2022 "Pet Nat" Merlot Rosé

Is Pet Nat here to stay? I dunno, it seems like it might have come off the boil a bit. When I made this wine in 2022 it was all the rage, especially with the Fedora-wearing, moustache twirling types - which is not to say I don't love Fedoras or moustaches, but it just feels like these wines will never be in the mainstream.

And that's probably fair enough - they're weird and if you don't handle them properly, can be disappointing. The style is otherwise known as the "ancestral method", which is another way of saying "garage". This one certainly was made very lo-fi...I had a big batch of Merlot Rosé fermenting away (from Kuitpo in Adelaide Hills) and then when the ferment is almost done (but still active), I bottled it under crown seal. The ferment kept going, and the carbon dioxide that was produced from then on couldn't escape into the atmosphere, and was instead dissolved into the wine. Hey presto - bubbles! But also hey presto - shit in the bottom of the bottle. Well, yeast shit anyway.

See this is the biggest issue with Pet Nat wines - they nearly always have significant sediment and they are supposed to have bubbles. It's a messy combo if not handled correctly. So here's how to care for this one properly to ensure you get optimum enjoyment:

Store upright in the fridge for at least 24 hours, preferably longer.
Get your decanter ready and bottle opener.
Crack the top off and pour away gently into your decanter, keeping an eye on the sediment.
Just before the sediment comes out the neck of the bottle, stop pouring.
Pour from decanter to glasses and enjoy clean, non-yeasty bubbly Rosé.

Note that if you would like to keep this wine bubbly with a champagne stopper so you can enjoy it over a day or two - you can...Just rinse the bottle to get rid of the muck, pour the wine back into the bottle and Bob's just someone shagging your aunty!

If you don't follow these steps, then it's buyer beware - the first glass or two might be OK, but soon enough that sediment will get broken up and start mixing around with the bubbles and then it'll start foaming everywhere and your wine will begin walking out of the bottle and across the table. Not fun.

BTW, it's only cheap because of the stock I have on hand, nothing to do with quality...

Match it with Vietnamese pork belly buns or a creamy burrata...