More drinkers -- especially women -- are sipping rosé wine rather than swilling alcopops, Reuters reported June 20.

In Great Britain, demand for rosé -- fermented from skinless red grapes -- has risen between 30 and 40 percent in recent years, and experts see demand rising in the U.S. and Canada, as well. "The girls who were drinking Bacardi Breezer and Smirnoff Ice have matured," said Paul Waller of Carlsberg UK. "People are trying different things. Consumers have got more sophisticated."

Rosé consumption has risen from 3.64 percent of all wine consumption in 2001-05 to a projected 6.68 percent between 2005 and 2010. Growth in red wine consumption has been slower, while sales of white wine are expected to flatten out.

Serge Dombierer of the Chateau de Mauvanne vineyard in Provence said that rosé can be consumed any time of day, while red wine is considered an evening drink and white wine is consumed more during the day.