Q.S.S. Rare (Rosé)

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At a Glance

Wine: Q.S.S. Rare Rosé

Region: Lisboa, Portugal

Grapes: Touriga Nacional and Syrah

Style: Dry, fresh and softly fruity

Look for: Strawberry, blackcurrant, gentle spice and a clean finish

Serve: Well chilled

Pair with: Spicy seafood, Asian-inspired dishes, grilled fish, salads and warm summer evenings

Why This Wine?

When we started planning a month of Portuguese wines, I knew we needed something refreshing enough for August. Portugal is famous for powerful reds and Port, but it also produces some wonderfully fresh rosé.

Q.S.S. Rare caught my attention because it uses Touriga Nacional, one of Portugal’s most important red grapes. Touriga Nacional is dark, structured and intense—but here, it's much lighter. It's blended with Syrah to become a dry, easygoing rosé with some fruit and spice to keep it interesting. It’s refreshing without feeling thin. Approachable, but not boring.

This feels like exactly the kind of wine our club should explore: something unfamiliar enough to teach us something, but delicious enough that none of that really matters once it’s in the glass.

What to Look For

Look for fresh strawberry and blackcurrant aromas with a subtle touch of spice.

The palate is soft and fresh rather than sharply acidic. It has enough fruit to feel generous, but it still finishes clean and dry.

If you usually avoid rosé because you expect it to be sweet, this is a lovely reminder that rosé can be crisp, food-friendly and surprisingly versatile.

Something I Learned

Touriga Nacional is best known as one of the principal grapes used in Port and some of Portugal’s most serious red wines. It naturally produces deeply colored, aromatic wines with plenty of structure.

But rosé is made by limiting how long the grape juice remains in contact with the dark skins. That allows the winemaker to capture the grape’s fragrance and fruit while leaving much of its color and tannin behind.

The result is a very different expression of the same grape: lighter, softer and especially welcome during the hottest part of summer.

Q.S.S. Rare is produced by Quinta de São Sebastião in the Lisboa wine region. Its hillside vineyards have clay-limestone soils and a Mediterranean climate moderated by Atlantic influence.

Q.S.S. Rare and Miradouro da Vinha (one of our other August Wine Club picks) are actually made by the same winery, Quinta de São Sebastião, using fruit from the same Lisboa-area estate. Both wines include Touriga Nacional and Syrah—but they express those grapes very differently. Q.S.S. Rare is pressed and fermented as a fresh rosé, while Miradouro adds Castelão and allows greater skin contact to become a smooth red blend. Tasting them together offers a fascinating lesson in how winemaking choices can completely transform the same grapes.

The Q.S.S. Rare collection also has a conservation-minded mission: a portion of sales supports organizations working to protect endangered wildlife. That explains the very cool animal artwork on the labels—and gives us one more reason to remember the bottle.

Pair With

The winery recommends this rosé with Asian food, oily fish and seafood dishes with a little spice.

At Fisk, I’d happily drink it with:

• Sesame-crusted ahi tuna

• Coconut rice and a ginger-lime sauce

• Goat cheese, olives and lighter charcuterie

The combination of fruit, freshness and gentle spice makes it particularly good with dishes that include heat, salt or a little richness.

What Other People Are Tasting

Professional tasting notes frequently mention strawberry and red currant, along with the wine’s bright, crisp character.

The producer describes strawberry and blackcurrant aromas, a slight spiciness and a fresh, soft palate.

For me, the most interesting part is the balance: it has enough fruit to be friendly, enough freshness to work with food and just enough personality to make you stop and ask what’s in the glass.

Curious?

Want to learn more about the wine, the grapes and the people behind the bottle?

• Visit the official Q.S.S. Rare website to explore the full collection and its wildlife-conservation mission.

• Read the producer’s detailed wine information for vineyard details, winemaking methods and suggested pairings.

• Learn more about Q.S.S. Rare and winemaker Filipe Sevinate Pinto from its U.S. importer, Grape Expectations.

• See the Wine Enthusiast review of Q.S.S. Rare Rosé for another perspective on what to expect in the glass.

Available for online purchase and pickup at Fisk Bier & Wine in Galesburg, Illinois. The person picking up must be 21 or older and present a valid government-issued photo ID.