Like most American wine drinkers, we have consumed an ocean of rosé over the past decade. We have lived through Brosé, Frosé, White Girl Rosé, overpriced rosé from Brangelina or Bon Jovi, the Hamptons rosé crisis of 2014, and the unfortunate rise of celebrities pitching “clean” rosé. Rosé is so popular that it recently surpassed red wine in worldwide consumption.

If we’re being completely honest, most dry rosé is . . . fine. It’s refreshing. Inoffensive. There may not be a lot of great rosé, but there’s also not a lot of terrible rosé. Of all the wines, rosé is the most consistently average.

Rosé can come from anywhere in the world—from any red grape—with colors ranging from pale salmon to coral to flamingo to ballet slipper to neon pink. But inexpensive Provence-style rosés saturate the market today, given their massive success.

Jason once met the wine critic for a newspaper in Provence, which supplies a huge share of the world’s rosé. This guy told him that, every year, he must review more than 500 local rosés. He bemoaned the struggle to differentiate and describe the various pink wines. “How many times can I write ‘strawberry’ or ‘flowers’ or ‘watermelon’? It’s a descent into madness.”

Your typical Provence-style rosé is made using direct press, sees little to no maceration, and goes into stainless steel tanks shortly before bottling. This produces wine with little color or body. Many rosés are just trying to mimic this style: pale pink water, with just enough fruit to balance the acidity. Fresh, but forgettable.

We generally shell out around $12.99 for rosé. We stick it in the fridge, and at some point the rosé is opened and guzzled. Afterwards, we rarely think about or speak of the rosé again. And yet, every once in a blue moon, we encounter a rosé that sets itself apart from Whispering Angel or Miraval or Hampton Water. These complex, ageworthy rosés are some of the most special (and often rare) wines to be found.

So, what makes a high-end rosé? For starters, they’re made from grapes that lend more body, along with sapidity or a savory quality. Think grapes like Cabernet Franc, Mourvèdre, Syrah, Nebbiolo, or Carignan. Look for appellations such as Tavel, Bandol, Bourgueil, and Chinon.

Many are made from old vines that produce lower yields with greater concentration of flavor. They often see a period of extended maceration, which means riper grapes and some phenolic extraction. Some of these rosés see added complexity from oak aging (and they’re made from fruit that can withstand oak). These rosés show flavors and aromas beyond simple fruit and flowers. They don’t simply take a back seat to food, but truly sing when they’re part of a meal.

All of the following are serious rosés that will do more than just cool off your summer weekends. These are wines that will make you sit up and take note, and carry you into the crisp days of early fall—and even stand up to winter holiday meals.

Great Rosés—For Any Time of Year

2022 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rosé ($40)

One of the world’s great rosés. From Bandol, Provence’s most famous appellation, made from a blend of 55 percent Mourvèdre, 25 percent Grenache, and 20 percent Cinsaut. Its color is reminiscent of a rose gold iPhone, and there’s a swirl of complex fruity, floral, and herbal notes: herbes de Provence, flower stem, bramble, watermelon rind, wild raspberry.

2021 Yannick Amirault Rosé d'Equinoxe Bourgueil ($34)

Even though it’s a rosé, Amirault calls this his “blanc de noirs.” Salmon-orange in color, zero maceration, direct pressed, fermented in barrel (with some malo) and aged 10 months in 400-liter casks. An amazing, complex nose with white flowers, summer peach, and ripe pear. In the mouth, cherry, red berry, blood orange, and an underlying minerality. Great texture here, with a balance of creaminess and precise acidity. Unique, seamless, serious rosé. Jason has also tasted a number of bottlings that were aged several years, all of which showed that this wine only gets more complex with time.

2012 López de Heredia Rosado Gran Reserva ($140)

Among the most unique rosés in the world, a dark salmon-colored blend of Garnacha (60 percent), Tempranillo (30 percent), and Viura (10 percent), aged four years in barrel. It’s full-bodied and creamy, floral and nutty, with notes of plum, blood orange, apricot, spice—even hints of tobacco and stone. It almost defies description, as you might expect from López de Heredia. (And yes—2012 is the current release.)

Domaine de l’Anglore Tavel ($98)

The benchmark wine from Domaine de l’Anglore, and undoubtedly the most famous Tavel wine in the world. Bright, perfumed, and lifted. Gorgeous strawberry, pomegranate, and rose petals on the nose, and so delicately chalky and vibrant on the palate. A special rosé. Believe the hype. Fintan Kerr

Domaine de la Mordorée La Reine des Bois ($40)

A relatively unknown gem from deep in the heart of Tavel, the so-called “Queen of the Woods” cuvée is produced from the oldest vines of Grenache, Syrah, Clairette, and Cinsaut. Ripe cherry, orange rind, hints of vanilla, and crème brûlée. Tangy yet intense, with an almost salty twist to the finish. Delicious. Fintan Kerr

2022 Bernard Baudry Chinon Rosé ($27)

One of our go-tos, an elegant standard bearer for Loire rosé from Cabernet Franc. Salmon colored, balanced, notes of juicy red berries and pretty purple flowers, but also something deeper and more savory and spicy. 

