Natural Wine

Natural wine is an informal term for wine made with minimal intervention in the vineyard and winery. It commonly refers to grapes grown organically or biodynamically, spontaneous fermentation using native yeasts, limited additions and little or no added sulphur dioxide. However, there is no single universally accepted legal definition of natural wine, and practices vary between producers and organisations.

Common principles

• Vineyard practice: grapes are often grown organically or biodynamically, with an emphasis on soil health and reduced synthetic inputs.
• Fermentation: producers commonly rely on native or ambient yeasts rather than selected commercial strains.
• Additions: many producers use few or no processing aids or flavour additions, although practices vary.
• Sulphur dioxide: some producers add none, while others use small amounts at fermentation, maturation or bottling.
• Filtration and fining: wines may be bottled unfined and unfiltered, but this is not universal.

Labelling and certification

“Natural wine” is not a single protected wine category under general international wine law. France has a private charter called Vin Méthode Nature with defined requirements, but it is not the same as organic certification. A wine can be organic without being described as natural, and a wine marketed as natural may not carry an official organic certification.

Style and stability

Natural wines range from clean, precise and stable to cloudy, lightly sparkling or more unconventional. Low-intervention methods can create distinctive flavours, but microbial instability, refermentation and oxidation may occur if the wine is not managed carefully. Cloudiness or unusual aromas are not automatically faults, but they should be assessed in context.

Example: a spontaneously fermented, unfined and unfiltered red wine with minimal added sulphur may be marketed as natural wine, depending on the producer’s practices.

Chef’s note: ask the producer about vineyard certification, fermentation, filtration and sulphur use rather than assuming every natural wine follows the same rules.