The Eric Bordelet Poiré Authentique 2023 is a lightly sparkling off-dry perry from Normandy, made from old-vine pear orchards rather than grapes. Pale, delicate and pear-driven, it sits closer to a fine sparkling wine than to anything you would call cider.

Aromas are unmistakably pear — ripe nashi, pear skin, a little quince and honeysuckle — with a faint bready, cellar-floor character underneath from natural fermentation. The palate follows through with sweet orchard fruit held in check by real acidity, so the impression is fresh rather than sugary.

Bubbles are fine and gentle, giving a soft mousse instead of a hard fizz, and the texture is round through the middle before drying out on the close. Eric Bordelet works his multi-centenarian pear trees organically and biodynamically, blending across many heirloom varieties, and that breadth shows in a poiré with more depth and grip than its low alcohol suggests. The finish is clean, faintly bitter in the way good pear skin is, and it leaves you reaching for the glass again.

Goat's cheese is the classic match and it is classic for a reason. Beyond that, try it as an aperitif, with oysters and prawns, roast pork or chicken, salty fried food, or a square of bitter dark chocolate.

Drink the Poiré Authentique 2023 now and over the next two to three years, well chilled, while the fruit is at its most vivid.