Unlike other countries which usually have one or two primary grapes that they make rosé from, the US accepts all different kinds of grapes! Highly recommend experimenting and taking note of what grape it’s made from if you like it. The quality can vary a bit with the American rosés, so take a few bottle tips from grapefriend. I’ve written about the Envolve and C&C rosés before and still love them, but try out these too:

Chimney Rock 2010, $19

Run, don’t walk – and you have to since this gets sold out. It’s made from Cab Franc and is soooooooo freaking good! My friend brought it back from the Stags Leap winery for me and we had it with a meat and cheese plate and it was perfection. The 2010 is already gone, but luckily they’re releasing the 2011 soon. It can’t be fast enough! Yumbuddy Yumballs.

Halter Ranch 2011, $16

I really like Paso Robles reds, and this is a solid choice for rosé too. It rocks southern Rhone grapes, which I love: 44% Grenache, 28% Syrah, 20% Mourvèdre, 8% Picpoul Blanc.

Anaba Turbine Pink 2010, $22

Loved this so much that we drank it all up before remembering to take a picture of it. That usually doesn’t matter, but with rosé I like to show the color. Ah well, trust me, it’s good – delicious strawberry-heavy rosé from Grenache grapes! (You can see the color on their site, if you wanna.) A wind turbine’s on the label because one harnesses the anabatic winds to generate electricity for the tasting room, wine storage, office operations, and irrigation pumps for their two Sonoma vineyards.

Kuleto Estate 2010, $24

Another solid choice, made from 38% Cab, 23% Zin, 18% Sangiovese, 15% Syrah, and 6% Cab Franc. (Wine Geek Fact: they got a new sorting table with a drain screen that removes juice within seconds after the berries have been broken in the destemmer, making the juice much lighter.) Has the typical rosé strawberry flavor, but I have to quote the Napa winery who says it “moon-walks across the roof of your mouth to the back of your palate.” It’s the Michael Jackson of rosé!

Bedell Taste 2011, $18

This is pale-ish, but I liked it. And I brought it to a BBQ and it was my friend’s favorite wine of the night (and there were a lot of wines at that BBQ), so I always like to pass along tidbits like that in case it turns out to be your favorite, too. This is that winery on the North Fork and their rosé is 60% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, 18% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 2% Syrah. Zippy and light but full of wild strawberry and white peach and a great mineral streak.

Étude 2011, $26

Etude is a winery in Carneros, which is known for amazing Pinot Noir. So obviously the rosé made from Pinot Noir follows suit as a great choice – it’s very lean and light-colored, similar to the French style.

Now, how can we mention Pinot Noir without talking about rosé from Oregon, possibly the best Pinot Noir region in the country? Fear not – the Willamette valley’s getting its own whole post later this week. I’ll also give you a few more American rosés as I keep drinking throughout summer, so stay tuned!