If there’s an ultimate California wine, it’s got to be a cool, crisp California rosé crafted by one of the state’s ultra talented female winemakers. It makes sense, right? The California vibe is all about sun, laid back days, and sunsets overflowing with shades of Malibu pink.
Embrace your inner California girl and raise a glass to these female winemakers in California crafting some of the best rosé wine in the Golden State. Don’t forget to check out this list of rosé wine captions for Instagram. They pair perfectly with all of your social media posts!
Winemaker Martha Stoumen
Post Flirtation Rose #2, Martha Stoumen Wines
Martha Stoumen is the queen of low intervention winemaking, sustainable vineyard practices, and natural wine in Sonoma. Her Post Flirtation Rosé wine is made with co-fermented Carignan and Colombard grapes from the Ricetti Vineyard, its fruit forward and, well, pretty flirty on the palate. This California rosé is perfect for kicking back by the ocean while the summer sun shines overhead.
Winemaker Victoria Coleman
2022 Rosé of Pinot Noir, Lobo Wines Napa
When we talk about female winemakers who have blazed trails for otherss to follow, we’re talking about ladies like Victoria Coleman. Victoria’s Lobo Wines’ Rosé of Pinot Noir is one of the most popular wines among the Napa wine crowd, and bottles always sell out.
Minerality, ripe strawberry and cherry fruit, and zippy citrus electrify this summer-friendly wine. Napa’s Lobo Wines is lucky to have a winemaker with two significant “firsts” attached to her name. Not only is Victoria Coleman the first black woman to graduate from the UC Davis enology/viticulture program, but she is the first black female winemaker in the Napa Valley.
Winemaker Jessica Gasca
Gold Coast Vineyard Rosé of Pinot Noir, Story of Soil Wines
Jessica Gasca, the winemaker and proprietor of Story of Soil Wines, a boutique winery in the Central Coast’s Los Olivos District AVA, crafts some of the most approachable, low intervention wines in California. This winery is all about showcasing just how important healthy soil and organic farming practices are to producing good wines. Jessica’s Gold Coast Vineyard Rosé of Pinot Noir is a killer, small batch wine (just 250 cases produced!) that is dry, crisp, and a gorgeous salmon pink in the glass.
Story of Soil is considered one of the best Los Olivos wineries, so what are you waiting for? Get out there and grab a bottle this summer.
Winemaker Nicole Walsh
Ser Sparkling Rosé of Grenache, Ser Winery
Ser Wine’s Sparkling Rosé of Grenache, by Santa Cruz winemaker Nicole Walsh, is a delightfully fizzy wine with a strawberries and cream palate that’s as effervescent as the waves that Nicole loves surfing. It’s easy to picture Barbie cruising up the Pacific Coast Highway from Malibu to Santa Cruz in her pink convertible and stopping at the Doon to Earth tasting room in Aptos that Ser Wines shares with Bonny Doon Vineyards.
A fun fact about Nicole Walsh: she’s also one of the only winemakers (not just female winemakers – winemakers in the entire world!) in the world to work with Cabernet Pfeffer, one of the rarest grapes on the planet.
Winemaker Megan Bell
Central Coast Rosé & Santa Cruz Mountains Rosé, Margins Wine
I’ll just come out and say it: I love Megan Bell’s Margins Wine, and I’m pretty sure you’re going to like it too. Megan chose the name “Margins” for her wine brand because she hunts for grapes in lesser appreciated AVAs like Santa Clara County and the Santa Cruz Mountains. She’s also a pro at working with lesser known varieties like Vedejo, Assyrtiko and White Pinot Noir. These are low alcohol natural wines that are just divine.
Winemaker Vanessa Robledo
2022 Rosé of Grenache Napa Valley, Vintner’s Diary
Barbie would love everything about winemaker Vanessa Robledo’s story, and the very first wine launching under her Vintner’s Diary brand that just so happens to be a California rosé. The Vintner’s Diary 2022 Rosé of Grenache Napa Valley wasn’t just crafted by Robledo, her mother and daughter both had a hand in sending this new wine out into the world, making it a true multi-generational family dream come true.
Winemaker Vanessa Robledo is one of the wine industry’s most prominent Latina winemakers, and she has been paving the way for Mexican-American vintners since she helped her father open the Robledo Family winery when she was just 19 years old. Vintner’s Diary is a new wine brand from a female winemaker that is worth watching.
Lady of the Sunshine
Rose, 90% Pinot Noir, 10% Sauv Blanc, Lady of the Sunshine Wines
Is there a better name for a winery than Lady of the Sunshine? This is a name that totally and completely evokes California, and those California girl vibes. When Gina Giugni, the amazingly talented female winemaker and owner of Lady of the Sunshine describes the brand’s rose wine, she says, “think pink lemonade, tangerine peel, & summertime cherries”. I don’t know about you, but that sounds pretty good to me!
Basically, this is a glass of California summer sunshine in a bottle. Gina’s wines are playful, full of whimsy, and perfect for sharing with your gal pals.
Winemaker Faith Armstrong
Pétillant Naturel, Rosé of Pinot Noir, Onward Wines
This California rose wine is a little bit of a curve ball, because it’s technically not a still rose wine, it’s a pet nat. But all of that fun bubbliness is just one more reason to love this wine as a great summer sipping wine. This wine tastes like lemon curd, Alpine strawberries and juicy ripe berries. If you’re looking for a wine to pair with salmon this summer, this is a winner-winner salmon dinner kind of wine.
In addition to the sparkling red pet nat, Faith also crafts a rose of Zinfandel – and the artwork on this label is just gorgeous.
Winemaker Vanessa Wong
Cep Vineyards Hopkins Rosé, Russian River Valley, Peay Vineyards
California wine lovers likely already know about Peay Vineyards’ female winemaker, Vanessa Wong. What you may not know is that Peay has a second label called Cep Vineyards, and they make a lovely California rosé. This is refreshing, and as bright and fresh as the coastal Sonoma breezes that float through the vines. The Cep Vineyards Hopkins Rosé, Russian River Valley is a must.
Winemaker Alice Anderson
Estate Rosé of Graciano, Ibarra-Young Vineyard, Âmevive Wines
Alice Anderson is a female winemaker in demand. Her âmevive wine label is all about regenerative farming practices and cultivating a connection to the land to produce these micro-lots of natural wine. Alice crafts her rosé from Graciano grapes, a Spanish grape that has been popping up everywhere in the cool kid wine circles.
Her Estate Rosé of Graciano, Ibarra-Young Vineyard is juicy, textured, and popping with bursts of tart raspberries. Âmevive Wines sell out quickly when they’re released, so the best way to get your hands on these bottles is by signing up for Alice’s mailing list. Alice describes her bottles as “energetic wines from historic vines”, and the descriptor couldn’t be more accurate!