Cuvée Sparkling Zero

The wine

Fine mousseux first — soft bead, real lift, the bubbles doing work that keeps elderberry and lemon from reading as soda. Semi-dry and fruit-forward on the sip; lighter body than alcoholic sparkling, but the mousse holds the fruit up instead of letting it collapse into soft-drink sweetness.

Mouthfeel is all soft lift. Clean and gently citric on the exit. Casual Zero-line sparkling, not a traditional-method argument — and cleaner than most supermarket nonalcoholic fizz for that reason. Well chilled. The bead is the first impression; the fruit rides on it; the citric finish is quiet.

Where a still Riesling would lead with slate and apple, this pour leads with bead and mousse. The fruit is elderberry and lemon; the frame stays light; the bubbles are what you notice first, and they are what keep the glass from tasting like flavored soda. Soft bead, light body, clean citric finish — sparkling first, fruit second, casual rather than fine. Mousse before mineral; that is how this sibling differs. Fine mousseux is the argument; elderberry and lemon are the fruit; the exit stays gently citric.