Country: England
Region: Dorset
Grapes: Triomphe d'Alsace, Dornfelder, Rondo and Pinot Noir
Viticulture: Conventional Farming / Natural Winemaking techniques
Winemaker Clare Pestell at Melbury Vale had been struggling to decide what to do with a rogue barrel from her 2018 vintage. Daniel Ham from Offbeat suggested to Clare that the base wine still had enough yeasts present that it might do well as a Col Fondo.
Whilst the base wine was conventionally produced, it had developed into such a wild and wonderful animal after 18 months under cap that a second fermentation was enough to produce a wine that demanded attention.
Tasting somewhere between great Lambrusco & a gnarly sparkling Grolleau. A true one off.
A Col-Fondo style blend of Triomphe d'Alsace, Dornfelder, Rondo & Pinot Noir from the chalk hills of Dorset, picked in 2018. The wine was spurred into a second fermentation with just a little sugar and an offering to Dorset's own Cerne Abbas Giant this winter.