Pet who? Your 101 Guide to Pétillant Naturel

Pétillant Naturel, often abbreviated to simply “Pet-Nat”, is one of the most on-trend sparkling wine categories on the market. Although it’s been around for centuries, it’s only in recent years that we’re seeing more fabulous examples hit the market. So, we thought that now would be a great time to explain everything about it!

A Crash Course on Sparkling Winemaking

One of the by-products of the fermentation of grape juice into wine is CO2. In still wine production, this CO2 escapes into the atmosphere. For sparkling wines, however, you want to somehow capture this CO2 to get your bubbles. There are two widespread methods.

Traditional Method

The second fermentation happens in the bottle, as in the likes of Champagne, English Sparkling Wine and Cava. A base wine is put in the bottle, more yeast and sugars are added to the bottle, the bottle is then closed, and the yeast does its work. The CO2 from this second fermentation is then trapped in the bottle. When the wine’s ready to send out, usually after at least 9 months, what’s left of the yeast or sediment is removed, leaving a clear, sparkling wine, often with additional yeast-like aromas of bread, toast or brioche.

Tank Method

This is similar to the traditional method, but instead of in a bottle, the second fermentation is done in a large, pressurised tank. Also, rather than a minimum of 9 months, the desired CO2 can be collected in a matter of weeks. The resultant wine is sparkling but is less complex and designed to accentuate the fruit and freshness of the grapes. This is famously used in Prosecco.

What About Pet-Nat?

The grape varieties

White Pet Nats are most famous for what are known as the ‘aromatic’ grape varieties. Put simply, these are the varieties that have really pronounced aromas and flavours, whether fruity, floral or savoury. Chenin Blanc, for example, with its high acidity and flavour concentration is particularly versatile making it especially favoured. Possibly the most famous set of grape varieties for Pet Nat is the range of Muscats, used for thousands of years for a range of wine styles thanks to their notable floral and fruity characteristics.

Red grape varieties used for Pet Nat tend to be the higher acid, lighter-bodied varieties, including Gamay, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Franc. Gamay’s vibrant fruit flavours and light body can produce fresh and lively Pet Nats, whilst Pinot Noir can offer elegance, complexity, and plush red fruits.

The production

Pet-Nat wines are produced using the ‘Méthode Ancestrale’ (Ancestral Method). The CO2 is captured in the bottle, similar to the traditional method. The main difference is that instead of two separate fermentations, there is one long continuous fermentation. This process is paused by cooling the wine before transferring it to bottles, sealing them, and then gently warming them back up to “wake up” the yeast and restart the fermentation.

The appearance

The pressure in the bottle will be lower than either Traditional or Tank methods, usually around 2 to 3 bars, rather than 5 to 6 in conventional sparkling wines. Also, most Pet Nat wines remain unfined and unfiltered before release, so there will be sediment in the bottle which can lead to a cloudy appearance. The sediment is harmless but can be off-putting if you don’t expect to be there. But now you know!

The origin

The name “Méthode Ancestrale“ points to the historical context of making wines in this style. It was common for centuries before full knowledge of how fermentation works and the action of yeasts. Fermentation would stop in the cold winter months, the wine would be bottled, and then the fermentation would continue in spring when the temperatures rose. It was sometimes seen as a fault, but pioneering winemakers found a way to make it work for them, creating a purposeful and unique set of sparkling wines.

In her book Natural Wine, Isabelle Legeron MW notes – “Although beautifully simple, it is, in fact, extremely tricky to get Pet-Nat right – bottle late and your sparkling will be flat; bottle too soon and you risk the whole thing exploding. It’s a precise art.”

How to Serve Pet-Nat?

Before serving, make sure you leave the bottle standing upright for a few days for the sediment to collect towards the bottom of the bottle. It’s important to chill the wine down to accentuate the fresh, fruity nature of the wines (whites or rosés at 6-8ºC, reds a touch warmer). Also, at the point of serving, pour gently so as not to disturb the sediment, or decant/sieve the wine to remove the sediment. It’s not harmful, but it’s already done its job at that point. You don’t need to taste it.

When drinking the wine, just enjoy those unique aromas of fresh fruits, floral hints, or even yeasty undertones. You’ll notice an effervescence, rather than full-on bubbles on the tongue, alongside a balanced acidity, and those lovely fruit-forward flavours.

Food pairing

If you’re serving the wine with food, then you’re in luck. Pet-Nat, with its lively bubbles and diverse flavour profile, pairs wonderfully with a range of dishes. Its effervescence cuts through rich and fatty foods, while its fruit-forward nature complements lighter dishes.

Soft cheeses like Brie or Camembert, with their creamy textures, are elevated when paired with the crispness of Pet-Nat. The light and bubbly nature of Pet-Nat makes it an ideal, refreshing companion for seafood dishes. The saltiness of cured meats contrasts beautifully with the fruity notes of Pet-Nat.

Pet-Nat’s Global Footprint: Celebrated Production Regions

While France is the spiritual home of the development and production of Méthode Ancestrale wines, the techniques have now spread globally as curious winemakers look to add their unique touch to the wine’s character.

In France, the Loire Valley, Limoux and Gaillac are seen as epicentres of these wines. The Loire Valley is the spiritual home of Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc, as well as the high-quality vineyards of Gamay, with each grape variety well suited to producing top-quality Pet Nat wines. The distinctively mineral Pet Nats from Limoux are made from Chenin Blanc, but mainly from local speciality Mauzac and the world-famous Chardonnay. Just the other side of the city of Toulouse, the region of Gaillac produces earthier Pet Nat wines from Mauzac and the highly aromatic Loin de l’Oeil.

Pet Nats are popular in Spain, most notably in Catalunya where the Cava varieties of Xarel-lo and Macabeo produce fresh, saline Pet Nats. Winemakers in the United States and Australia have also perfected the production of top quality Pet Nats with Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc and Pinot Noir, and the Australians the likes of Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and some very interesting ones made with Shiraz!

Not to mention, English wineries, like Tillingham, are also producing Pet Nat using a mix of local and international grape varietals such as Bacchus, Pinot Noir, Müller Thurga and more!

The Resurgence of Pet-Nat

The world of wine is ever-evolving, and Pet-Nat, with its ancient roots, has found renewed popularity in modern times, fitting into a range of contemporary trends in how we like to produce and enjoy wines.

Most pet-nat producers are also part of the so-called “natural wine” movement. It’s intrinsically a minimal intervention production method and is popular with wine enthusiasts seeking authenticity. It’s for this reason it speaks to younger generations looking for organic, artisanal, and ‘natural’ produce. The use of creative branding, labelling and storytelling to market Pet-Nat, only goes to further those trends.

This Blog post is written by Mike Turner
Freelance wine writer, presenter and judge

Mike is a regular contributor for The Buyer magazine and is a certified educator and ambassador for Bordeaux, Rioja, Ribera Del Duero, Barolo and Barbaresco, running trade and consumer events across the UK from his base in the East Midlands.

Next in our Wine Basics series: Unlocking the Sweetness: Exploring Dessert Wines Beyond