Perfumed, pink & popular: Rosé is no longer considered lolly water for summer. Photo / Adobe Stock
Soaring in popularity over the past 10-20 years, rosé accounts for almost 10% of the world’s wine output. France is the largest producer, ahead of Spain, the US and Italy. In New Zealand, where it was long viewed as lolly water, rosé is now our fifth largest wine export, behind
sauvignon blanc, pinot gris, pinot noir and chardonnay.
Rosés are “well suited to frivolity”, according to New Zealand Winegrowers, but “they can also offer substance and sophistication”. The statistics suggest rosé is no longer viewed as solely a summer beverage, but a vibrant and versatile wine style, to be enjoyed year-round.
Black Cottage Marlborough Rosé 2025
★★★★
Bright, light pink, this highly attractive wine is a blend of varieties. Already delicious, it has fresh, gentle strawberry, spice and watermelon flavours, lively acidity and a dry, lengthy finish. Good value. (12.5% alc/vol) $18
Church Road Gwen Hawke’s Bay Rosé 2024
★★★★
This distinctive, pink/slight orange wine is a generous, syrah-based rosé. Ideal with food, it has very good depth of fresh, peachy, gently spicy flavours, yeasty notes adding complexity, a touch of tannin, and plenty of palate interest. (12.5% alc/vol) $25
Colere Southern Valleys Florette 2023
★★★★★
Highly characterful, this is a single-vineyard Marlborough blend of sauvignon blanc (60%) and pinot noir (40%), hand-picked, fermented with the use of old barrels and bottled unfined and unfiltered. Pale orange with a hint of straw, it is fragrant, weighty and savoury, with concentrated peach, strawberry and spice flavours, a gentle touch of tannin and impressive depth, complexity and harmony. Worth discovering. (14% alc/vol) $45
Dancing Water Central Otago Pinot Noir Rosé 2025
★★★★★
Hand harvested at Cromwell, this bright pink wine is mouthfilling and vibrant, with gentle peach, watermelon and spice flavours showing lovely delicacy and poise. Dry, with balanced acidity and excellent harmony, it offers top value. (14% alc/vol) $25
Dancing Water Central Otago Pinot Noir Rosé 2025. Image / Supplied
Dancing Water Rosé Du Cygne Limited Release 2025
★★★★★
Strikingly packaged, this pale pink, faintly orange rosé was estate grown and hand picked from old vines at Waipara, in North Canterbury. Partly barrel fermented, it is very finely textured, with mouthfilling body and delicate, peachy, strawberryish flavours showing a distinct touch of complexity. A very harmonious wine with lovely mouthfeel, it’s already delicious. (13.5% alc/vol) $45
Dancing Water Rosé Du Cygne Limited Release 2025. Image / Supplied
Dunnolly North Canterbury Pinot Noir Rosé 2025
★★★★
Bright pink, this lively wine offers good drinking this summer. Full bodied and vibrantly fruity, it has fresh, delicate watermelon, strawberry and spice flavours, unobtrusive sweetness and a finely balanced, smooth finish. (13.5% alc/vol) $20
Greystone Waipara Valley North Canterbury Rosé 2025
★★★★
Certified organic, this is an estate-grown blend of pinot noir, pinot gris and riesling. Bright, light pink, it is medium bodied, with vibrant, delicate peach, strawberry, watermelon and spice flavours woven with lively acidity, gentle yeasty notes and a basically dry finish. (12% alc/vol) $28
Hawkshead Central Otago Pinot Rosé 2024
★★★★½
Full, bright pink, this pinot noir-based rosé was hand picked at Gibbston (70%) and Lowburn (30%) and handled in stainless steel tanks. Perfumed and full-bodied, it is vibrantly fruity, with strong, strawberryish, slightly spicy flavours, fresh acidity and a dry finish. (13.5% alc/vol) $38
Jackson Estate Alayna Marlborough Pinot Rosé 2024
★★★★½
Bright pink/pale red, this distinctive rosé was made from pinot noir. Weighty, fleshy and exuberantly fruity, it has strong, ripe, strawberryish flavours, gentle spicy notes and a basically dry finish. A powerful style of rosé, it’s slightly more “red wine-y” than most. (14% alc/vol) $21
Jackson Estate Alayna Marlborough Pinot Rosé 2024. Image / Supplied
Johner Estate Gladstone Rosé 2023
★★★★
The wine I tasted in late 2025 was a different bottling to two earlier releases. Grown at Gladstone in the Wairarapa, it is pale red, mouthfilling and smooth, with balanced acidity, a sliver of sweetness and strong strawberry, peach and spice flavours. Still lively, it’s ready to roll this summer. (13% alc/vol) $25
Jules Taylor The Jules Rosé 2024
★★★★½
Priced right, this is an attractive blend of merlot (82%) grown in Gisborne, and Marlborough pinot noir (18%). Bright, light pink, it is fresh and weighty, with strong, ripe flavours of peaches, watermelon, strawberries and spices, and a very harmonious, dry finish. (13% alc/vol) $26
