Not long ago no serious  connoisseur of wine would be caught dead drinking pink wine. Today as more and more people discover the quality and versatility of rose, the perceptions are quickly changing.

Last week at the South Beach Wine Festival the weather was beautiful, eighty degrees with a wonderful salty breeze off the ocean. At our ABC table we were pouring six different wines. Three reds, one white, one sparkler and yes, a pink wine. I was pleasantly surprised by how popular the Cape Blue Rose from Jean-Luc Colombo was during the event. Not that the wine isn't delicious. A blend of 40% syrah, 40% mourvedre, and 20% counoise, the wine is full of flavor with peach, rose petal and fresh raspberry notes. It was the perfect wine to enjoy while sampling food and strolling on the beach.

During a break from pouring I set out in search of other rose wines being poured at the festival. After nearly twenty minutes of futility I came upon a very crowed table where a pink wine was being poured. The wine was beautifully packaged and labeled, "Whispering Angel." The French woman who offered me a sample explained that the wine was produced by Chateau D'Esclans.

Chateau D'Esclans is a winery located in Provence, France owned by Sacha Lichine, the son of Bordeaux ledgend Alexis Lichine. The winemaker, Patrick Leon, has spent two decades at Chateau Mouton Rothschild.

One taste of this wine was all it took to see why the table had such a crowd around it. The wine was fresh, crisp and fruity with a dry easy finish. Produced from grenache, rolle and syrah this wine was well worth the search. Look for Whispering Angel at an ABC store near you.

Paul Quaglini