If you think all rosé is the same—pale, crisp, vaguely fruity—then you haven’t tasted Rosé d’Anjou.

This Loire Valley rosé breaks all the rules. It’s darker, richer, slightly sweet, and completely unapologetic about being different. While Provence rosé gets all the Instagram love, Rosé d’Anjou quietly does what great wine should do: it pairs beautifully with food, costs less than $18, and makes you wonder why you haven’t been drinking it all along.

What Makes Rosé d’Anjou Different

Most rosés you see—especially from Provence—are bone-dry, pale pink, and designed to be “easy drinking.” Rosé d’Anjou is something else entirely.

• Color: Deeper pink to salmon, not pale
• Sweetness: Off-dry to medium-sweet (not dessert-sweet, just balanced)
• Body: More substantial than typical rosé
• Flavor: Strawberry, raspberry, watermelon, with a hint of rose petal
• Acidity: Bright enough to keep it refreshing despite the sweetness

This is a rosé for people who find Provence rosé too subtle or neutral. This is a rosé that red wine drinkers can appreciate.

The Grapes Behind the Magic

Rosé d’Anjou is primarily made from Grolleau (also called Groslot), often blended with Gamay, Cabernet Franc, or Pinot Noir. These are red wine grapes, which is why Rosé d’Anjou has more flavor and body than rosés made from Grenache or Cinsault.

The grapes are pressed gently after brief skin contact (just a few hours), giving the wine its distinctive color and flavor without the tannins of red wine.

Why the Slight Sweetness Matters

Here’s where Rosé d’Anjou becomes genuinely useful: that touch of sweetness makes it one of the best wines for spicy food.

When you eat something spicy—Thai curry, Szechuan stir-fry, Indian vindaloo—the capsaicin creates heat that gets amplified by alcohol and tannins. Dry wines with high alcohol make spicy food taste even spicier.

But wines with residual sugar? They cool down the heat. The slight sweetness balances the spice, and the bright acidity keeps your palate refreshed.

This is why Rosé d’Anjou is a secret weapon for:

• Thai food (green curry, pad thai, tom yum soup)
• Chinese food (kung pao, General Tso’s, Szechuan anything)
• Indian food (tikka masala, vindaloo, samosas)
• Korean food (kimchi, bulgogi, spicy noodles)
• Mexican food (tacos, enchiladas, mole)

The Brunch Connection

Rosé d’Anjou is also phenomenal at brunch. The slight sweetness pairs beautifully with:

• Quiche (especially with ham or bacon)
• Eggs Benedict
• French toast or pancakes
• Fruit salads
• Smoked salmon and cream cheese
• Spinach and feta omelets

It’s substantial enough to stand up to savory dishes but refreshing enough to drink in the morning. Try that with a bold Cabernet.

How to Serve It

• Temperature: 45-50°F (colder than red wine, slightly warmer than white)
• Glassware: Regular wine glass (doesn’t need anything special)
• When to drink it: Now—these wines are meant to be enjoyed young and fresh

What to Look For

Price range: $10-18 (seriously) Vintages: Drink the most recent vintage available (2023-2025) Labels to try: Look for “Rosé d’Anjou” on the label—this is an appellation-controlled wine, so if it says Rosé d’Anjou, it’s the real thing

Don’t confuse with: Rosé de Loire (a drier style) or Cabernet d’Anjou (similar but made primarily from Cabernet grapes)

The WAM Perspective

Rosé d’Anjou teaches an important lesson: you don’t have to follow trends to drink great wine. While everyone’s posting photos of pale Provence rosé, you can be drinking something more interesting, more versatile, and significantly cheaper.

The wine world loves to create hierarchies—dry is sophisticated, sweet is basic; pale is elegant, dark is low-class. But Rosé d’Anjou proves that what actually matters is whether the wine works with food and whether you enjoy drinking it.

If you’ve been avoiding rosé because it’s “too trendy” or you find most rosés boring, Rosé d’Anjou might change your mind. This is rosé with personality, rosé with purpose, rosé that does real work on the dinner table.

Try It This Week

On Thursday, we’re pairing Rosé d’Anjou with Ham and Cheese Quiche—a perfect example of how this wine’s slight sweetness and acidity make it brilliant with brunch dishes. But don’t wait until Thursday. Pick up a bottle this week and try it with your next takeout Thai order.

You’re going to wonder why you haven’t been drinking this all along.

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