Korbel Rouge Champagne
Korbel Rouge is a 750mL California red sparkling wine at 13.0% ABV — a genuine rarity: a dark-red, methode champenoise sparkler made from Pinot Noir grown in Sonoma County's Russian River Valley, per korbel.com. The red grapes ferment on their skins for a week or more before pressing and ageing in stainless steel and oak, and the finished wine is medium-dry. It is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor.
- ABV: 13.0% (verified on korbel.com)
- Size: 750mL
- Grapes: Pinot Noir (korbel.com; importer states 100%)
- Style: Red sparkling wine, medium-dry; dosage listed as 1% by the producer
- Method: Methode champenoise; skin fermentation of a week or more; stainless steel and oak ageing
- Origin: Korbel Champagne Cellars, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, California, USA
A Red Sparkling Wine, the Korbel Way
Korbel has made sparkling wine in the Russian River Valley since the 19th century, and Rouge is its most distinctive bottling: Pinot Noir given a full red-wine maceration — a week or more on the skins with pump-overs for colour and flavour — then put through the traditional bottle fermentation. The 2018 Rouge took Gold at the 2022 Sonoma County Harvest Fair. See more from the house on the Korbel Champagne Cellars vendor page or browse sparkling wine and Champagne and red wine.
Tasting Notes
From the producer: a distinctive dark red colour; intense black cherry, strawberry and plum; a palate of black cherries, plums and cola with an earthy forest-floor note, bright tannins and herbal edges — Pinot Noir depth kept light and bright by the carbonation.
How to Enjoy
Serve chilled, per the producer's own pairings, with pasta in red sauce, grilled meats and sun-dried tomato dishes — it drinks like a red wine and refreshes like a sparkler.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Korbel Rouge a red wine or a sparkling wine? Both — it is a red sparkling wine: Pinot Noir fermented on its skins like a red, then bottle-fermented by the methode champenoise like Korbel's other cuvees.
What grapes are in it? Pinot Noir — korbel.com lists Pinot Noir as the composition and the importer states 100%; older claims of other varieties are not supported by the current producer page.
How sweet is it? Medium-dry, per the producer, which lists the dosage as 1% — a touch of softness under the dark fruit and tannin.
A dark-red sparkler from the Russian River Valley — order Korbel Rouge online from Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.