Name: Sven Joschke Semillon Pet Nat 2021
SKU: 25967
Price: 34 AUD
Availability: OutOfStock

Natural, Lo-Fi, Minimal Intervention, Sustainable… these are all terms that you would have heard in relation to wine at some point in the last fifty years. 

Many of the above terms have historically been used interchangeably, without much clarity around what they mean in a concrete sense, and thus many grey areas into what actual practices go on in the vineyard and cellar before the wine lands into your glass.

Here at Blackhearts, we’ve gradually leaned more towards terms like ‘Lo-Fi’ or even ‘Eccentric’ over ‘Natural’ when it comes to wine - as we’ve found the overarching meanings of both lofi and eccentric to be more broadly encompassing of what you may be able to expect in the glass. That said, one thing we’ve learnt over years of trial, error, and a multitude of tastings (it’s a hard life), is that there is no one box that will fit the lot. 

For a long time, Isabelle Legeron - author of ‘Natural Wine’ and founder of the prolific RAW Wine fair - was the go-to for the hardline definition of ‘natural’, outline that “Natural wine is made from grapes that are, at a very minimum, farmed organically or biodynamically, harvested manually and then made without adding/or removing anything during the vinification process. Ideally nothing is added at all but - at most - there might be a dash of S02 at bottling.”

And now, according to the voluntary ‘Vin Méthode Nature’ charter that the French have only recently set out (gotta love their trailblazing bureaucratic proclivities) - grapes must be certified organic, hand-harvested, spontaneously fermented (using natural yeasts found in the vineyard and wine cellar), and made without mechanised intervention (ie reverse osmosis or cross-flow filtration), and only a small amount of sulphur dioxide may be used.

Of course, not everyone has the resources, time, or interest to make wine in this manner - and there are a few folks who would argue that not everyone should. While a winemaker’s cellar practices will fit the Lo-Fi bill, they may only be able to purchase grapes from conventionally farmed vineyards with non-organic or biodynamic practices - leading to some grey areas in definitions.

We’ve got to say though: wines made in line with the practices outlined in the Vin Méthode Nature charter, when done well, can be absolute beauties to behold. You’ll find these sorts of wines from the mid-$30s realm in the Lo-Fi section in the fridge all the way up to those higher priced cuvées sitting on the Premium shelf - so as the old adage goes, you can’t judge a wine by its label. Some sulphur-free wines need a bit more love and care in their storage, and can be an adventure, everchanging in the bottle and even in your wine glass as they open up (which could be said even for those wines which do have sulphur added, to be honest!).

In our range & stores, we’ve made an effort to demystify the differences between these wines somewhat, by creating a symbol-led category system. You may have seen these in store or online, with symbols highlighting which wines are sulphur free, which use skin contact, which are farmed sustainably (whether it be organically or biodynamically), which are vegan, nutty and oxidative, which reds that go great with a chill, or are broadly Lo-Fi.

What is Lofi Wine

You might have come across the term ‘Pét-Nat’ while scanning the wine list at your local watering hole and wondered to yourself what it meant. Or, perhaps at a party a friend of yours flexed a little too much in regards to the contents of their wine glass, so instead of asking what it was you just nodded along to avoid sounding silly (you’re not silly at all, by the way!).

Pét-Nat is an abridged name for the French term ‘Pétillant Naturel’, which translates to ‘Natural Sparkling’. It’s also referred to as ‘Méthode Ancestrale’ (not to be confused with Méthode Traditionelle). It refers to a technique for producing sparkling wine, which on paper sounds theoretically less complicated than Méthode Traditionelle, but can be equally tricky to pull off.

Pét-Nat is made by bottling wine during the primary fermentation stage, when the yeast is still hard at work converting sugars to alcohol. Carbon dioxide is a natural byproduct of alcoholic fermentation, and when CO² is produced in a sealed container it creates pressure which in turn makes wine fizzy. Often, the yeast cell sediment is left inside the bottle which leaves the wine cloudy and can attribute a subtle creaminess to the wine’s texture. One of the reasons it’s referred to as a ‘natural’ sparkling is because it was essentially the earliest form of carbonation used, and like most great things: it was discovered by accident.

Pét-Nat differs from the Méthode Traditionelle - a technique synonymous with Champagne, which splits the fermentation into two stages. In Champagne, the sugar in the grapes is first fermented until dry, as you would do when making a still wine. The wine is then blended and bottled with a small addition of sugar or unfermented grape juice to jumpstart a secondary fermentation in the bottle (this process is called dosage – say it in your best French accent) and – voilà! Bubbles. It’s also common for the yeast sediment to be expelled from the bottle through a process called disgorgement, which is why Champagne is pristinely clear, and not cloudy.

So, in essence, Pét-Nat skips a couple of these steps and gets straight to the point. It’s brash, it’s full of personality, and it’s sometimes a little wild - and that’s why we love it!

What is Pet Nat?

So drinkable, you don’t need to think about it. Could be fruit rich, or juicy, or just generally yum!

Drinkability Guide: Guzzle

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Fresh citrus, lemon balm, a little sherbet and a lovely soft creamy mousse finish. Yummmmmo Sven! 

Sven Joschke Semillon Pet Nat 2021

Light - Medium

Body

Some may call it natural, others minimum intervention, either way, it’s hands off & maybe even a little eccentric.

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Lo-Fi

Type

Made without the use of any animal products, and without any added Sulphur Dioxide (SO2)

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Vegan & Sulphur Free

Dietary

Barossa Valley

Sub Region

South Australia

Region

Wine

Sparkling

Class

Pet Nat

Varietal

Australia

Country

Controlled exposure to oxygen, adding complexity and sometimes developed characteristics.

Sven Joschke Semillon Pét-Nat 2021

$34.00

Out of Stock Online

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