A sultry wink at orange bitters

Orange wine is not a hip drink for our king’s birthday. It’s not white, not red and certainly not rosé. It’s a special wine with a brilliant color. And because we happen to love orange, it certainly wouldn’t look out of place as our national favorite. Imagine it: never again any nasty orange bitters! With orange wine, you celebrate King’s Day in style.

Not a rosé-like terrace refresher

With orange wine, you have to let go of all your conventional ideas about alcoholic concoctions. This is the ultimate union of white, red and beer. With a sultry wink at orange bitters and Campari.

A glass like this is festive and beautiful to look at. And it tastes completely different than expected. It may take some getting used to, because this is anything but a rosé-like terrace refresher. No, it tastes captivating and exciting. And it’s also fantastic with food.

Beautifully orange thanks to the skins

Orange wine is a white wine—so made from white grapes—that is made like a red. The skins macerate longer than usual, which gives the wine its orange color. This extra skin contact also provides more structure and tannins. It tastes a little like red. But lighter, just like its color. And just to be clear: it is not rosé. Rosé is made from blue grapes, with shorter skin contact than in regular red wine. And the wine ultimately becomes pink instead of red.

Slovenian Sivi Pinot

Skin aging in white wine is an old winemaking technique that is still mainly used in Eastern Europe and Northern Italy. Originally, this method was intended to extend the wine’s shelf life. But nowadays, it’s primarily about the unique flavor, the structure and, of course, that beautiful orange color.

The combination of the bitterness and the fresh acidity will even appeal to the average beer drinker

Take Kabaj’s Slovenian Sivi Pinot 2011. A beautiful amber-colored wine made from the pinot gris grape. It smells and tastes of candied orange peel, sour apple and apricot. With hazelnuts and almonds, bitter herbs and tea leaves. It has the structure and tannins of a red wine, with the freshness and minerality of a white. Delicious with white fish, vegetable pasta, grilled chicken or mild cheese. The combination of the bitterness and the fresh acidity will—I think—even appeal to the average beer drinker. Especially when served slightly chilled.

Royal finale

Can you picture it? After hours at the flea market, among crowds and music, continuing the orange festivities at the dinner table. In fact, this time I’m leaving the festive commotion completely behind and heading straight into the kitchen. With sole fillet in a creamy lemon sauce on my plate and good friends around me, only my glass will be orange this year. That seems royal enough to me.

Sivi Pinot 2011 is available exclusively in the Netherlands from De Boer & Wijn. 

Image: Flickr