Jules Taylor The Jules Rosé 2024. Image / Supplied
Kōparapare Marlborough Pinot Noir Rosé 2024
★★★★
Kōparepare wines are made by Whitehaven for LegaSea (to help fund the restoration of inshore fisheries). Bright, light pink, this vigorous, freshly scented rosé has vibrant, delicate strawberry, watermelon and spice flavours, and a crisp, dry finish. A real charmer. (12.5% alc/vol) $21
Main Divide North Canterbury Rosé 2024
★★★★
This crisp, lively rosé is from a “unique assemblage of varieties” – past releases have included pinot noir, cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc. Bright pink, with fresh, berryish aromas, it has vigorous strawberry, peach and watermelon flavours, dry and revealing very good depth. (12.5% alc/vol) $22
Main Divide North Canterbury Rosé 2024. Image / Supplied
Māori Point Central Otago Pinot Noir Rosé 2025
★★★★½
Sporting an attractive, bright-pink hue, this delicious rosé is mouthfilling and vibrantly fruity, with generous strawberry, watermelon, peach and apricot flavours, a touch of tannin and a dryish finish. (13.4% alc/vol) $30
ME by Matahiwi Estate Wairarapa Pinot Rosé 2025
★★★★
Made from pinot noir, this is good value. Bright pink, it is an attractively scented, light- to medium-bodied wine, very fresh and vibrant, with strong watermelon, strawberry and spice flavours and a well-rounded finish. Enjoyable from the start. (12% alc/vol) $19
ME by Matahiwi Estate Wairarapa Pinot Rosé 2025. Image / Supplied
Misha’s Vineyard The Soloist Central Otago Pinot Rosé 2025
★★★★★
Instantly attractive, this pinot noir-based rosé was estate-grown at Bendigo and handled almost entirely in stainless steel tanks; 3% of the blend was fermented in seasoned oak barrels. Bright, light pink, it is mouthfilling, with strong peach, watermelon and strawberry flavours showing excellent delicacy and vibrancy, gentle acidity and a finely textured, dry, lengthy finish. (13.5% alc/vol) $32
Misty Cove Landmark Series Marlborough Rosé 2025
★★★★★
Instantly appealing, this distinctive rosé is from pinot noir grapes, estate grown and hand harvested inland from Renwick. Pale pink, it is full bodied, fresh and vibrant, with strawberryish, gently peachy and spicy flavours showing excellent delicacy and depth. Finely textured, with a basically dry, lingering finish, it’s well worth discovering. (13.5% alc/vol) $25
Misty Cove Landmark Series Marlborough Rosé 2025. Image / Supplied
Mora Bannockburn Central Otago Pinot Rosé 2024
★★★★★
This refined, single-vineyard wine was hand harvested from 29-year-old pinot noir vines, tank fermented and aged for three months on its yeast lees. Bright, light pink, it is mouthfilling and vibrant, with impressive delicacy and depth of strawberry, watermelon, peach and spice flavours, fresh acidity and a dry, lengthy finish. Top drinking for this summer. (13.7% alc/vol) $43
Mount Brown North Canterbury Rosé 2025
★★★★
Priced very sharply, this is a blend of varieties (in the past including pinot noir, tempranillo and syrah). Bright pink, it is floral and medium bodied, with very good depth of fresh, lively strawberry and spice flavours and an off-dry, finely poised finish. Top value. (12% alc/vol) $16
Neudorf Tiritiri Nelson Rosé 2025
★★★★½
Part of Neudorf’s “Grower Series”, this pinot noir-based rosé was mostly handled in tanks; 10% of the blend was fermented in old barrels. Bright, light pink, it is mouthfilling, with good intensity of peach, strawberry and watermelon flavours, some savoury notes adding complexity and a crisp, dry finish. (13% alc/vol) $25
Paddy Borthwick Wairarapa Pinot Rosé 2025
★★★★★
From pinot noir vines estate-grown at Gladstone, part of this light pink wine is aged briefly in old French oak casks. Fragrant and full bodied, it has unusual complexity for a rosé, with a lovely spread of dry peach, strawberry and spice flavours, showing excellent delicacy, vigour, harmony and length. It’s already delicious. (13.5% alc/vol) $25
Palliser Estate Martinborough Rosé 2025
★★★★½
Made from estate-grown pinot noir and bottled after three months of ageing on its yeast lees, this bright, light-pink wine is refined and vigorous. It has fresh peach, watermelon, strawberry and spice flavours woven with lively acidity and a finely poised, dry finish. Best drinking mid-2026+. (12.5% alc/vol) $35
Palliser Estate Martinborough Rosé 2025. Image / Supplied
Pyramid Valley North Canterbury Rosé 2024
★★★★★
This distinctive, gently pink wine is from mature pinot noir vines. Fermented in old oak casks and tulip-shaped concrete tanks, it is weighty and dry, with deep peach, strawberry and spice flavours, a hint of oranges and a long, savoury finish. A serious, satisfying rosé, it’s a drink-now or cellaring proposition. (13.5% alc/vol) $40
