Summer is rosé season, and there’s no better time to open a bottle of pink wine than Fourth of July weekend. You can, of course, drink rosé year-round – I do – but it’s particularly thirst-quenching when the weather is hot. (And it’s a good choice with hot dogs!)

   Rosés from Provence are particularly popular these days, but you’ll also find some attractive bottles from the southern Rhône River valley. I tasted some refreshing versions recently at a Rhône Valley trade tasting.

    Costières de Nîmes, in the southwest of the Rhône region, is the source of some excellent examples of rosé. For example, the 2022 Domaine Gassier “Brise de Grenache” Rosé ($20), which is mostly grenache, is very fresh, with raspberry and cranberry flavors and a saline note that would keep me coming back for more. Or there’s the 2022 Château Mourgues du Grès “Fleur d’Eglantine” Rosé ($17), a blend of grenache, cinsault and mourvèdre that has some weight and displays bright flavors of watermelon and strawberry with an undertone of wet stone.

   The 2022 M. Chapoutier “Belleruche” Rosé ($17), from the broader Côtes du Rhône appellation, offers lively strawberry and lemon with some weight and richness. The wine, a blend of grenache, syrah and cinsault, is widely available.

   From Italy, the 2022 Masciarelli Colline Teatine Rosato ($14) is bargain-priced and brimming with juicy cherry and cranberry and a whisper of tannin that stands up to food. The grape is montepulciano d’Abruzzo.

   Finally, if you’d prefer to stick with a U.S. wine to celebrate American independence, try the very pure and refreshing 2022 Sonoma-Cutrer Rosé of Pinot Noir ($20). This Russian River Valley wine is racy and delicious, with golden raspberry, a hint of cranberry and just 11.9 percent alcohol.