A browse through the aisles of any fine wine shop can be a feast of colors to the discerning eye, albeit in two narrow parts of the spectrum. "White" wines range from crystal clear Rieslings to buttery-yellow Chardonnays, while "reds" can run the gamut from ruby-colored Pinot Noir to dark purple Mourvedre to jet-black Syrah.

Yet there is a third swath of color that is less familiar to most wine consumers these days. It is the rare, but eye-catching middle ground of wines that run from salmon pink to burned orange to cherry red. This is rose territory.

As the long Japanese summer drags on, many of us have had our fill (and then some) of beer and white wines. At its best, rose can offer some of the structure and complexity of a red wine. But when crafted in a dry style and served well chilled, unlike most red wines, it remains a refreshing quaff on even the hottest of summer days. Indeed, in France roses are most common in the hotter southern regions, with more than half of all wine production in Provence being rose.