A Provence Picnic in NYC
*This post is written in partnership with Millesima. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.
One of my absolute favorite summer activities is a bougie picnic in the park and for today's post, we're doing it "á la française" with French rosé from Millesima! My friend Josh, The Kentucky Gent, was in town for New York Fashion Week: Men's, so I grabbed some sandwiches and we met up for an afternoon in the shade!
Millesima is the leading online retailer of fine wines in Europe, and their US store is actually on the Upper East Side in Manhattan! It's on 72nd and 2nd, which was on my way to the park, but the company ships wine all over the US.
I don't know if this is a product of growing older, but my appreciation for a fine bottle of wine has really grown. Mike and I drink rosé all the time in the summer, but we kind of get stuck in a rut with what our local wine shop carries and I'd to splurge on a nicer bottle from time to time. That's one of the reasons I was so excited to stop by Millesima. They have some great mainstream wines, but they also have a ton of fine wines you can't get in your local shop. I was surprised by how many of their rosés I had never seen before. They even have an extensive selection of 5L (large format) bottles in case you're throwing a Great Gatsby style party and REALLY wanna show people a good time.
The staff were incredibly helpful in navigating the catalogue. They walked me through the nuances of the different varietals and what made the finer wines so unique. If you order online and are unsure about what you're looking at, just give them a call. Their website literally says "Need Advice? Call Bryan...". That level of customer service is unheard of for an international wine retailer and really speaks to the fact that they’re a family-owned business.
I grabbed a cold bottle of Sancerre for our picnic, and then found two fancier rosés I'm going to save for Mike and I! We like dry rosé, so Côtes de Rhônes and Côtes de Provences are usually our go-to's. The Domaine Ott Cuvee Rose Coeur de Grain is supposed to be "the absolute best that the terroirs of the Provence region can offer", so that was a no brainer.
Can we also talk about the complete renaissance rosé is having right now?? Ten years ago, rosé was basically pink sugar water. Now it's complex and dry and the IT wine everyone is drinking all summer long. We're getting married in November and will still be offering rosé because it's everyone's favorite.
I usually do a giant charcuterie platter for our picnics, but since it was just two of us, I paired it down to sandwiches and fruit. It seemed more practical than 4 kinds of cheese, 3 meats, and a ton of small bites… but you best believe I'll throw a giant rosé picnic later this summer and we'll do the whole French feast. It’ll be great!
P.S. This Sperry x Sea Bags bucket tote is perfect for picnics or poolside drinks. It's made out of recycled sail boat sails. You fill it up with ice and plop a few bottles in it for a portable cooler moment. It's great!
Head over to Millesima-usa.com to shop their fine wines for yourself!
If you live in one of the five NYC boroughs, orders over $100 are eligible for free shipping.
Which is perfect for those of us in Queens that want a better assortment!
