Wine of the Week: Beneduce Vineyards 2024 Dry Rosé
May 8, 2025: This 100% blaufränkisch rosé is as brisk and refreshing as it is full-flavored
Are you enjoying The Cork Report? Do you want to support independent wine writing? Consider upgrading to a paid subscription.
I drink rosé all year long, but I look forward to my spring-time exploration of what the newest batch of East Coast pink wines has to offer. I got off to a slow start last weekend and only tasted a handful of wines, but my early findings were impressive.
Not surprisingly, given the ripeness of the 2024 vintage, there is a lot of flavor in these rosés, but—so far anyway—also freshness. Time will tell if I just chose well or if that’s the case across the board.
This week’s “Wine of the Week” is a great example though.
Beneduce Vineyards 2024 Dry Rosé ($28*) is made from 100% estate-grown blaufränkisch, and made entirely in stainless steel. The nose reminds me a bit of some of the better cabernet franc rosés I’ve had—it nicely balances fruitiness with savoriness. Here it’s mostly strawberry and raspberry fruit with fresh sweet herbs, white pepper spice, and an aroma that I always describe as my childhood gravel driveway after a summer rainstorm.
Bright, with brisk, citrusy acidity, the medium-bodied palate is refreshing with more red berry fruit, light savory flavors at the edges and a gentle saline streak. It’s juicy and flavorful with more of that saline-rockiness on the finish.
It’s the kind of rosé that you can drink any time with a wide range of foods (or by itself), but it begs for a hot summer day. It’s not on the winery website yet, but should be released this spring.
Beneduce Vineyards 2024 Dry Rosé
Region: New Jersey
ABV: 12.9%
RS: .1%
TA: 7.7 g/L
pH: 3.33
Rating: 90 pts
Price: $28* (To be released this spring)
*Sample Provided by Winery