If you’re hunting for the best California rose wine on the market, the 2020 Raj Parr Wine Club Candyfloss rose should be at the top of your list. This wine sings with acidity and was inspired by the rosés of Provence.
Before we get into this wine review for the Rajat Parr Wine Club Candyfloss rosé, I’ll admit upfront that I’m a fan of Raj Parr wines. If I want to be really honest, I’ve enjoyed every wine that this master sommelier has produced, especially his California rose wines. I also have some pretty special food and wine memories from RN74, the now sadly defunct, wine-forward restaurant in San Francisco that was helmed by Chef Michael Mina, and where Parr was once head sommelier.
Just wanted to put all that on the table. Okay, now to the Candyfloss rosé wine.
The first thing you’ll notice about this California rose wine is the label. Whoever does the marketing for the Raj Parr Wine Club knows that wine drinkers love to post photos of what they’re sipping on social media. And, let me tell you, this rose bottle makes for one awesome wine photo.
The label is gorgeously pink and iridescent, and looks great on the table. It’s one of the most eye-catching wine labels I’ve ever seen. Not to speak in wine memes, but this wine label could be its own mood board.
But, you’re not here for the label, you’re here to learn more about this rose wine.
A California Rosé Inspired by Provence
The 2020 vintage is the third vintage of Candyfloss wine, and the third varietal variation. What started off as a rose made with Pinot Noir grapes has evolved to a rose of Grenache.
Grapes for this vintage were sourced from the Côteaux de Clair Vineyard, located in the San Ynez Valley AVA. The vineyard is planted to not just one, but three varieties of Grenache: Grenache Blanc, Grenache Gris, and Grenache Rouge.
If you’re interested in going a little deeper on the history and inspiration behind this California rose wine, Parr goes to great lengths on his wine club website to share what led him to create this delightful wine.
The Sommelier’s Atlas of Taste, a wine book written by Parr and Jordan Mackay, also serves as a great wine resource, if you enjoy geeking out over wine!
The Santa Ynez Valley AVA
The Santa Ynez Valley AVA is roughly forty miles north of Santa Barbara. Like many coastal California wine AVAs, the temperatures are cool near the coast, and become warmer the further inland one moves.
Rhone varietals, like Grenache, do well in this particular California AVA. If you’re familiar with one of California’s most famous cult wines, Sine Qua Non, you know what I’m talking about.
The Santa Ynez Valley AVA is broken into four sub AVAs including:
- Sta. Rita Hill AVA
- Ballard Canyon AVA
- Los Olivos District
- Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara
2020 Raj Parr Candyfloss Rose Review
This rose is on the drier side, is nicely acidic, and finishes with a good amount of salinity. The nose is subtle; aromas of red fruit, possibly strawberries coming from the glass. The first sip yields slightly under ripe strawberries and grapefruit pith.
With an approachable 11% alcohol, it’s a wine that can be enjoyed all afternoon long.
This is not a sweet rose wine; however, as mentioned above, it’s on the drier side, crisp, and frankly very refreshing. If sweet rose wine is your thing, I think you’ll still enjoy Candyfloss. While it’s not an overtly sweet wine, the strawberry and citrus notes, combined with the acidity make for an incredibly easy drinking wine.
Sometimes wine drinkers who say they like sweet wine are really looking for light bodied wines with acidic finishes and some fruit-forward notes – basically all the components that make a wine easy to drink!
If you’re hunting for the best California rose wine on the market, Candyfloss should be at the top of your list.
Where to Buy and Try Raj Parr Wine Club Wines
Rose wines are available in just about every price point possible. When I purchased my bottles (yes, bottles. I couldn’t help stocking up! These bottles are so lovely), I paid $26 on the wine club website. In my humble wine loving opinion, that makes this one of the best rose wines under $30.
Raj Parr & Sandhi Wines Tasting Room
While the Raj Parr Wine Club does not offer tastings of its wines at this time, you can visit their sister imprint, Sandhi Wines, wine tasting room in Lompac, California.
The Sandhi Wines tasting room is available by appointment only. If you’re visiting Santa Barbara wine country, and want to swing by, make your wine tasting appointment here.
The Sandhi Wines Pinot Noir alone is worth the trip to this Lompac wine tasting room.
I’ll have a broader blog post on visiting Santa Barbara Wine Country in the near future, but, in a word: if you love California wine, or just wine in general, it’s one of the best wine tasting experiences out there. I’d go back in a heartbeat.