 2014 Cornerstone Corallina Napa Valley Syrah Rosé. I have shared in many articles my love of Cornerstone Cellars wines. Each of their wines are crafted with intention to achieve the highest level of wine drinking pleasure. The 2014 Corallina NV Syrah Rosé is no exception. As Craig Camp explains, The 2014 Corallina Syrah Rosé is a “real Rosé. Not an afterthought, not leftovers, not for fashion and most decidedly not a saignée, Corallina Syrah Rosé is Napa Valley rosé with a purpose. It is a wine made as mindfully as we make any other wine.”

2014 Cornerstone Cellars Corallina Napa Valley Syrah Rosé: This wine poured a soft pink with salmon/coral tones and opened with inviting aromas of bright red berries, candied rose petals and herbs. On the palate this dry, mouthwatering Rosé delivered clean flavors of sour cherries, strawberries, fresh cut herbs and a touch of white pepper. This Rosé has a very round acidity that really coats the mouth. The fruit is soft, with the herbal notes and white pepper pronounced. It was clean, crisp and a perfect wine to sip on a hot summer’s day. Additionally, its high levels of acidity make this a perfect wine to pair with light summer cuisines. SRP $25. Purchase direct from Cornerstone Cellars.

This versatile Rosé would pair beautifully with your favorite summer cuisine including hot dogs, hamburgers, grilled chicken, seafood and vegetable soups. I chose to craft a summer crab salad to pair with the 2014 Corallina Syrah Rosé. It was a recipe I made up as I was preparing it, grabbing whatever I could find that sounded good. Here is what I used in my summer crab salad: butter lettuce, very finely diced jalapeño (seeds removed), yellow cherub tomatoes, slivered almonds, chopped cilantro, chopped mango, chopped avocado and a hard-boiled egg, all tossed with a homemade salad dressing of Italian EVOO, orange infused vinegar, orange blossom honey, lime juice and course grained yellow mustard, then topped with fresh crab meat that had also been tossed in the dressing. It was a delicious dinner; perfect for a hot summer night. The salad paired very well with the Rosé with one exception, the sweetness of the mangos clashed with the high acidity of the wine. However, it in no way ruined the meal or the pairing. I would simply recommend instead of adding mangos to the salad to pair with this Rosé, add chopped sour cherries instead.

Craig Camp, Managing Partner and Head of Operations at Cornerstone Cellars, explains more of the intricacies of the Corrallina Syrah Rosé: So Corallina Syrah Rosé is a mindful rosé and we keep these Oak Knoll AVA Crane Vineyard vines in a state of serene rosé-ness throughout the growing season. Each of these syrah grapes are in a state of serenity and inner pinkness from the moment of bud break until, just twelve months later, they become Corallina Syrah Rosé. This is fruit destined to be a rosé all the way from flowering to bottle. Mere hours after harvesting the cool fruit arrives at the winery and immediately goes into the press. This is whole cluster pressing and a key part of Corallina’s centered personality. The whole bunches of grapes that will be Corallina go into the press and over a slow, three hour press run these syrah grapes gradually reveal their pink soul. The juice goes immediately into a stainless steel tank where slowly, very slowly due to the cool temperature, it ferments to complete dryness. Then the new Corallina is racked into mature French Oak barrels for five months of meditation before it fulfills its destiny when the Corallina Wine Dance label finally adorns its bottle – just in time for summer. Inner wine peace cannot be achieved with mass production so only 500 cases or so of Corallina Syrah Rosé are produced each harvest. This year Mother Nature gave us a Corallina with 13.8% alcohol, TA 0.54 and 3.50 pH – isn’t that riveting  More importantly she gave us our most delicious Corallina yet and we could not be more grateful and humbled by her gift. 

Finding Nirvana will be a bit easier this summer due to the 2014 Cornerstone Corallina Napa Valley Syrah Rosé.

And it gets even better! Cornerstone Cellars is hosting Corallina Rosé and Paella Party! Join Cornerstone Cellars for Corallina Rosé, paella and live music to celebrate the release of Corallina Rosé. There will also be special release day offers on all your favorite Cornerstone wines. This fun event is open to all, $35 per person/$25 for wine club members! Click here for tickets.

I encourage you to visit Cornerstone Cellars web site to learn more about the winery, view their entire portfolio of wines, purchase your tickets to Corallina and Paella Party and order your own bottle of 2014 Corallina Syrah Rosé.

My Song Selection: The Corallina Syrah Rosé is such a perfect wine for summertime sipping and foods. I can picture sitting by the pool or on the porch on a Sunday afternoon enjoying this beautiful Rosé. So the song I have chosen brings that image to life in the same crisp and refreshing fashion of the 2014 Corallina Syrah Rosé.

Get your own bottle of 2014 Cornestone Cellars Corallina Napa Valley Syrah Rosé and let me know what song you pair with it. Cheers!