Big Men In Tights
Stephen Doyle
And before you ask, I could tell you but I'd have to kill you!
There are basically two ways of making pink these days. The first is to bleed off pale juice from your red grape crush and ferment it like you would a white wine; that is, coolish anaerobic ferment during which you watch out for the usual red wine ferment problems through to an early bottling. These wines are generally made opportunistically at vintage in an effort to improve the colour in the remaining red wine crush rather than to create a seminal rose style. Although often good quality drinks, they can often show more extraction, tannin, alcohol and residual sweetness than is necessary in what is essentially a fine, light and refreshing style of wine. The second method is to dedicate a portion of the vineyard to Rose production, pick the grapes at an appropriate ripeness for the style, probably whole bunch press to extract the desired hue, and ferment the juice carefully to preserve the life and freshness of the wine style.
At Bloodwood we aim for a fresh strawberries and cream style of wine with just a trace of residual to ensure its compatibility with a wide range of foods.
So, hide your sons and daughters, Bloodwood Big Men is back in town. The wine is normally (sic) 95% Malbec and 5% Cabernet Franc and we think it can hold its head up in the tradition of the best wrestling wines of the mysterious Bloodwood past.."Big Men in Tights" as this wine is affectionately known is THE wine for wrestlers; (and bikers and their grandmothers).... in fact it's for anybody who is genuinely serious about not being too serious about wine. It is the bastard bred earthy child of our colourful French Malbec Clone which occupies about 1 acre of the original Bloodwood Blend Block and just a tickle of Cabernet Franc. It's a wine which (we've been told) has been held responsible for at least two successful pregnancies and countless seductions under the mid-summer skies of Cremorne Point in Sydney, but it's greatest claim to fame is that one devotee apparently witnessed Andy Warhol jitterbugging out of his grave when he (ol' Andy) first tried it! The current version will no doubt soon be featuring discretely under the more discerning banana chairs on a beach near you....and in some really posh nosheries too! Enjoy!
Rhonda recommends what NOT to have with the Big Men and that's a big juicy steak! But check it out with a Thai beef salad, or French foods, (pate´, terrines and sausages,) Italian pasta or pizza or warm salads of duck and pomegranate or Greek lamb with fetta and olives, try Asian stir fries, even cheesy fritters in winter, dumplings, spring rolls and falafel rolls and..and...