What is Pétillant Naturel?

What is Pétillant Naturel?

Fun fact: Pétillant Naturel directly translates to natural sparkling. Let's dive into why it is named that, how this method of making sparkling wine came about, and why it's making an appearance again today!

Pétillant Naturel, Pét-Nat for short, is a style of sparkling wine characterized by light bubbles or effervescence. It is also called Méthode Ancestrale, the oldest style of producing sparkling wine! Pét-Nat is a simple, raw, and natural wine; even the simplest of wines can be beautiful and delicious.

Pét-Nat can be made from a multitude of grapes. Hawk Haven has produced a Malbec-Syrah Rosé blend and Pinot Noir Rosé. We are in the process of producing a NEW Albariño Pét-Nat. Very exciting and new!

We start the fermentation in the tank & monitor the depletion of sugar. We run sugar levels to get an accurate reading before bottling. When it gets to the level of sugar and CO2 that we desire, we bottle it!

To make Pét-Nat, wild yeast is added to the bottle with the wine grape juice. The yeast eats away at the sugar and has a byproduct of carbon dioxide, which gives Pét-Nat it’s light bubble characteristic! This is where the Pét-Nat finishes fermentation and becomes the delicious Pét-Nat we know and love.

Pét-Nat can be a little intimidating when it comes to serving and storing. It is a new trend so you might be asking yourself questions like: is the cloudiness bad? What is all of that stuff on the bottom of the bottle? At what temperature do I serve it? How do I open it?

If you are going to keep your Pét-Nat for a little bit we recommend storing it upright. There is no cork in the bottle so there is really no need to store it sideways, but if you do we recommend putting it upright before serving so the sediment travels to the bottom of the bottle.

Prior to serving, we recommend standing the bottle upright and place it in the refrigerator. You should get it to between 40 and 45 degrees Fahrenheit. This is the temperature at which you would typically serve a rosé.

Once you are ready to serve, pour slowly! This will allow the sediment to stay at the bottom while also controlling the overflow of bubbles in the glass. Cheers!

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Hawk Haven Vineyard & Winery
600 South Railroad Avenue
Rio Grande, NJ 08242

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Friday & Saturday
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