Five Roses rosé is one of Italy’s most historic rosé wines. Produced by the Leone de Castris winery in Salento, Puglia, Five Roses was created in 1943 and is recognized by the winery as the first rosé wine to be bottled and commercially sold in Italy. Its story began during World War II, when an encounter with the Allied forces helped take this Puglian rosato far beyond the vineyards where it was born.
Made primarily from Negroamaro, one of Puglia’s most important native red grapes, Five Roses combines the freshness expected from a rosé with the character of a grape deeply connected to Salento. More than eighty years after its creation, the wine is still produced by Leone de Castris and remains closely associated with the history of Italian rosato.
In this guide, we’ll look at the story behind Five Roses, the Salento territory and Negroamaro grape, how the wine is made, its aromas and flavors, and the Italian foods that pair particularly well with it.
What Is Five Roses?
Five Roses is a Salento IGT rosé produced by Leone de Castris, a historic winery based in Salice Salentino, in southern Puglia. The Leone de Castris family’s winemaking history in the area dates back to 1665, while the winery began bottling its wines in 1925.
Today, Five Roses is made primarily from Negroamaro grapes grown in Salento. Its distinctive identity comes from the combination of this native Puglian grape, a short rosé vinification, and a history that has linked the wine with international markets since its earliest years.
The Story of Five Roses
The story of Five Roses begins during one of the most difficult periods in modern Italian history. Leone de Castris had already begun bottling wine in Salice Salentino in 1925, but it was during World War II that Don Piero Leone de Castris created the wine that would become the winery’s most famous label.
The Birth of Five Roses in 1943
In 1943, Don Piero offered his rosé to Charles Poletti, the American general responsible for supplies to the Allied forces. The wine impressed him, and Poletti requested a large quantity. There was one unusual condition: although the wine was Italian, it needed a name that would sound American.
That request helped give birth to Five Roses. The wine was also exported to the United States from the beginning, establishing an international connection that was highly unusual for an Italian rosato of the period.
Five Roses therefore occupies an unusual place in Italian wine history. Its creation was shaped not only by the winemaking traditions of Salento but also by the circumstances of wartime Italy and the presence of the Allied forces in Puglia.
Why Is It Called Five Roses?
Despite the American-sounding name, Five Roses has very local roots. The name comes from Cinque Rose, a contrada on the Leone de Castris family’s estate near Salice Salentino. According to the family’s tradition, the area itself acquired this name because, for several generations, members of the Leone de Castris family consistently had five children.
When General Poletti asked for an American name for the rosé, translating Cinque Rose into Five Roses provided an elegant solution: the wine could have an English name while preserving a direct connection to the land where its grapes were grown.
More than eight decades later, the name still reflects the unusual meeting of Salento tradition and international history behind the wine.
Salento: The Land Behind Five Roses
Five Roses is deeply connected to Salento, the southernmost part of Puglia that forms the heel of Italy’s boot. Leone de Castris is based in Salice Salentino, in the province of Lecce, where the family has been involved in winemaking for centuries.
This is a landscape strongly associated with Negroamaro, the native red grape at the heart of Five Roses. The grapes for Five Roses are generally harvested during the first ten days of September.
Salento also has a particularly strong tradition of rosé production. Here, rosato is not simply a lighter alternative to red wine. Dark-skinned local grapes such as Negroamaro can produce rosé wines with freshness and fruit while retaining enough character and structure to accompany food.
Negroamaro: The Grape Behind Five Roses
Negroamaro is the principal grape used to make Five Roses and one of the varieties most closely identified with Salento. Although widely used to produce red wines, its dark skins also make it particularly suitable for rosato, where limited contact between juice and skins allows the winemaker to extract color and flavor without producing a full red wine.
Historically, Leone de Castris has described Five Roses as a blend of 90% Negroamaro and 10% Malvasia Nera, and a technical sheet for the 2021 vintage gives the same proportions. Current information for the 2025 wine, however, identifies Negroamaro as the main grape without specifying the complete blend, so the 90/10 composition is better understood as the wine’s traditional formula rather than assumed to apply unchanged to every vintage.
