Big Sipper Rose

American wine drinkers have fallen in love with rosé and blush wines...one more time. Different styles of rosé have fallen in and out of popularity over the years, with sweet Portuguese rosé all the rage in the 1970s, and California white zinfandel making a sensation in the 1990s. But today’s rosés – dry, refreshing and stylish, made in some of the world’s best winemaking regions – are here to stay.

Rosé wines can be produced anywhere red wine is made. Traditionally, many of the best rosé wines have come from the South of France, where, according to wine authority Jancis Robinson, “there is local demand for a dry wine refreshing enough to be drunk on a hot summer’s day, but which still bears some relation to the red wine so revered by the French.” These easy-drinking, chillable wines are especially fine from the Tavel appellation of Provence, from the Cotes du Rhône and the Costières de Nîmes. They offer bright red-fruit flavors that explode on the palate with lovely balance and acidity. They are perfect for sipping outdoors.