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Charles Melton Rose of Virginia

Charlie Melton introduced me to the new vintage of ROV on his fabled veranda last month by saying, “If we had a year that we wanted to show people as the archetypal ROV, 2012 would be that year. We would love to make it this way every year, in colour, aromatics and structure. It’s a style all to itself and it doesn’t fit the rosé mould, but we’ve been making it this way for twenty-five years and we love it!” It’s hard to add much, except to say that this bright crimson pink thing is one of the best ROVs to date, and you’ll love it, too! It’s a balancing act of texture with juicy fruit appeal and off-dry sweetness. With accurate notes of pomegranate, raspberry and guava fruit, think of this more as a light red than a rosé – and don’t be afraid to give it a generous chill. $19.50 at Hunt for Wine.