Pétillant Naturel (or "Pét-Nat") is a method of producing sparkling wine, also referred to as “Methode Ancestrale”, where the carbonation occurs from bottling the wine during the primary, alcoholic fermentation – in order to capture the carbon dioxide that is being naturally released.
This spring-inspired pack of six wines offers a great exploration of what we're all about here at Johan! Enjoy a beautifully diverse pack featuring a crisp white, textured orange, vibrant rosé, and three expressive reds - including our new 2021 Sapience Pinot Noir and the return of our favorite Blaufränkisch.
The goal behind our reserve bottling of Pinot Noir “Sapience” (formerly “Nils”) is to showcase the powerful expression of Pinot Noir on our site. Sapience is an old French word meaning “good taste, intelligence or wisdom”. This label highlights old oak trees on our property that evoke a kind of great wisdom and power over the property as it supports our farming endeavors.
The estate Blaufränkisch shows a likeness to the sanguine and iron minerality that defines our Pinot Noir but with more nervy acidity and a darker, deeper fruit profile. Blaufränkisch also has a wonderful transparency and is highly sensitive to its environment. The goal is to find consistency in expression of the Johan terroir over multiple grape varieties from our site.
The focus of our Chardonnay philosophy & approach lies in secondary and tertiary aromatic and textural development of this noble grape variety. With extended barrel aging prior to bottling, we see an increase in vineyard expression. The clonal diversity of this wine brings complexity and balance to the whole.
The “Mariafeld” Pinot Noir bottling was created to highlight a particular clonal selection in our vineyard that has identified itself as an absolute stand-alone wine. The Mariafeld selection, originally from Switzerland, has long, loose clusters, with big berries and higher acidity and tannin. The complex character and nuance produce a truly individual wine all on its own.
Originally hailing from Germany, and the offspring of the noble Riesling grape, Kerner is an aromatic white variety capable of producing compelling white wines with an intensely floral bouquet, bright acidity and plenty of citrus and balance on the palate. We foot-tread the grapes and allowed them to soak on skins for a few hours before pressing, and fermented and aged the wine in barrel on original lees for 11 months.
Expect complex perfume and incense aromatics matched by tense acid and firm tannin on the palette. Built to age 12+ years, this wine will continue to stun so long as you keep yourself from drinking it!
Maceration is a skin-contact white blend we developed to allow for creativity and experimentation in the cellar. With the Gruner Veltliner, Ribolla, Friulano and Kerner all being prime candidates for skin contact, we are trialing and employing different methods to study the wide range of expressions we can achieve with these grapes on our site.
Ribolla Gialla is a native grape championed in Northern Italy, namely the Fruili region. It produces lower alcohols, fine tannins, and lively aromatics evocative of cherry blossoms. We fermented the wine on skins for 30 days, then barrel-aged for a year before bottling - unfined or filtered.
