02 Aug Please The Palate Wine of the Week: Inman Family Wines 2022 Endless Crush Rosé, Olivet Grange Vineyard, Sonoma
On a hot summer day, if there is a style of wine that I want to enjoy with a meal, it is a fresh and elegant rosé and there are so many to choose from. But if there is one rosé wine I have loved vintage after vintage, it is the Inman Family Wines Endless Crush Rosé. I guess you can say I have an “endless crush” on this wine. In 2021, the 2020 Endless Crush Rosé was the wine of the week and here again in 2023, the Inman Family Wines 2022 Endless Crush Rosé, Olivet Grange Vineyard, Sonoma is the Please The Palate wine of the week.
About Inman Family Wines
Inman Family Wines specializes in Pinot Noir sourced from their 10.5-acre Olivet Grange Vineyard in the Russian River Valley that Kathleen and Simon Inman purchased in 1999. Pinot Noir is made as a still red wine, it is made into a Blanc de Noir sparkling wine, and it is made into a rosé wine. Kathleen was one of the first California producers to produce intentional rosé in the early 2000s. Her first vintage was in 2004 and it was made as a 20th wedding anniversary gift to her husband Simon. Eighteen vintages later, Endless Crush has a devoted fan base, which includes me.
Tasting Notes
To make Endless Crush, Kathleen selects Pinot Noir grapes from her estate Olivet Grange Vineyard specifically for rosé. Instead of using free-run juice, the grapes are harvested by hand at night and destemmed. They are left to cold soak for a few hours before gently pressing. The juice is transferred to stainless steel tanks where it undergoes primary fermentation and then is aged on the lees until bottling. Every vintage of Endless Crush Rosé of Pinot Noir is bottled on Valentine’s Day and the 2022 Endless Crush was bottled on Valentine’s Day 2023.
The 2022 Endless Crush Rosé of Pinot Noir is a delicate pale pink color. It has a very pretty nose with notes of watermelon, strawberry, and red grapefruit. On the palate, the wine has both juicy and chalky acidity and a lingering, mouthwatering finish. The wine is fresh and crisp but also has structure and complexity.
Food Pairing
The beauty of this wine is its elegance and complexity that makes it a lovely wine to pair with a variety of fresh summer dishes, such as a spring pea risotto, peach and burrata salad, or strawberry and goat cheese crostini.
Where To Purchase
The Inman Family Wines 2022 Endless Crush Rosé retails for $40 and is available directly from the Inman Family Wines website.
Meet The Winemaker
Meet Kathleen Inman in a story I had written for California Winery Advisor.
Get to know Kathleen Inman in 30 questions on the Wine Soundtrack USA podcast.