MATEUS

In the mid-60, when I arrived in Canada there was a little choice when it came to wines. On the Government liquor store shelves, one could find offerings from Jordan's and Bright's, including "Baby Duck", sacramental wines or the more syrupy tasting Jewish wines, but very few imports. The popular imports were Chianti Ruffino in a raffia covered flask from Italy, Rioja Yago from Spain and Mateus Rosé from Portugal. Hidden under the sink was a tall bottle of Galliano liqueur which could not fit in any other cupboards.

A few years ago, while living on our barge Zonder Zorg on the French Canals, I roamed through the supermarket shelves and came across Mateus Rosé.  I was curious to see how it measures up among today's wines. We purchased a bottle for €4 and opened it chilled around 4 pm when the temperature hovered in the mid-30s. It was delightful, light, fruity with a bit of sparkle and we added some more to our cellar. We have tried other Rosés in France but have so far not found anything better.

It has been 50 years and this wine has still not made its way onto the Canadian supermarket shelves. However, the liquor stores sell a convenient 1.5L bottle to compliment our Vancouver summers.