We Asked 14 Wine Pros: What’s Your Go-To Summer Wine? (2025)
In 2025, “summer wine” doesn’t have to mean just tossing a couple of ice cubes into your everyday glass of Pinot Grigio or Provence rosé. Winemakers from Santa Barbara to Sicily are crafting juicy, quaffable, and low-ABV expressions that shine in the hot summer sun, from chillable reds to orange wines and everything in between.
We asked sommeliers, beverage directors, shop owners, and other wine pros from across the country what bottles they’re reaching for when the temperatures spike this year. These vibrant, lively wines are well worth seeking out for any summer occasion: picnics in the park, beach days, backyard cookouts — really just any outdoor moment.
From a glou-glou Valdiguié to crisp Alpine whites, here are the best bottles to pop this summer, according to wine pros.
The best wines for this summer, according to wine pros:
Emme Wines ‘Pink Lemonade’ Field Blend
Ameztoi Txakolina Rosé
Outward Wines Valdiguié
Storm Presqu’ile Vineyard Gamay
Mersel Wine Jaffa Crush
Camillo Donati Lambrusco dell’Emilia 2023
Raphaël Beysang and Emélie Hurtubise Nouveau Litre 2024
Jean-Christophe Garnier ‘Rouchefert’ Chenin Blanc
Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo
Field Recordings ‘Freddo’
Bonavita Rosato
En Cavale Sauvignon Blanc 2023
Paraiso Natural Loureiro 2022
Domaine Partagé ‘Cri Cri’ Chignin Blanc
Domaine Rietsch ‘Quand le Chat n’est Pas La’
Knewitz Grüner Silvaner Trocken 2023
“This summer, I’m drinking Pink Lemonade — Emme Wines Pink Lemonade, to be exact. Rosalind [Reynolds] is a true talent in the vinification kitchen. Like a grape whisperer, she draws out complex aromatics and vibrant texture from Ricetti Vineyard fruit. With a cuvée name like that, you’ve got to be confident in the refreshment factor — and the name alone makes it a top contender for my summer wine of choice. But it’s the mouthwatering wine itself that guarantees I’ll be refilling my glass all season long.” —Jove Tripp-Thompson, head sommelier, Bangkok Supper Club, NYC
“Ameztoi’s Txakolina Rosé from Spain’s Basque Country is a summer must with just a hint of effervescence; it’s a wine made for long lunches, late sunsets, and easy company. And let’s not forget chilled reds — the unsung heroes of summer drinking. Juicy, low-tannin wines take well to a light chill and drink more like whites in their freshness and drinkability. Storm Presqu’ile Vineyard Gamay is a favorite in the Santa Ynez Valley, but we’re also reaching for bottles like San Luis Obispo’s Outward Valdiguié when the temperature climbs.” —Emily Blackman, beverage director, Companion Hospitality, Santa Barbara, Calif.
“This summer — like every summer, really — should be about aromatic white wines, ideally with a touch of skin contact. Nothing overly tannic or aggressively savory, but just enough to coax a little extra exuberance from the wine. Aromatic grapes are already expressive, so why not give them a bit of maceration to amplify their voices? Grapes like Muscat rarely get the recognition they deserve and have enormous potential in dry wines. A great example is the Jaffa Crush from Mersel Wine, a relatively gentle orange wine in terms of texture, made from a blend of Muscat and the native Merwah grape. It leaps from the glass with heady aromatics and sings in summer weather.” —William Simons, wine director and director of operations, Albi, Washington, D.C.
“In the summer by my favorite swimming hole, I crave an ice-cold sparkling red paired with my favorite Italian grinder right out of the cooler, like the Camillo Donati Lambrusco dell’Emilia 2023. This is a pét-nat-style Lambrusco, which gives the bubbles a perfect texture to quench one’s thirst on a muggy day.” —Katie Morton, wine director and buyer, Eliza and Kingston Wine Co., Kingston, N.Y.
