Dunites - Pétnat of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir - San Luis Obispo County, CA - 2023

Petillant Naturel is a nod to the ancient method for creating a sparkling wine. Prior to the understanding and advancement of sparkling winemaking by champenoise monks in the late 17th century, the mechanics that lead to bubbles in wine were a mystery. But once armed with the knowledge of fermentation, the wines of Champagne quickly became the benchmark standard for sparkling wine. However, the Champagne style has always been a time consuming and expensive method to make wines. Enter the re-emergence of “pet nat”, where the wine is bottled during its fermentation so that as the yeast finish converting all the sugar to alcohol, carbon dioxide is trapped in the bottle and dissolved into the wine. Pinot Noir and chardonnay for this wine were hand harvested early in the morning before being brought to the winery where they were gently pressed to avoid extracting color or bitter phenolics from the grape skins. The juice was then transferred to tank where it underwent fermentation by native yeast for one month. Once the yeast had consumed most of the sugar, the wine was bottled, and the fermentation was completed in bottle. Following 4 months of ageing, the bottles were riddled, and the yeast deposit was disgorged, leaving behind a clear wine. Blanc de noirs allows for a wide array of flavors and aromas to exist in the glass at one time. Red apple skin, tropical fruits, and yellow peach are all carried through the pale-straw colored wine by persistent bubbles. This is a fun and unpretentious style of wine made from fantastic vineyard sources, which lends a degree of nuance and seriousness. Made with minimal SO2, this wine will benefit from careful storage and is intended to be drunk within 1-2 years from its release.

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Dunites Wine Company

We are a small wine brand named after an eclectic group of 1930s metropolitan refugees known as the Dunites who settled in the beach dunes of San Luis Obispo county. This group proudly described themselves as a collection of free thinkers, artists, nudists, and poets. Together they shared meals, cohabited a mutual gathering space, philosophized, dissented, and generally allowed one another to live and express themselves freely outside of the cultural norms of the time.

Drawing inspiration for this project from the remote beauty of the coastal dunes and the progressive ambition of the Dunites to aspire towards a clear goal; to produce pure and elegant wines that respect the coastal influence of vineyard sites located on the uplifted seafloor and ancient sand dunes of the SLO Coast. Combining diverse vineyard sites with traditional techniques in the cellar allow for these small production wines to express the distinct characteristics of their sites.

We are a husband - wife team who combine our experiences to craft these wines. Together we have worked for over a dozen wineries and vineyards around the world where the people, cultures, and wines have influenced our approach to growing and making wine.

While we are not dogmatic, we try to adhere to the following guidelines when possible.

Whole cluster inclusion of varying percentages for aromatic complexity, freshness, and structure
Minimal use of sulfur and vinification without sulfites lead towards competition between different yeasts and bacteria
Gentle extraction by pigeage (foot treading!) to release juice from the berries without breaking the seeds and stems
Ageing the wine on healthy lees for protection from oxygen and to promote a smooth, seamless mouthfeel
Maturation in neutral oak barrels to showcase the great vineyards we work with
Bottling without fining or filtration to not remove anything from the wine. Plus, if we have done our job well then these steps are unnecessary

Above all, they should be delicious.