C.O.E. + Artemis Botanical C.O.E. Piquette First Flush

Piquette is made by adding water to pressed grape pomace and fermenting the resulting liquid a second time. Here, Colombard from Solano County and Muscat from San Joaquin County were pressed, then the pomace was rehydrated and pressed again a few days later. The result is a lighter, lower-alcohol beverage with a distinctly different character from the wine made in the first pressing.

The term "first flush" is borrowed from tea cultivation, where it refers to the earliest harvest of the season. The lower alcohol and lower acid environment of piquette creates a more challenging fermentation, one that trends lactic and takes on an almost sour-beer quality. The Colombard contributes tension and freshness; the Muscat adds powerful floral aromatics.

Just before bottling, a small quantity of Bay Area honey was added to give the yeasts enough sugar to generate a gentle sparkle. The wine was bottled quickly and without filtration to preserve its liveliness. No sulfur or additives of any kind were used. Alcohol typically falls in the 4-9% ABV range for piquette.