SigMT

Dinner parties are a great way to bring loved ones together, especially in today's circumstances. Aer all, who doesn't enjoy spending time with family and friends over delicious food and my personal favorite… a good bole of wine or two. It is always a big decision trying to figure out what wine to bring to your friend's dinner party, your sister-in-law's St. Patrick's Day Corn Beef and Cabbage feast or your Mom's Easter Dinner. Will they prefer a red? Maybe a white? How much should I spend? Will it pair well with the food? Questions we've all asked ourselves, repeatedly, year aer year. I think 2020 has brought enough uncertainty into our lives, so let me help make this decision an easy one for you. My recommendation? A goes-with-everything-pleases-everyone type of wine. e wine that won't break the bank, and will pair well with any meal: breakfast, lunch, or dinner. What kind of magic juice is this you ask? A Pétillant naturel. A peti-what? "Pétillant Naturel" is French for "naturally sparkling" and the name refers to the ancient method in which this sparkling wine is made. So why haven't you heard of it before? Well, Pet Nats (for short) have been hiding behind the Champagnes and Proseccos of the world patiently waiting for their opportunity to make their sparkling wine debut, once again. Modern day wine drinkers are looking for something a lile lighter, fizzier, and more playful than Champagne and Pet Nat is checking all those marks. Sparkling Wine Let's do a quick run-down on sparkling wine to help you beer understand what I mean when mentioning Pet Nat. All sparkling wine goes through two fermentations. e first round of fermentation is to create the still wine, and the second round is to create the bubbles. ere are a number of different methods used for these processes – all of which result in a different carbonation level and style of sparkling wine. Champagne vs Pet Nat Polar opposites in the land of sparkling wine production. Champagne (A.K.A. the more predictable older brother with the law degree and seams down the front of his slacks) begins with a still wine that has been craed to ultimate perfection. To create the second fermentation, the winemaker adds a precise measurement of sugar and yeast to the still wine, which produces the bubbles. Each step in this process is carefully formulated to create a very particular style of wine that the consumer can rely on time aer time. Pet Nat (A.K.A. your free spirited younger sister with miss-matched socks and leather sandals) does not start with a perfectly craed still wine. Instead, the winemaker halts the wine's first fermentation midway through production. en, they transfer the partially fermented wine into a bole and seal it shut until it's ready for consumption. e le over natural sugars and yeast from the first fermentation go through a second, natural, fermentation in the bole to create that fizzy sensation. What We Love About Pet Nat As you can imagine, what results from this low intervention technique of sparkling wine production is an unpredictable and whimsical sparkling wine with a price point well below Champagne. ese wines typically run about $20-$40 – making them an affordable party favor. You can spot a Pet Nat in your wine shop by searching for a crown cap instead of a cork, and looking for any of these key phrases on the label: petillant naturel, method ancetrale, or col fondo. Hot Tip: Mighty Mo Brew Pub in Great Falls has two Pet Nats on their wine menu. Next time you're in, ask for Calcarius' Orange Pet Nat or Folicello's White Pet Nat to see what the hype is all about! Happy Drinking! RAMBLING VINES SiG MT 22 Bubbly for 2021? How "Bout a Pet Nat? TEXT BY BRITTANY EDGREN

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