Carboniste v.20 'CARBO-NATION' Sparkling Wine

Leave it to the folks at Carboniste to come up with something totally different- a hybrid between a traditional sparkling wine and a Pét Nat!  75% Albariño and 25% Pinot Grigio. Based on the 2020 vintage, the wine was fermented and aged in barrel for twelve months in order to develope texture and depth of flavor. Similar to a traditional sparkling wine, fresh yeast and sugar were added prior to bottling. The quantity of yeast in this case was consideriably less than typical, so the light sediment could be left in the bottle prior to enjoying it. The wine fermented in bottle and continues to age on sediment, an asset that continues to protect and flavor the wine. Since the sugar ferments completely, the wine has no residual sugar.  12% alcohol. 580 cases made. 

Tasting Notes

Albarino brings acidity and juiciness, while Pinot Grigio lends the wine body and depth with age. The result was a hugely textural wine with citrus, confectionary notes, as well as some fermentative yeast and cooked yellow fruits.

About Carboniste

CARBONISTE is a dedicated producer of modern Californian sparkling wines from husband and wife duo, Dan and Jacqueline Person. Dan spent three years at Schramsberg, staged at D.R.C in 2009, and spent the past few years with Dan Petroski at Larkmead; Jacqueline a longtime and invested consultant for Naked Wines. Together, they embarked on their passion for sparkling wine and produced three flagship items: Sparkling Albariño, Extra Brut Pinot Noir Rosé, and a Pét-Nat Pinot Grigio.

In place of an homage to Champagne, CARBONISTE is a proud statement about the beauty of California’s fruit. They found that using the traditional French techniques to make sparkling wine in California didn’t quite work with their fruit. Instead, they tried to think about the best way to express the fresh, fruity flavors of, for example, Sacramento Delta Albariño, in sparkling form. What this means is that they are not a pét-nat, méthode traditionnelle, or méthode ancestrale house – each wine they produce is handled a bit differently depending on the fruit.