Stepping Stone by Cornerstone - 2010 Corallina Rosé


Cornerstone Cellars has been an impressive producer of excellent Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon for quite a few years now. Over the last few vintages they have also launched and expanded Stepping Stone a second label that focuses on wines aimed at everyday consumption. Today I’ll take a look at their current release of Rosé. The Stepping Stone by Cornerstone 2010 Corallina Rosé was produced from fruit sourced at the Mogambo Vineyard in the Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley. This wine is 100% Syrah. After slow, temperature controlled fermentation this wine was aged in neutral barrels. Less than 300 cases of this wine were produced and it has a suggested retail price of $18.

The color of this Rosé is immediately striking. Many new world examples of Rosé are a bit deeper and darker. This one from Stepping Stone has the perfect Salmon hue that comes to mind when I think of Rosé, which is often. Fleshy red fruit aromas burst out from the nose of this Syrah Rosé. The palate is loaded with red cherry fruit flavors as well as pepper spice, and red raspberry. Sweet wild strawberry flavors emerge on the finish along with continued cherry and raspberry characteristics. Nutmeg and white pepper spices chip in as well. This is a lovely dry Rosé loaded with juicy fruit flavors that give the impression of sweetness. Firm acidity keeps things well balanced and makes this a tremendous food wine.

This is a lovely example of Rosé from the folks at Stepping Stone. For $18 this wine is fairly priced and as mentioned it will pair extremely well with light summer foods as well as spicy cuisine. That said it drinks beautifully on it’s own.