2015 Pet Nats: The Force Awakens…

Fusée à Bulles has been described as looking and tasting like a Bellini, “surprisingly good” and “not shit”.

Fusée à Bulles 2015 Pet’ nat

A blend of Nero d’Avola, Vermentino and Zibbibo, it’s a safe potable beverage, made from South Australian grapes and is considered mostly harmless. No added sulphur, no additions, no adjustments or any mucking about. Made from grapes, with nowt taken out. Pet’ nat for the people.

Fruit from Ricca Terra Farms, Riverland, South Australia.

Ashley and Holly Ratcliff at Ricca Terra Farms are farming sustainably and increasingly organically in the Riverland with a high level of care, attention and detail to their viticulture.

They’ve planted climate appropriate varieties (mainly from Southern Italy) and sell their fruit to a growing cluster of high quality wine makers across Australia.

Their company motto is Viticulture with Vision and working with them makes me feel part of something bigger, a real movement towards sustainability in Australia’s hottest, driest State.

http://riccaterrafarms.com.au
Hand picked by myself and three backpackers 05.03.15, made in an old apple store owned by my mates Brendan and Laura Carter of Unico Zelo wines in Gumeracha, Adelaide Hills

50% Vermentino, 25% Nero d’Avola, 25% Zibibbo
Zero added sulphur, no other additions, no adjustments, just made from grapes.

Fermented in a 1000 litre, food grade polyethylene plastic palicon cube.

Bottled by hand, by me, over a twenty hour period, at around 5 g/lt sugar which has resulted in a continued fermentation in bottle making the wine lightly pétillant.

For those who like their numbers, the wines vital statistics are

12.5% ABV (the label says 12)

0.00 g/lt sugar

1 mg/lt free S02

3.69 pH

What the others say,

“Cocking fabulous” – Max Mason, McLaren Vale

“Like biting into pomegranate seeds, delicious” – Dominic Lenz, La Buvette, Adelaide

“Peachy entry with a fine spray mist of apricot on the finish” – Max Mason (again)

“Very good. I’ll take a pallet” – Michael Andrew Arthur, East End Cellars, Adelaide

(I may have made up part of that sentence)

“Not shit” – Gill Gordon Smith – Fall From Grace, McLaren Vale

“Surprisingly good” – Joch Bosworth, Battle of Bosworth, McLaren Vale

“Very good” – Paul Hervey – The Oak Barrel, Sydney

“The Fusée à Bulles is not for us” – Ed Loveday, ACME, Sydney

“Sorry but I don’t think it’s quite our style” – Lou Chalmers, Clever Pollys, Melbourne

“So delicious! We’ll take a case” – Belinda Pollard, The Builders Arms, Melbourne

“I love it” – Gabrielle Webster, Love Tilly Devine, Sydney

“Loved the Pet Nat mate, it was well and truly demolished over a game of ping pong.

“Shoot us through a dozen please!” – Tom Hollings, Different Drop

“Eye wateringly good” – Gabby Stone (ex professional drinks journalist)

“Forced rhubarb juice” – Brett Woonton, Vinoteca, London

“Smells kind of funky, like sour fruit salad” – Ben Stephenson, Hanging Ditch Wine Merchants, Manchester

“No comment” – Phil Tuck MW

“I find the VA challenging” – Jo Aherne MW

“I like it” – Vicky Burt MW

“I REALLY like it” – Madeline Strenweth MW

“Mango, pine needley, smells like kissing someone’s else’s grama’s cheek. Delicious” – Adam Hooper, McLaren Vale

“Effervescent on the back of my tongue, tastes of summer. Not shit” Thanks! Donna-sister-of-Dudley @Inkwellwines

“Smashable” – Erin Pooley, McLaren Vale

“A Pet-Nat that doesn’t make me vomit. Much better than three months ago” – Dudley Brown @Inkwellwines

“Orange wine I can actually drink” Zar Brooks @zarbrooks

“Really really good” Elena Brooks @DandelionWines

“Fuseé à Bulle has shape-shifted of late. Muscat is powering up, making it taste, well, like Fanta basically”

