Les P'tits Velos Pignon Fixe VdF Pétillant Blanc, NV, 750ml

Description

100% Chenin Blanc. P'tits Vélos is Bellivière's only sparkling Chenin. The Nicolas family makes very small quantities of it, out of what they refer to as a sort of solera system, yielding a blend in this case of around 70% 2020 vintage wine and 30% from older vintages. The vines for the wine range from 10 to 30 years old; the farming is certified-biodynamic; the harvest is manual. This particular blend was in barrel until bottling with some fresh must in November 2021 to kick off another fermentation. The wine aged sur latte for a year and was disgorged in November 2022. It finished with 18 grams/liter residual sugar and 4.4 grams/liter of acidity.

"P'tits Vélos" means literally "small bicycles" but is a euphemistic reference to the wheels turning in vigneron Eric Nicolas's mind. The descriptor of "à pignon fixe" or "fixed-gear" is an extension of the cycling metaphor, a reference to Bellivière's use of the stricter méthode champenoise (or traditionelle); sometimes they make the wine as a pétillant naturel, in which case they tag the wine as "En Roue Libre" or "freewheeling."