Pét-Nat is the name of a new app, a restaurant or some fashion object? Not really, it is the simplification of two terms that have a lot to do with the different trends that are being imposed on the tastes of wine lovers: more fruit, less wood, easier drinking wines, less alcohol content, more whites and rosés, and less reds. Under these characteristics and supported by younger consumers and more competitive prices, a type of sparkling wine called ancestral or Pét-Nat, diminutive of Pétillant Naturel—natural sparkling, not naturally sparkling—has been making way in recent years, which refers to fresh, natural, light and easy-drinking wines, more affordable than a champagne or an aged sparkling wine.
“It is the proto-sparkling wine, the first sparkling wine that can be made. In reality, it is the product of a fermentation that is interrupted,” clarifies sommelier Óscar Riaguas, from La Clandestina (Toledo), about these wines with bubbles that are becoming increasingly familiar to us. “In the past, winter would come, it would be cold and the fermentation would stop, there would be some residual sugar before bottling, it would be bottled and that fermentation would cause the bottle to break. It was actually a mistake. In the world of wine, most of these types of processes are errors that, once controlled, once a glass or sheet has appeared that controls the pressure that is produced in a Pét-Nat, can be directed to produce a wine that “It has carbon gas.”
Simpler preparation
Unlike the Champenoise method, where the wine undergoes two fermentations – the second already in the bottle – these ancestrally made wines have only one. “A Pét-Nat is a much simpler sparkling wine, it only has one step and does not require a high price because you do not have to age it for 30 months, 60 months or 100 months as some producers of the champenoise method are doing,” assures Riaguas.
And although they may sound new to us, according to this sommelier, “the fashion for these products began in the Loire in the 90s, since they are preparations that are developed in cold climates.” They are wines that also have to be natural: “The Loire has also been the origin of the great defenders of natural wines, which are also very fashionable, but they are a type of cold climate process because it is much easier to be natural in cold climates than in hot climates.” As he explains, since the 90s it has been developing and spreading to other areas because it has been seen that a product that is liked can be made at a very competitive price: “The secret is to have good fruit and above all to be clean.” . In Spain, very good proposals are being made beyond the area of Catalonia, where sparkling wines are deeply rooted, such as in “Ávila, Segovia, Toledo or the Basque Country,” highlights the sommelier.
Unlike the Champenoise method, where the wine undergoes two fermentations – the second already in the bottle – these ancestrally made wines have only one
These Pét-Nat are being made in their respective areas, in addition, with native grapes. “Everyone does it with what they have and that gives it a lot of substance. It is the style that marks the wine itself more than the grape, and each grape gives it a different type”, thus we find Pét-Nat of Malvasía from Sitges, with Verdejo, Airén or Cabernet Sauvignon grapes.
What to take them with?
Sommelier Óscar Riaguas recommends taking Pét-Nat as an aperitif, where they always work quite well. “It is a very conversational wine because you can drink it without anything, with little.” For starters or other dishes “we need wines with more aging. In the end, ancestral wines or petillant They are wines for aperitifs, for parties, for enjoying a simple drink and not to be confronted with very heavy things.”
The presentation of these wines also introduces different elements: they usually have a veneer instead of cork and have a slight cloudiness. But none of this should discourage us from trying them. “All sparkling wines have a cap, in the big brands of champagne or cava that cap has been there, it is aged with the cap, what happens is that as they have a second fermentation, that cap is removed, part of the lees is removed and The product ends by bottling it again, but in reality you always have the bottle,” says the sommelier.
Therefore, neither the veneer nor the turbidity of these ancestral ones are defects. “It is something completely natural, turbidity is normal, those lees give it body. While the veneer is normal, what all sparkling wines have at some point during their aging.”
And one more thing to keep in mind when consuming them: no open glass or flute, a normal glass of wine is the most appropriate to enjoy these wines.
Here are seven recommendations that come from four different wineries and are worth trying.
This winery in the Sierra de Gredos, with totally natural methods, has been producing these Pét-Nat with quite good skill for ten years. Specifically, it puts two on the market, one red and the other rosé, which can accompany the next aperitif with friends.
1. Moska-tell. A wine with a different name playing with the variety, made with the ancestral method and small-grain muscatel grapes in Avila lands. A very limited production, only 550 bottles per year, with a very fine bubble. Price per bottle: €15.
2. Telluric Pink. Also made by the ancestral method, but in this case a rosé with the two oldest varieties of the estate, syrah and cabernet sauvignon planted in the area with the most humidity and where it is more difficult for them to mature. A wine that seeks the freshness of Pét-Nat with the body of a rosé, with very fine bubbles. Only 380 bottles. Price per bottle: €14.
This micro-winery in L’Empordà is an authority in the production of natural wines. With 9.5 hectares of vineyards, it cultivates in communion with nature, practicing organic and biodynamic agriculture.
Of the twenty wines they make, their Pét-Nat stands out, all good and at an affordable price. Only one drawback: they are not easy to find because they are very successful.
3. Ancestral Patience
A white Cariñena wine of which they only make 2,000 bottles a year, a very good exponent of ancestral winemaking. They are made by spontaneous fermentation in clay amphorae with final fermentation and aging in the bottle, manual disgorging and corking with rest until consumption. Price per bottle: €26.50.
4. Vitality
This wine made with 92% Parellada and 8% Muscat is, according to the winery itself, electric, fresh, festive and sparkling, giving value to the native Catalan varieties with a renewed look. Price per bottle: €14.50.
From Nieva, in Segovia, this family winery does wonders with Verdejo, the star grape of the area. They preserve old vines, pre-phylloxera jewels that give their character to the wines they produce.
5. Snow York
MicroBio Nieva York is a sparkling winepetillant naturel, made with Verdejo from vines planted ungrafted on soils with siliceous sand and pebbles. The grapes used for this wine are those from the first days of harvest. White fruit and floral notes for an aperitif or for sushi with friends. Price per bottle: €21.90.
6. Va-llena X Jonás
With this play on words he presents his Verdejo sparkling wine. After manual harvesting, it ferments with native yeasts at low temperature and with low turbidity in stainless steel tanks. Fermentation finishes in the bottle without added sulfites. Citrus notes and fresh grass that explode in the mouth. Price per bottle: €20.90.
This winery is the personal project of Roc and Leo Gramona, the youngest members of one of the most important sparkling wine producers in Catalonia. They make wines that want to connect with the identity and wine heritage of their territory.
7. L’Enclós de Peralba Pét-Nat It is an ancient Malvasía sparkling wine that has found a favorable market for these fresh wines. Less than 5,000 bottles for a pet nat that stands out for its freshness, its versatility to adapt to different accompaniments, ideal for aperitifs on hot days. Price per bottle: €15.80.
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