Malvasia Nera has traditionally been grown alongside Negroamaro in this part of Puglia. When used in the blend, it can contribute body and savoriness while remaining relatively low in tannin.
Negroamaro nevertheless remains the defining grape of Five Roses, providing the fruit, character, and structure that distinguish it from more delicate styles of rosé.
How Five Roses Is Made
Five Roses is made from dark-skinned grapes, primarily Negroamaro, but the key to its rosé style lies in controlling how long the juice remains in contact with the skins.
For the 2025 vintage, the grapes undergo skin maceration at 10°C (50°F) for a few hours. This brief, cool maceration allows the must to acquire its characteristic pink color while limiting the extraction of the deeper pigments and tannins associated with red wine. After maceration, the winery extracts 50% of the free-run must, the juice that separates from the grapes without heavy pressing.
The must is then allowed to settle before alcoholic fermentation begins in stainless-steel tanks at 16–20°C (61–68°F). Controlled-temperature fermentation helps preserve the fresh fruit aromas of the wine.
After fermentation, Five Roses spends at least two months in stainless steel, followed by one month of bottle ageing before release, keeping the focus on freshness and fruit.
Five Roses Tasting Notes
Five Roses has a distinctly fruity character, balanced by the freshness and moderate structure that make it particularly versatile at the table.
Appearance
In the glass, Five Roses shows a bright, crystalline cherry-pink color. The exact shade can vary slightly between vintages, but its vivid pink appearance is one of the wine’s recognizable characteristics.
Aroma
The aromatic profile is centered on fresh red fruit, particularly cherry, wild strawberry, and raspberry. The 2025 vintage also shows subtle notes of lemon zest and fresh herbs, which add freshness and complexity to the fruit-driven bouquet.
Palate
On the palate, Five Roses is fresh, smooth, and persistent, with lively acidity balancing its ripe fruit character. The 2025 vintage also shows a pleasantly creamy texture and a juicy, lingering finish.
The combination of fruit, acidity, and moderate structure gives Five Roses enough personality to work not only as an aperitif but also as a wine for the table.
How to Serve Five Roses
Five Roses is best served chilled at 10–12°C (50–54°F). This temperature emphasizes its freshness and fruit aromas without chilling the wine so much that its flavors become muted.
Serve it in a medium-sized white wine or rosé glass, which gives its fruit aromas enough room to develop. There is generally no need to decant a fresh rosé of this style.
Five Roses Food Pairing
Leone de Castris recommends pairing Five Roses with risotto, boiled meats, fish dishes, and white meats, and particularly recommends it with frisa salentina, the traditional twice-baked bread of Salento. Its freshness and fruity character also make it particularly versatile at the table.
For example, you can pair Five Roses with some of these Italian dishes:
- Scallops au Gratin — the delicate flavor of the scallops and their golden breadcrumb topping work well with the wine’s freshness and fruity character.
- Tagliolini with Lobster — a natural Mediterranean pairing, where the freshness of the rosé complements the sweetness of the lobster and the flavors of the seafood sauce.
- Swordfish Skewers — the structure of Five Roses works particularly well with meaty swordfish, while its freshness complements the Mediterranean flavors of the dish.
Five Roses Anniversario
In 1993, fifty years after the creation of the original Five Roses, Leone de Castris introduced Five Roses Anniversario to celebrate the wine’s 50th anniversary. It is a distinct expression of the rosé rather than simply a commemorative label.
Historically, the difference also extended to the blend: Leone de Castris describes the original Five Roses as 90% Negroamaro and 10% Malvasia Nera, while the Anniversario was created with 80% Negroamaro and 20% Malvasia Nera. The Anniversario remains in production today alongside Five Roses.
Why Five Roses Still Matters Today
More than eighty years after its creation, Five Roses remains closely connected to Negroamaro, Salento, and the Leone de Castris family, while its unusual wartime origins give it a special place in the history of Italian rosato.
What began as a Puglian rosé with an English name soon reached the United States and has continued to be produced across generations. Today, Five Roses offers more than an interesting story: it combines a native Italian grape, a strong sense of place, and a style that remains remarkably suited to the Italian table.