“A wine I can’t shut up about right now is the Nouveau Litre 2024 from Raphaël Beysang and Emélie Hurtubise. It’s the perfect summer Gamay, and it feels so light and fresh for being made with whole cluster fermentation. The only thing I hate about this wine is that I didn’t keep two bottles to myself.” —Nick Arone, owner, Bar Chenin, Detroit
“My wine of the summer has to be Jean-Christophe Garnier’s Rouchefert! It’s 100 percent Chenin Blanc from a certified organic single vineyard in the Anjou region of France’s Loire Valley. Citrusy, hazy, and slightly savory — it’s truly the perfect natural white wine.” —Maeve Wade, sales associate, Discovery Wines, NYC
“I find myself drinking more and more Cerasuolo and other fuller-bodied, serious rosés. While I love skin contact whites, and they can be a Swiss army knife when it comes to tricky pairings, many of them are starting to feel homogenous. Bigger renditions of rosé/rosato have enough body and structure to stand up to summer BBQs without getting into red wine territory. They work equally well on their own to quench thirst when you’re baking in the sun, or next to a cheeseburger in your friend’s backyard.” —Charlie O’Leary, owner and beverage director, Rampant Bottle & Bar, San Francisco
“This summer we are drinking chilled reds! My favorite being Field Recordings ‘Freddo’ chillable red. With winemakers notes like ‘strawberry Jell-O shot,’ how can you not want to crush a bottle on a patio aperitivo hour? One hundred percent Sangiovese that tastes like it’s been infused with Cali sunshine, a wine that’s great for a little porch day drinking or a homemade pizza night with friends, casual and fun any time of the day. When the label turns blue, you know what to do!” —Sydney Shopp, wine director, Market House Beer & Wine, Wilmington, N.C.
“What comes to mind for the perfect summer wine is rosé. We have this beautiful rosé at Bastia, coming from the most northeastern part of Sicily, Faro. The producer, Bonavita, blends two indigenous grapes (Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio) from the island to make a wine with notes of blood orange, salinity throughout, as well as sweet raspberry jam. This wine is perfect on its own or can complement your meal. I’d suggest drinking it with crudos, grilled seafood, salads, and even lighter meats.” —Benjamin Kirk, beverage director, Bastia and Caletta, Philadelphia
“Hands down the En Cavale 2023 Sauvignon Blanc. This wine is tropical liquid sunshine in a bottle and it makes you smile when you drink it. It is impressively easy to drink with a quietly approachable complexity for all the wine nerds that really enjoy sticking their nose into the glass.” —Angel Davis, owner, Millay, San Francisco
“Having just returned home from an inspiring trip to Portugal, I’d guess we’ll be drinking the wines coming from Paraiso Natural well into the summer. For us, the 2022 Loureiro is the perfect summer wine. Bright acidity, complex, and exciting, pair this with anything coming off the grill or guzzle it long into the night in the backyard with your best buds.” —Sara Velazquez, owner, Slug Wine, Jeffersonville, N.Y.
“My go-to bottle this summer is Domaine Partagé’s ‘Cri Cri.’ Made from 100 percent Jacquère from Savoie, this Alpine wine provides all of the crispness I crave in the heat without lacking substance. A backbone of minerality is fleshed out with juicy stone fruit and lush white floral notes. This wine is just downright fun to drink, and to me, that’s what summer is all about!” —Maggie Cook, general manager and wine director, Little Water, Philadelphia
“Domaine Rietsch ‘Quand le Chat n’est Pas La’ is a maceration wine made from whole bunches left on the skins for 14 days before aging for eight months in foudres. This wine has spices, citrus fruits, and red fruits as well as smoky and earthy notes. Served chilled, it’s perfect to share with friends in the park or on a hot summer day.” —Jordan Veran, founder and wine director, Bascule, Brooklyn
“I think it would have to be the 2023 Knewitz Grüner Silvaner Trocken from Rienhessen, Germany. Light, bright, and acidic, this wine has it all. It’s a crowd pleaser that we sell more full bottles of than actual glass pours.” —Diego Aliste, wine buyer and director, Stadt Garten, Detroit
*Image retrieved from New Africa via stock.adobe.com
The article We Asked 14 Wine Pros: What’s Your Go-To Summer Wine? (2025) appeared first on VinePair.