WBW: Crios de Susana Balbo Rose of Malbec 2004

Ward Rafters is the kind of place that attracts stories around itself, some of them strange enough to be true. The version I heard is that Dr. Ward had left medical practice to pursue his dream of being a professional professional jazz musician, touring the country. He'd also always dreamed of having a jazz club of his own, and so he and his wife Jackie remodeled the attic of their Diamond Head home into a cozy venue for friends and friends of friends. The day they finished remodeling, Dr. Ward died. Hey, I said some of this is strange. I'm just repeating what I've been told.

Dr. Ward is gone, but the club lives on. Between Jackie's socialite connections and her husband's old friends in The Scene, she has a steady stream of musicians passing through town who make time in their schedules to come play. Zoning laws prohibit any advertisement, admission charges or the serving of food--this place is strictly word of mouth. (When neighbors filed a lawsuit, lawyer patrons of the club defended Jackie pro bono, and won.) It's the kind of place where regulars know each other by name, and most everyone brings a bottle of wine.

We decided to pass on the Mother's Day crowds at every restaurant in the city and instead spend our afternoon at Ward Rafters with a bottle of 2004 Crios de Susana Balbo Rosé of Malbec ($14). The Rosé of Malbec has a rich garnet color, like a White Zin that has grown up, moved out and spent a few years in the real world. It has both sparkle and depth. Lifting glasses to our noses, we smelled "fruit." That's helpful, eh? Maybe with practice we could wax rhapsodic about a nose of cloves and fresh bing cherries, but for today it was just fruit. We did better on taste, identifying both strawberries and watermelon, with a hint of carbonation dancing on our tongues. The wine has sweetness to it, but tempered by mild tartness and acidity. It has weight on the tongue, with a clean, dry finish.

This rosé is produced in Argentina by seasoned winemaker Susana Balbo from 100% malbec grapes. Did you know that red and white wines can be made from the same grapes? The difference is in when they remove the grape skins. For this rosé they use the saignée method to find a happy medium between red and white: some of the free run juice from the pressing is reintroduced at later stages of fermentation to boost the skins-to-juice ratio and increase color, tannin and flavor. The word crios from the wine's name means "offspring," a tribute to her children and a reflection that these wines haven't "grown up" as much as the others she produces. Don't be fooled though, this rosé is nothing to be ashamed about.

Maybe my critical palate was softened by the whole experience: the music, the strange stories, the hanging with friends and sipping wine. People and place can make even mediocre wine taste wonderful. Is that what happened here? I don't think so. I'd expressed earlier reservations at the Think Pink! Wine Blogging Wednesday theme, and I'm happy to report that my fears were unfounded. This was a refreshing and complex wine for sipping on a hot Mother's Day afternoon at the Rafters.