What is pet nat?

Pétillant naturel is French. Pétillant means lightly sparkling. Naturel refers to the carbon dioxide coming from the fermentation already under way, not from a second fermentation started with added sugar and yeast. In Swedish and English the name is usually shortened to pet nat.

Pet nat is not an appellation of its own. It is a method that can be used in many countries and with many grapes.

The grapes are pressed and fermentation starts in tank, sometimes in barrel. Before the yeast has consumed all the sugar, the wine is bottled and sealed, usually with a crown cap. Fermentation continues in the bottle. The carbon dioxide that forms stays in the wine and becomes the bubbles.

The bottle is often not disgorged, so the yeast sediment stays in and the wine can look cloudy. Some producers do disgorge. A crown cap is the common closure because it holds the pressure. Some use a cork and a cage. A cork does not rule out pet nat, and a crown cap is not proof on its own.

Champagne is an appellation in Champagne, France. It is made by the traditional method: a first fermentation to a still wine, then a second fermentation in the bottle started with sugar and yeast (liqueur de tirage). After ageing on the lees the bottle is disgorged, and a dosage is usually added.

Cava is a Spanish appellation for sparkling wine. Its rules require the same family of method, a second fermentation in the bottle, not the ancestral method. Cava also has rules for geography and grapes.

Pet nat is one fermentation that starts in tank and finishes in the bottle. No liqueur de tirage is added to start a second fermentation. The method can be used outside Champagne and outside the Cava regions.

Serve it cold, around 6 to 10 °C. Open a crown cap as you would a bottle cap, and point the bottle away from people: there is pressure in the bottle, and sediment can move.

If you want less sediment in the glass, stand the bottle upright so the lees can settle, then pour slowly. Cloudiness is often yeast left from the bottle fermentation, not a fault. A wine glass works. A flute is not required.

On the label or the product text, look for pétillant naturel, pet nat, méthode ancestrale or ancestral method. A crown cap is common, but it is not a guarantee, and a cork does not rule the method out.

Read the producer, not only the style name. Pet nat does not say how the grapes were farmed or what was added in the cellar. Many bottles ferment out and are dry. Some ancestral-method wines are deliberately left with residual sugar. Bugey Cerdon is one appellation that uses the ancestral method and is usually off-dry.

At Systembolaget these bottles sit with the other sparkling wines. The ranked list is Best pet nat at Systembolaget 2026. A wider sparkling list is Best sparkling natural wines at Systembolaget.