{"product_id":"domaine-de-montbourgeau-cremant-du-jura","title":"Domaine de Montbourgeau Cremant du Jura Brut Zero","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Land\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eL'Étoile is one of the smallest appellations in France, just 52 hectares folded into the southwestern corner of the Jura. The name means star, credited either to the five hills that ring the village or, more likely, to the fossilized starfish scattered through the ground here. Those soils are the whole point: grey and blue marls laced with limestone scree and marine fossils, cool and deeply mineral. The climate is continental and unforgiving this far east toward the Alps, cold winters and short summers that push Chardonnay to ripen slowly and hold onto its acidity. Chalky marl plus preserved freshness is exactly what gives Jura sparkling wine its cut.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOne hundred percent Chardonnay from Nicole Deriaux's younger vines, made by the traditional method, the same process used in Champagne. The wine goes through both alcoholic and malolactic fermentation, then rests a minimum of 18 months on its lees before disgorging. It is bottled with zero dosage, no added sugar whatsoever, which is where the Brut Zero name comes from and why it finishes bone dry. No oak touches it. Expect a fine, persistent bead, green apple, lemon pith, white flowers, and a chalky, bready lees character, with a rounded texture that owes nothing to sweetness. 12.5% alcohol. Dry, saline, and unadorned, this is still the Chardonnay of L'Étoile, just with bubbles.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe People\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMontbourgeau has grown wine in L'Étoile since Victor Gros planted the vineyards in 1920. His son Jean expanded the estate after taking charge in 1956, and Jean's daughter, Nicole Deriaux, joined in 1986 and now runs the domaine, with her three sons waiting in the wings. The property is nine hectares, mostly Chardonnay, with just under two hectares of Savagnin and small plantings of the local Trousseau and Poulsard. The vines are farmed organically, and the cellar work is deliberately old-fashioned: hand-harvesting, fermentation in stainless steel, then aging in a mix of foudres and older barrels beneath the family house. Deriaux is one of the reference points for traditional winemaking in the modern Jura.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eZero dosage and bright acidity make this a natural aperitif, but it has enough grip for the table. Pour it with a plate of raw oysters, with ceviche or crudo, with fried chicken where the dryness cuts the salt and fat, or with a wedge of Comté from the same mountains. It also pairs with smoked salmon and crème fraîche on rye. The bone-dry finish and fine bubbles scrub the palate clean between bites. The kind of bottle that turns an ordinary Tuesday into something that feels like an occasion.\u003c\/p\u003e\n","brand":"Natural","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50540993413343,"sku":null,"price":39.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/P7080639.jpg?v=1783567972","url":"https:\/\/denverwinemerchant.com\/products\/domaine-de-montbourgeau-cremant-du-jura","provider":"Denver Wine Merchant","version":"1.0","type":"link"}