Château Ballan-Larquette Rosé – Brings The Funk

Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. SRP of $16 but should be available for $11.99. Sample received courtesy Planet Bordeaux for review purposes.

From the bottle:

“Ow, we want the funk
Give up the funk
Ow, we need the funk
We gotta have that funk
La la la la la
Doo doo doo doo doo doo doo, owww!

13.5% Alcohol.”

OK, the bottle doesn’t really say that, but the bottle doesn’t really say anything at all, so I decided to help them out a bit with a little George Clinton.

I had the chance to try the 2009 Château Ballan-Larquette Bordeaux Rosé as part of a recent Planet Bordeaux tasting, and let me tell you the opinions on this one were really split. A few loved it, some did not enjoy it, and many were divided thinking this one really needs the right food pairing to fully appreciate it. I’d put myself in the last camp, so take this review with a grain of salt. If you’re all about fruit bombs, you won’t like this one. If you enjoy a little funk, you might really dig it.

Here then are my tasting notes from the event:

• Nose: tomato plant (dirt and all), funk, dried strawberries.
• Taste: tomato plant again, watermelon, dried herbs, not much fruit.
• Finish: Slightly dry and short…does linger a bit but not necessarily in a good way when drinking alone.

See a listing of local retailers selling this wine here.

All ratings use a simple 10 point scale with 10 being the best. Find out more about my rating systemhere and check out the Interactive Wine Ranking to find all my reviews! You can sort by type of wine, cost, rating, etc. in the interactive spreadsheet.