I've been seeing more bottles of pink wine show up on the shelves of supermarkets and wine shops, and now comes confirmation that rosé wines are hot. And with 100-degree days already here and summer just around the bend, their refreshing drinkability is likely to make them even more popular, at least in the near term.

According to figures released today by The Nielsen Company, sales of premium-priced rosé wines have jumped 45 percent the past year. (A premium-priced rosé is one that costs $6 or more.)

"It used to be that pink wine meant white zinfandel or generic jug wines," said Brian Lechner, director of client service, Nielsen Beverage Alcohol. "That is rapidly changing. The phenomenal growth in higher-priced rosé wine over the past year tells us that this segment is finding a sophisticated new audience."

Overall, table-wine sales increased 8 percent the past year. Sales of sparkling rosé wines also were up sharply - 40 percent compared with an increase of 4 percent for all sparkling wine.

Last year, 28 new brands of premium rosé wine were introduced in the United States, compared with 15 that were launched in 2005, says Nielsen. Of the 10 top-selling rosés, six are from France, two are from the United States, and one each is from South Africa and Spain.