HB&B Blog — Pet Nat

Wine & Food Killers - Garlic Bread Winter Bruschetta and Jumping Juice Pet Nat 2022

Australia Claire Bullen Natural wine Natural Wine Killers Patrick Sullivan Pet Nat Xavier Goodridge

Wine & Food Killers - Garlic Bread Winter Bruschetta and Jumping Juice Pet Nat 2022

In the deepest ebb of the winter doldrums, I stumbled upon a recipe for “winter caprese salad”. Instead of fresh tomatoes, the recipe roasted cherry tomatoes until candy-sweet, paired them with mozzarella and basil, and drizzled over balsamic vinegar for depth. It felt like a moment of sun amidst winter’s deep freeze, a reminder that it won’t be too long before summer caprese is available again. But if you can make winter caprese, why not winter bruschetta? Swap out freshly chopped, high-summer tomatoes for confit tomatoes, and jazz up the base by serving it on garlic bread. I felt like...

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Wine & Food Killers: Shrimp Étouffée and Fin Wines I’m All Ears Pet Nat 2021

Australia Claire Bullen Natural wine Natural Wine Killers Pet Nat

Wine & Food Killers: Shrimp Étouffée and Fin Wines I’m All Ears Pet Nat 2021

Alongside gumbo and jambalaya, shrimp étouffée is a stalwart of Cajun and Creole cooking, and a classic New Orleans dish. Étouffée means “smothered” in French, and in this dish, pink prawns are enrobed in a saucy stew made with a base of the “Cajun holy trinity” – onion, celery, and green bell pepper – and a burnished roux, mixed with chillis and a potent Cajun spice mix, chopped tomatoes and fish stock. That mix is cooked down until thickened and glossy, served with rice, then garnished with handfuls of parsley. I tend to crave New Orleans-style cooking at this time...

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Wine & Food Killers: Halloumi Fries And Folias De Baco Pet Nat Renegado 2020

Claire Bullen Natural Wine Killers Pet Nat Red wine Spain

Wine & Food Killers: Halloumi Fries And Folias De Baco Pet Nat Renegado 2020

I’ll begin with a controversial statement: To me, most French fries – chips – are… not great. Sure, there are always those first few transcendent fries in the bag, the ones that are still hot and crisp – the ones that cause the circuits of your brain to light up and throw off sparks at the sudden wallop of salt and starch and fat. But soon, too soon, that initial burst of activity dies down under the soddening accumulation of sogging potato and cold oil mixing together in the mouth. The textural variation, that devilish crunch, is lost, and with...

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WINE & FOOD KILLERS: L’Austral Jolie Brise Blanc 2017 and Strawberries & Meringue with Pistachio Gelato, Olive Oil & Sichuan Pepper

Claire Bullen France Natural wine Natural Wine Killers Pet Nat

WINE & FOOD KILLERS: L’Austral Jolie Brise Blanc 2017 and Strawberries & Meringue with Pistachio Gelato, Olive Oil & Sichuan Pepper

This dessert had two inspirations. One was Instagram – specifically, a photo taken at Paris restaurant Cheval d’Or, which showed a scattering of strawberries on a stoneware plate, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with ground Sichuan pepper. It sounds outlandish, but it actually makes sense that Sichuan pepper works with the fruit; strawberries and black pepper are a tried-and-true combination, and Sichuan peppercorns, both tinglingly electric and fruity in flavour, add just that little extra kick. The other inspiration was my all-time favourite, desert-island dessert, which I had at London’s P Franco a few years back. It was just...

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The Beer Lover’s Table: Aperitivo Snacks and Cloudwater x Evil Twin Pet Nat Slushie

Beer Lover's Table Claire Bullen Cloudwater Pet Nat

The Beer Lover’s Table: Aperitivo Snacks and Cloudwater x Evil Twin Pet Nat Slushie

More and more, the idea that beer and wine are two distinct categories of beverage is being challenged. If the growing number of vinous beers – like Cloudwater x Evil Twin’s Pet Nat Slushie – is any indication, we’ll soon be awash in wine-inspired beers, hopped wines, and other experimental hybrids. A quick primer: Pet Nat – an abbreviation for pétillant naturel, or ‘naturally sparkling’ – is bubbly wine, humbly made. Unlike Champagne or Cava, it only undergoes a single fermentation, and it’s bottled while that fermentation is still underway (a process known as the méthode ancestrale, if you want...

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