(2018) Made by the traditional method, this is a dry and very grown-up take on elderflower wine, with 7g/l of residual sugar and 12% alcohol by volume. Pale and moderately effervescent, aromas are floral and herbal, not the pungent 'cat's pee' elderflower used to describe many a Sauvignon Blanc. In the mouth it has a fine mousse and it is dry, a keenly honed acidity driving, the flavour difficult to describe: herbal, a touch of endive bitterness, with a lemon peel zestiness too. A successful wine, perhaps more akin to a Loire Crémant than a Champagne, for want of a better way of describing the flavours.
(2018) I rather liked this blend of elderflower with blackberries, rhubarb, and strawberries, with second fermentation in bottle a la Champagne.The pale colour and small bubbles are attractive, and the nose is not too sweet and not too elderflowery, the dry rhubarb and cranberry character and modest yeastiness the main players. On the palate it is dry, perhaps even a touch astringent, but that gives it a bit of sour and savoury grip against the berry fruits that are a little more obvious in the mouth. Stylish.
