Following almost two years living in the Napa Valley, I was finally invited to Spottswoode. Alas, I never tasted a drop of Spottswoode wine, but I did sit across from Beth, the owner, and it was an amazing experience to listen to her feedback.

The reason I sat at the tasting table in this historic family estate in St. Helena was to blind taste 16 rosé wines. The event was coordinated by Claire Ducrocq Weinkauf, a French native who grew up in Auvergne and moved to Calistoga with her husband, winemaker at Spottswoode. Claire is the owner of Calistoga’s Picayune Cellars & Mercantile, and I love her rosé.

Tasting in groups of four wines, there were about 8 wine tasters who sniffed, swirled, sniffed and sipped to decide whether each rosé was Old World or New World, hipster-worthy and within price ranges of under $15, $16-$25 or over $26 a bottle. We graded by number and discussed the wines of each grouping.

The million dollar question remains: Is rosé is a wine to take seriously or is it a pool wine … a flavored beverage? Could rosé be food-pairing-worthy and serious competition among whites and reds? Well, one factor is certain: rosé wine has piqued as a summer trend for 2017. My guess is that the strong will survive, and out of 16 tastings, I’ll share with you my shortlist of five worthwhile rosé wines to sip past summer.

#1 – Azur 2016 – New World, Hipster, over $26 blend of gamay, Grenache and barbera grapes.

#2 – Terrebrune – Old World, established, over $36 a bottle

#3 – Miraval – Yes, this is the Angelina Jolie/Brad Pitt rosé – Old world, $16-$25 a bottle, soft on the palate and good minerality.

#4 – Picayune – made with syrah, Grenache and barbera grapes, priced $16-$25, New World and hipster

#5 – Hogwash – New World made with Grenache grapes with alluring aroma and taste

Remember, rosé all day!