Prepare to raise your glasses on International Rosé Day

Intimately associated with summer evenings, rosé wine is to be celebrated on a special International Rosé Day on June 22 .

Hot on the heels of France’s Fête de la Musique and the first day of summer, wine enthusiasts around the globe are preparing to clink glasses filled with 2018 summer vintage rosé.

The idea is the brainchild of the Organisation Internationale du Rosé recently launched by Valérie Rousselle, a prominent businesswoman in the world of wine. The owner of Château Roubine in Côtes-de-Provence, Rousselle is the embodiment of the success of her vineyard’s rosé, which was recognized as a cru classé, and a leading figure in wine tourism in the Provence region.

With the launch of an International Rosé Day, Rousselle hopes to further popularise this pale pink wine, and in particular crus produced in France’s Provençe region. According to figures from the Conseil Interprofessionnel des Vins de Provence, rosé consumption in France has tripled over the last 25 years.

The new date on the wine calendar is of course a communications exercise for Provence, which is keen to act as an ambassador for the pink tipple. In 2017, 89% of the 1 165 000 hectolitres produced by the region were rosé.

Foreign wine drinkers are also drinking more and more Provence rosé. Exports of the wine increased by 36% in 2017 to reach 382 441 hectolitres.

The first International Rosé Day will be launched in Saint-Tropez in South of France, while picnics, rooftop parties and other events will take place in villages and cities around the world.

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