You've ditched your morning joe for cortados and a Chemex. Your ribeye is dry-aged. Even that pot of legumes is heirloom. So when it comes to the wine aisle, why are you still defaulting to the same bottle of Chard? Go ahead, pour outside your comfort zone with these alluring, alt varietals.
If you drink Champagne…
Try: Pet Nat
Bottle: Channing Daughters Bianco Pétillant Naturel, $27
Pair with: a toast!
Like Champagne minus the pomp and pageantry. Cava with some hipster cred. This naturally sparkling wine, colloquially known as "pét-nat" (pétillant naturel), has become the most sought-after patio pounder. Unfiltered, lower in alcohol, and made with an ancestral technique that predates the Champagne method, dewy bottles of pét-nat are perfect both as aperitif and celebratory toast. Crafted from all manner of red and white grapes, it has the potential to usurp anything from Lambrusco to a vinho verde.
—Chris Hughes
