Severino Garofano - Girofle Rosato, 2017
Severino Garofano is one of the famed Italian winemakers that brought the negroamaro grape to the fore. Originally from Irpinia (in Campania), Severino moved to Puglia in 1955. He soon became a point of reference for the local viticulture. He created (and made famous) the local cooperative in Copertino, a little town a few kilometres from Lecce.
In the 1990s, Severino Garofano founded his own winery in Lecce. Always a great supporter of negroamaro, his creations focused on reds and rosé wines from this grape variety. Severino passed away in 2018, leaving the family business to his heirs Renata and Stefano.
The name “Girofle” comes from “clou de girofle”, the French name for clove. This aromatic spice – with its penetrating, warm and sometimes bitter flavours – is actually a wonderful analogy for the character of this fragrant rosé.
In the glass, the wine has a bright strawberry hue, almost light ruby, with a medium intensity. To the nose, this rosé has a good concentration and complexity. It opens up with crunchy red fruit notes (strawberry, red currant, red cherry) with a hint of pink grapefruit and orange skin. A truly lovely floral component (red roses and lilies) hits the nose, mingling with the scents of Mediterranean spices – sage, thyme, majorana. A reminiscence of salty, almost seaweed-like minerality completes the fragrant aromatic profile.
On the palate, the wine features a medium body with a lovely linear acidity. Crunchy red fruit notes perfectly combine with a lively citrus edge. A mix of seaweed and flinty saltiness lingers in the mid-palate, beautifully dissolving into a zesty finish. Pleasant nuances of bitter orange and chinotto citrus lace with mediterranean spices. Balanced, with great refinement and elegance. Good intensity with a lovely medium+ concentration and length in the finish.