Barber Cellars Kitten with a Whip Rose of Syrah

Wine: Barber Cellars Kitten with a Whip Rose of Syrah.

Grapes: Syrah (90 percent), viognier (10 percent)

Region: Dry Creek Valley, Calif.

Vintage: 2009

Price: $3.99

In the glass: This interestingly named wine is a fine, clean, antique-rose color with a bright clear salmon core going out into a light pink rim definition with medium-light viscosity.

On the nose: Barber Cellars Kitten with a Whip Rose of Syrah is all charming bright red fruit with raspberries, red cherries and currants, creamy strawberry mousse, red flowers and hints of red licorice and anise with touches of white pepper.

On the palate: A bright and lovely light-bodied wine, this is chock-full of red berries and phenolics with strawberries dominating, then raspberry coulis, creamy red currants. It is superbly fresh in the mouth. The midpalate shows a nice balance between the muted acidity and the light tannins. The wine is just sheer delight, especially at the right cool temperature.

Odds and ends: Barber Cellars Kitten with a Whip Rose of Syrah is just what the doctor ordered here at the end of the summer. Most consumers in the United States associate a rose-colored wine with white zinfandel, but an increasingly important trend in wine consumption here shows that people are beginning to seek out great dry rose wines made from other varieties and in the style and way of how they have become popular, especially in the south of France. At just less than $4, this wine is an excellent all-round deal. It should be chilled to 45 degrees Fahrenheit and enjoyed simply by the glass or with a seafood salad or even oysters. Drink it now through 2014.

Gil Lempert-Schwarz’s wine column appears Wednesdays. Write him at P.O. Box 50749, Henderson, NV 89106-0749, or email him at gil@winevegas.com.