Natural wine
/ˈnætʃ(ə)rəl waɪn/
style, production, organic, biodynamic, low‑intervention, sulfites, cellar-practices, viticulture, native-yeast, marketing, movement, regulation, sensory-profile•Last updated December 31, 2025
Natural wine /ˈnætʃ(ə)rəl waɪn/ is an informal, non‑legal term for wines made from organically or biodynamically grown, usually hand‑harvested grapes, fermented with native yeasts and produced with minimal technological intervention. These wines typically avoid common additives and heavy manipulations, using little or no added sulfites and aiming to express the grapes and place as directly as possible.
Examples
- A Beaujolais made from organically farmed Gamay, picked by hand, fermented with native yeasts using semi‑carbonic maceration, then bottled unfined and unfiltered with only a small sulfur addition at bottling, and listed in a wine bar’s ‘natural reds’ section.
- A cloudy, unfiltered Loire Valley Chenin Blanc from biodynamic vineyards, fermented spontaneously in old barrels with minimal sulfites, described by the retailer as a ‘natural wine’ that may show some sediment and a vivid, tangy profile.
- An Italian skin‑contact (‘orange’) wine fermented with indigenous yeasts, aged in neutral vessels and bottled without fining or filtration, promoted by an importer and poured in natural‑wine bars as part of their ‘natural wine by the glass’ program.