Txakoli (pronounced chac-o-lee) is traditionally made as a white wine (though there are a few rosés as well) with a hint of effervescence. The Basque serve these wines along side their local version of tapas (Pintxos). I figured I better start prepping for the trip to San Sebastian in September, so I picked up a couple of bottles last week.

There are three sub-zones for Txakoli: Getariako, Bizkaiko, and Arabako; all have stylistic differences.  Getarikoa will show the more traditional Txakoli syles of wet stone and citrus with more CO2 presence; Bizkaiko are slightly more full-bodied and sometimes even tropical, and wines from Arabako tend to have less CO2 and have more petrol and smoke from the Tufa soil underneath. The Gurrutxaga rosé is from Bizkaiko Txakolina — a wine region that consists of 69 vineyards, which produce 1 million liters of wine annually.

Ignazio Ameztoy makes this rosé from the Hondarribi Beltza grape. Beautiful color with strawberry, floral and salt water aromatics. On the palate, very crisp with bracing acidity and slight effervescence. Watermelon, strawberry, tart citrus with some salty minerality and spice.

Add this to my list of favorite rosés along with the Mas des Bressades, Lopez de Heredia Rioja Tondonia and Chateau D’Esclans Whispering Angel — interesting, unique and almost as provocative as the Lopez de Heredia. It is also a quaffer and a great food wine — and the salty minerality and slight sparkle are a perfect fit for summer. 10.5% alcohol.