The Best Non-Champagne Sparkling Wine I have Ever Tasted

I don't often get fooled when tasting wine but when I first tasted this, I thought it was Champagne from

a very good producer and someone had done a bottle swap to mess with me.  I don't know how this wine came to taste this way, all I know is that it's a fantastic wine and because it's from the Rhone, costs a fraction of what Champagne of comparable quality costs.  No one has heard of Sparkling Rhone wines because they are traditionally semi-sweet and not that good.  If this bottling is any indication of what we've been missing from a serious effort to make proper sparkling wine in the Rhone, it's a tragedy.  This absolutely blows away and Cava, Californian or Italian sparklers I've had and I prefer it to some of my favorite non-Champagne sparklers in France.

I'm thrilled to offer the brilliant NV Remy Nodin St. Peray Mousseaux Blanc de Blanc Extra Brut which can be had for as little as $24.99 on the 4-pack. Brilliant, smashing, explosive, super mineral long and finesse driven are the words that come to mind when thinking about tasting this absolutely unique and extraordinary wine from 100% Marsanne.

Everyone who is not allergic to bubbles needs to try this.  It's incredibly great but will totally change your perspective on what can be done with sparkling wine outside of Champagne.  If you can't afford really good Champagne and want a great sparkling wine, search no further.  If you need a great every day or party sparkling wine, this is affordable and fantastic.  You will absolutely blow away everybody at a Champagne tasting if you bring this as a ringer.
 
Remy Nodin is the new kid on the block. He makes a scant 2,500 bottles of his Sparkling St. Peray and in 2013 he made his first Method Champenoise style St. Peray after not really being all that into the traditional style. There are only 5 producers of Sparkling St. Peray today despite it being one of the oldest sparkling wine appellations in France. It had its heyday in the 18th and 19th centuries and pre-world War II 20th century and was just as famous as Champagne and then it went into a deep funk post WWII and the revival started back in 1990. As far as back as 1936, 95% of the output of St. Peray was Sparkling wine and it was one of the original 9 French AOC's.

When I was at my grower, Nicolas Serette's estate, we tasted his wines with his father and his father told me that the traditional style of sparkling St. Peray is with a relatively high dosage and the wines are sweet-ish, simple and all in all not very exciting to me. He prefers them but he is also an old timer and many people/consumers who are riding the sparkling wine wave prefer the low to no dosage wines, as they seem fresher, more lively and just more exciting with more energy in the mouth. Remy in fact makes his St. Peray in the Method Champenoise style, which is the only one currently being made in that style. Maybe more people will start in this style as it just blows away the traditional style, which I tasted 2-3 examples at the Salon des Vins.

I can confidently say that Remy Nodin's St. Peray Mousseaux is the finest value sparkling wine I have tasted in years. Qualitatively it drinks 3-4 times its price. I kept going back to Remy's table at the Salon des Vins and tasting the wine as I was dumbfounded how good it was especially after tasting some of the bubbling sweet concoctions passed off as sparkling St. Peray. The depth, the fineness of the mousse, the delicacy of it, yet the explosive fruit provides a lovely contrast to the delicacy and finesse. The impact on the taster is remarkable as the acidity is so high and the wine is so lively you must go in for a second, third and fourth sip shortly after. It is remarkable wine, also with the flavors being completely different than Champagne as it is Marsanne. I don't have much but will have enough to satisfy everyone who wants it, because it is so remarkable, unique and delicious.

NV Remy Nodin St. Peray Mousseaux Blanc de Blanc Extra Brut - $26.99 ($99.96 4-pack)