Just in time for the Diamond Jubilee celebrations this weekend we've discovered a sparkling rosé that has quickly become a favourite. The charmingly named Moussamousettes is a natural wine produced by Agnès and René Mosse in Anjou Noire...
"Toutefois l'absorption de 184646 bouteilles de vin d'Anjou ne rendit pas sa langue moins habile..." – Rabelais
Just in time for the Diamond Jubilee celebrations this weekend we've discovered a sparkling rosé that has quickly become a favourite. The charmingly named Moussamousettes is a natural wine produced by Agnès and René Mosse in Anjou Noire, which is situated in France’s Loire Valley.
Moussamousettes is a Petillant Naturel (natural sparkling), made by bottling the wine unfiltered before the fermentation is complete. This renders the yeast cells dormant over the winter, and they come alive again in the spring, creating a natural wine which is lightly sparkling, making it smoother and less gaseous than champagne or prosecco. It is an ideal sipping rosé for a Sunday afternoon – whether you’re watching The Queen's flotilla wind its way down the Thames, or you’re at a street party or picnic in the park.
The rosé is a combination of Grolleau Gris, Grolleau Noir and Gamay grapes, and with its fresh and vibrant colour resembles the freshest of strawberry juices. It has the aroma of luscious red fruits, with and underlying hint of angostura bitters. When we first had Moussamousettes at a recent natural wine event held at Clerkenwell’s North Road restaurant, Phil Barnet of Les Caves, a British company that imports natural, organic and biodynamic wines, said of it that “the red-fruit sweetness on the palate is offset by savoury notes and lively cranberry acidity. The finish is clean, fresh with some typical Anjou minerality."
"Moussamousettes is an ideal sipping rosé for a Sunday afternoon – whether you’re watching The Queen's flotilla wind its way down the Thames, or you’re at a street party or picnic in the park"
The producers, the Mosses, are dedicated to organic farming, and they also use biodynamic preparations to treat the vines and the soil. They keep the wine unfiltered, and greatly limit the amount of sulphur used during bottling. Retailing at less than £15 a bottle, Moussamousettes is an unexpected and sophisticated sparkling.
Another lovely (and appropriately patriotic) sparkling rosé to get in for the festivities is one of our longstanding favourites from British wine makers Nyetimber. Their rosé is produced from a blend of chardonnay and pinot noir, which creates a rich, bright pink colour. With an aroma of fresh cherries and redcurrant, the rosé is fruity and balanced by a pleasingly chalky minerality, while the bubbles feel small and plentiful. Nyetimber also produces two vintage white sparkling wines, a straw-coloured blanc de blancs made from 100% chardonnay, and a deep golden cuvee produced from a classical champenois blend of chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier, both of which have won international awards.
Find out where you can get Moussamousettes at http://www.lescaves.co.uk/ and Nyetimber’s sparklings at http://www.nyetimber.com/
Text by Ananda Pellerin
Ananda Pellerin is a London-based writer and Neil Wissink is a visual artist also based in London. More from The Hunger here, and contact The Hunger here.