– Me #yumsk

“Bloody delicious” – Max Mason (again) @BigBangMax

“I can’t even swallow this” – Siobhan-friend-of-Max

“You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, it’ll change your life” – Ali Holden, Sean’s Kitchen, Adelaide

“Pink grapefruit, some ginger, roses on the finish” – Lucy, Noble Rot, London

“Very refreshing finish” – Charlie, Noble Rot, London

“Almost tastes like it’s good for you” – Paisley, Noble Rot, London

“My overriding sensation is that it’s hurting my mouth” – Dan Keeling, Noble Rot, London (he had just been to the dentist)

“Like a carrot and ginger smoothie” – Cailean, Noble Rot, London

“I’d smash through a bottle, refreshing, summer wine” – Caprice, Noble Rot, London

“Wild peach, sherbet zing” – Laura, Unwined, London

“Unlike anything I’ve ever tasted. Like biting into rhubarb, unripe raspberries and peaches all at once, with an unbelievably LIVELY presence in the mouth” – Chrissy Rasmussen via Instagram christinarasmussen6

“Tastes like biting onto fruit with a cider finish” – Summer Forest

“HOW DO I BUY SOME?” – David Clawson, Remedy wine bar, London

“SHIT THE BED! I love it, I absolutely love it” – Tamsin Jones, Mission Wines, Polzeath, Cornwall

“RHUBARBTANGTASTIC!” – Damon Quinlin, SWIG Wines, London

“Totally moreish, can’t wait to drink the loveliness, rhubarb, crunchy, yum!” – Rosamund Hall, Burgess & Hall

1300 bottles made, no added sulphur, no addition, no adjustments, no filtration or fining

Just fermented grapes, thats it.

AU$28.00 retail

Stockists: East End Cellars (Adelaide), Fall From Grace (Aldinga), The Oak Barrel (Sydney)

Pls contact me for trade price and private orders

tim@winetec.co.uk

528 BOTTLES IN THE UK NOW!

Updated 26.08.16

UK stockists

Philglas & Swiggot http://philglas-swiggot.com

Noble Rot wine bar http://noblerot.co.uk/wine-bar

Sager + Wilde wine bar http://www.sagerandwilde.com

SWIG Wines http://www.swig.co.uk

Mission Wines http://www.missionwines.co.uk

Ellis Wharton Wines https://www.ewwines.co.uk

Retail pricing:

Fuseé à Bulle 2015 £19.99 *limited availability*

The Dark Side £24.99 *VERY limited availability*

The Dark Side 2015 Pétillant natural

100% Nero d’Avola, 100% whole bunch, zero added sulphur

120 bottles made. Extremely limited availability, allocation only when taken with Fusée à Bulles

“Tastes just like Nero, inky and dark” – Pablo Theodorus, East End Cellars, Adelaide

“I just can’t stop drinking it” – Dominic Lenz, La Buvette, Adelaide

“This image is clearly in contravention of international copyright law and we cannot recommend proceeding” – Mike Judd, Collotype Labels, South Australia

“173.5 points. Incomparable” – Gabby Stone (ex professional drinks journalist)

“It’s the nuts, I could sell this; chocolate, earth, bitumix (eh? must be a kiwi thing) ” – Brett Woonton, Vinoteca, London

“Better” – Phil Tuck MW

“Boysenberry feral sweet & sour” Aaron Meeker, Vine Street Imports @whyknowinphilly

“Passion fruit & blueberry preservers” Ronnie Sanders @RonnieSanders12

“I find sparkling reds quite challenging. Better thank a Sicilian tank sample” – Stuart Bracey

“Like eating crushed berries. It’s quite pleasant” – Jean Wareing MW

“Red fruits, raspberries, brambly” – Lucy, Noble Rot, London

“Sour raspberries, not sweet, which I like” – Paisley, Noble Rot, London

“It’s good, like an adult soft drink” – Charlie, Noble Rot, London

“You feel good drinking it!” – Caprice, Noble Rot, London

“It smells like Ribena but it’s not sparkling Shiraz” – Bree Boskov MW

“Something something something dark side – black cherries and Parma violets on speed. And frankly, I find your lack of faith disturbing.” – Lenka Sedlackova MW

AU$40.00 retail

Stockists: East End Cellars (Adelaide), Fall From Grace (Aldinga)