La Révolution Du Rosé

It was once mocked as a sickeningly sweet alcoholic beverage, consumed only at college frat parties or on cheap dates. It was ridiculed as a “gateway” drink for those making the transition from soda to something a half-notch more sophisticated. But now has recently surpassed white wine sales in France, and rosé imports to the U.S. have been increasing 50% each year. San Francisco-based video journalist Ken Kobré, whose summer home in Provence is surrounded by vineyards, wondered about that. “I traveled around Provence to find out why the entire French population, devoted to its traditions and cultural heritage, has now elevated the once spurned rosé to the status of its beloved white and red wines,” says Kobré. “My memory of rosé is that it had a terrible reputation,” he says. “It was the wine for those who liked their beverage overly sweet, like an alcoholic version of Coke or Pepsi. All the wine experts made fun of rosé. Those in the know, like professional sommeliers, thought it was only for debutantes or amateurs. It was not for serious wine lovers. But all that had changed, seemingly overnight. So I tried to figure out what had happened so suddenly. “I wondered if the color of the wine, from pale pink to dark peach, caused people to taste the wine differently?” says Kobré. “ I explored if the price of the wine could affect a drinker's pleasure, and what significance a medal really meant on a bottle of wine — and how it influenced sales. No matter how well you think you know wine, I think the answers will amaze you.” The documentary also examines how factors such as cost, color, bottle shape, name, and label affect the perceived taste of any wine. Besides unraveling rosé’s sad past, Kobré’s "La Revolution du Rosé" investigates the reason for its recent exploding popularity by shedding light on how the wine is grown, harvested, processed, produced, distributed, marketed, judged, and consumed.