2021 Tenuta di Montecchiesi Versý in Rosé ($25)

From Tuscany, mostly Syrah with a touch of Vermentino, fermented and aged eight months in large oak casks. Pale pink, bright and full of energy, with complex notes of cherry, red berries, and melon, with firm structure, and an underlying salinity on the long finish. Tasting older vintages attests to how ageworthy this one is.

2022 Lioco Rosé of Carignan Mendocino County ($27)

Husband and wife winemaking team Matt and Sara Licklider sourced the fruit for this rosé from a single vineyard owned by the Bartolomei brothers in Talmage, east of the Ukiah Valley bench in Mendocino. The vines are dry-farmed and more than 70 years old, giving complexity and weight to the wine. A glassful of summer: the first strawberries of the year at the farmers’s market, white peaches, tomato vines, all illuminated by the electric acidity of Carignan.

2022 Clos Cibonne Cuvée Tradition Côtes de Provence ($45)

The famed Tibouren grape of Provence stars in this iconic rosé, with 10 percent Grenache to comply with the appellation’s blending rules. The grapes are pressed directly and the juice spends more than a year in 100-year-old casks, under a film of flor that gives the wine a distinct, sherry-like almond note. Bright copper in the glass. This will transport you to the coast of Provence: lemon zest, lavender, thyme, juicy raspberries, candied ginger, wrapped up with a stony and saline finish. This wine comes alive with food—its rich texture, herbal notes, and ripe fruit pair well with chicken, pork, or any kind of fish. Lovely to drink now, but absolutely an ageworthy gem.

2021 Domaine Bruno Clair Marsannay Rosé ($40)

Made from 100 percent Pinot Noir from the domaine’s home village of Marsannay (the source of most rosé from Burgundy). Partially direct press, partially cold macerated for three to four days before spending 10 months in barrels and foudres, this elegant rosé is light ruby red in the glass, with a very pronounced nose of sweet baking spices and ripe fruit that translates to the palate. Blood orange, redcurrant, ripe red cherry, and a lingering finish of late-summer strawberries.

2022 Château Simone Palette ($90)

From the tiny appellation—just 46 hectares—of Palette in the heart of Provence. Forty-five percent Grenache, 30 percent Mourvèdre, 5 percent Cinsaut, and small amounts of Syrah, Castet, Carignan, Manosquin, and Muscat Noir and Blanc. Aged in small casks, the oak is beautifully integrated, with the fruit still firmly leading the way. Deep, copper-tinged pink in the glass, with a redolent nose of mint, violets, rhubarb, and cherry cordial. With a bit of air, it comes alive. A mile-long finish. Stunning on its own, but with the body and spicy, savory profile to pair perfectly with food. Totally accessible in youth, with unmatched aging potential. 

2022 Hope Well Improbable Eola-Amity Hills Rosé Noir ($38)

Not your everyday rosé blend: 80 percent Pinot Noir (from Swan and Calera clones) and 20 percent Chenin Blanc, courtesy of Mimi Casteel, Oregon’s most vocal progenitor of regenerative agriculture. Decidedly Tavel-like in appearance—a shimmering melange of salmon and deeper pink tones with orangey highlights—and surprising on the palate. Stony, saline, and utterly refreshing, with sufficient fruit to intrigue and entice. Fewer than 1000 bottles were produced, so grab this quick. Jon Fine

2022 Domaines Ott Château Romassan Rosé ($50)

Founded by engineer Marcel Ott in 1896, this historic producer—now owned by Champagne house Louis Roederer—was a pioneer of rosé winemaking in Provence. Château Romassan, one of three distinctive estates owned by Domaines Ott, sits on poor limestone marl in Bandol, and the 2022 vintage is the first to be certified organic. Fifty-five percent Mourvèdre, 25 percent Cinsaut, and 20 percent Grenache. Aged in oak for six to eight months. Pink gold in color; notes of melon, pink grapefruit, star anise, and white blossoms, with garrigue fading in and out as if carried on a light breeze. An enduring finish with hints of sea salt and vanilla. Its high proportion of Mourvèdre will allow this rosé to evolve further in the bottle. A perfect match for classic Provençal bouillabaisse.

2022 François Cotat Chavignol Sancerre Rosé ($100)

100 percent Pinot, from a tiny plot of 30-plus-year-old vines grown in soils rich in limestone and clay, and produced by this scion of one of the cornerstone families in Sancerre. Honeysuckle and white peach on the nose. The latter carries through the surprisingly rich texture on the palate, amid other ripe orchard fruit, framed by a refreshing acidity that hints at grapefruit There’s a serious crunch of minerality during the long and lingering finish. That said: don’t open this one for years. Jon Fine