Quartz Reef Bendigo Pinot Rosé 2025
★★★★★
Certified organic, this estate-grown wine was hand harvested at Bendigo in Central Otago. Bright, light pink, it is mouthfilling and vibrantly fruity, with ripe peach, strawberry and watermelon flavours showing excellent delicacy and depth, gentle acidity and a smooth, fully dry, persistent finish. Delicious from the start. (13.5% alc/vol) $36
Rabbit Ranch Central Otago Pinot Rosé 2024
★★★½
Ready to roll, this is a full-bodied style of rosé. Pink/slight orange, it has good depth of lively strawberry and spice flavours, a hint of apricot, fresh acidity and a dry finish. (13.5% alc/vol) $22
Riverby Estate Single Vineyard Marlborough Rosé 2025
★★★★
Ready for this summer, this pale pink rosé was made predominantly from pinot noir, estate grown in the Wairau Valley. Medium- to full-bodied, it has very good depth of peach, strawberry and watermelon flavours which are fresh, delicate and vibrant, and a basically dry finish. (12.5% alc/vol) $24
Seifried Nelson Rosé 2025
★★★★
Very fresh and lively, this bright pink rosé is from the malbec variety. Instantly attractive, it has gentle red fruit, strawberry and spice flavours showing good delicacy and a dryish, crisp, very harmonious finish. (12.2% alc/vol) $20
Tohu Pinot Noir Nelson Rosé 2025
★★★½
Priced right, this light-pink, youthful wine was made from pinot noir grapes, estate grown at Upper Moutere. Fresh and lively, it is medium bodied, with good depth of gentle strawberry, watermelon and spice flavours, appetisingly crisp and dry. Best drinking mid-2026+. (12.5% alc/vol) $19
Two Paddocks Central Otago Pinot Noir Rosé 2025
★★★★½
Certified organic, this highly attractive wine was estate-grown and hand picked at Alexandra and Bannockburn. Bright pink, it is fresh and smooth flowing, with watermelon, strawberry and gentle spice flavours showing excellent delicacy, balanced acidity and a dry finish. Still unfolding, it should be at its best mid-2026+. (13.5% alc/vol) $35
Two Rivers Isle of Beauty Marlborough Rosé 2025
★★★★★
Grown at four sites in the upper Wairau Valley, Waihopai Valley and Southern Valleys, this is a classy, youthful blend of pinot noir (principally), syrah and viognier. Bright, light pink, it is invitingly scented, with fresh, peachy, strawberryish, gently spicy flavours showing excellent delicacy and vibrancy, lively acidity and a finely poised, dry, sustained finish. Best drinking mid-2026+. (12.5% alc/vol) $25
Villa Maria Blush New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc 2025
★★★
This distinctive, bright-pink wine was made principally from sauvignon blanc, blended with a splash of red wine. Fresh and lively, it is medium bodied, with passionfruit and herbal flavours to the fore, hints of red berries and a crisp, basically dry finish. Drink young. (12% alc/vol) $17
Villa Maria Cellar Selection Marlborough Pinot Noir Rosé 2024
★★★★
Bright, light pink, this is a fresh, light-bodied, very lively wine. It has vibrant, delicate strawberry and watermelon flavours, with a crisp, basically dry finish. Full of youthful drive, it’s delicious now. (12.5% alc/vol) $16
Waimea Nelson Pinot Noir Rosé 2025
★★★★
Priced right, this bright-pink, very fresh and lively wine is medium bodied. It offers very good depth of delicate strawberry, watermelon, peach and spice flavours, with a crisp, dryish, finely balanced finish. It’s ready to roll. (12% alc/vol) $20
Waimea Nelson Pinot Noir Rosé 2025. Image / Supplied
Whitehaven Marlborough Pinot Noir Rosé 2025
★★★★½
Estate grown in the Wairau Valley, this refined wine offers good value. Bright, light pink, it is fresh and medium bodied, with strong peach, strawberry, watermelon and spice flavours, showing good delicacy and vibrancy, lively acidity and a fully dry finish. (12.5% alc/vol) $25
Wild Earth Central Otago Pinot Noir Rosé 2024
★★★★★
Bright pink, with fresh, inviting scents, this single-vineyard wine was hand picked at Pisa, in the Cromwell Basin. Finely crafted, it is full bodied and fleshy, with vibrant peach, strawberry and watermelon flavours showing excellent delicacy, depth and harmony, and a dry, smooth finish. Top drinking. (14% alc/vol) $32
Zaria Hawke’s Bay Malbec Rosé 2024
★★★★½
Currently delicious, this finely balanced, single-vineyard wine was estate grown in the Bridge Pa Triangle. A blend of malbec (55%) and merlot (45%), it is bright pink, fresh and lively, with strong, ripe, berryish flavours. Vibrant, fully dry and smooth. (12% alc/vol) $25
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