Despite being one of the hottest categories in wine today, pétillant naturel—or “pét-nat” for short—has been a hard sell for me. Why not just drink a Champagne-method sparkler? Or better yet, Champagne? Well, for one thing, Champagne is expensive. But the affordability of today’s pétillant from South West France is just part of its appeal: It’s a more primal sparkling wine experience, the jazz to Champagne’s classical.
The more subdued effervescence allows more fruit character to come through, but there’s still that laser-beam acidity and deep minerality that makes your mouth water. Grown and produced in Bergerac, about 90 minutes east of Bordeaux, this wine from Château Tour des Gendres is a revelation, and likely an introduction, for many, to one of the most dynamic wine estates in Southwest France. For a wine designed to be fun and easy-drinking, there’s also some serious structure to this 2020. It’s way better than it needs to be at this price—exactly the way we like it!
Château Tour des Gendres, run for generations by the De Conti family, is one of the most respected producers in South West France (aka Sud-Ouest). In truth, the winemaking side of Tour des Gendres is a relatively new operation, only starting in the late 1980s, but maybe it’s that youngblood energy that accounts for their maverick status in Bergerac. They were the first farmers in the appellation to farm organically—in 1994—and again the first to incorporate biodynamic methods in the 2000s. While not (yet) a household name here in the States, they are mainstays on Michelin-starred restaurant wine lists in France, and with Guillaume de Conti now taking over, we only expect their star to rise. He’s pushing the estate forward with innovative, soulful bottlings like this pét-nat, which expertly balances wildness and precision.
That balance, of course, is the key to a good pét-nat. The vast majority of the sparkling wines we offer here get their effervescence from the “Champagne method,” wherein finished (still) wine is refermented in bottle after the addition of sugar and yeast. Pétillant naturel, however, is bottled and capped before it has completed fermentation, trapping the CO2 that’s a natural byproduct of fermentation. It’s not widespread these days, but the fact is this is the oldest way to make sparkling wine, so much so that the French term for it is méthode ancestrale.
The Sauvignon Blanc/Chenin Blanc blend may seem a bit odd, but Bergerac is a land of blurred lines. Culturally, it's a commingling of Bordeaux-style château grandeur and small paysan farmers. It’s often treated as a more affordable alternative to Bordeaux thanks to its plantings of Merlot and Cabernet, but that frankly sells it short. There’s a whole host of local specialty grapes like Fer Servadou and Arboreau, and as with today’s wine, more-familiar varieties are often combined into otherwise unexpected but delicious blends.
This 2020 is 70% Sauvignon Blanc and 30% Chenin Blanc fermented in stainless steel before being bottled about two-thirds of the way through fermentation. It’s shimmering straw in the glass with flecks of silver, with a lively mousse. The intoxicating grapefruit/mango/gooseberry interplay of Sauvignon Blanc joins the bruised orchard fruit and white florals of Chenin Blanc on the nose. The palate turns a touch riper, more stone fruit like apricot and nectarine coming through, with a touch of a cinnamon-like spice in the background. It’s generous and fruit-driven but has the cut and verve you’d expect from both of its constituent grapes. Serve it at 45 degrees in all-purpose stems, and while I could recommend some labor-intensive dishes to pair with it, that’s not really the vibe here. Slice up some cheese, tear open a loaf of crusty bread, and call your friends over to enjoy an evening on the patio, and you’ll be all set!
