Natural. No sulphur. No filtration. No test-tube
yeasts or additives. Just pure ‘natural wine’. They’re everywhere. But is there
really such a thing?
And if so, what does it even look like? Forget your
clean, crisp and refreshing Riesling and your luscious blockbuster Shiraz. A
lot of these ‘natural’ wines are cloudy. They're grubby. In fact, sometimes
they're so dirty you can literally see the particles floating about in the
bottle.
So what makes a wine natural? First we need to actually consider what defines ‘natural’. I asked Google (because let’s be honest, if Google knows your location and the day you’re going to cark it, it definitely knows what ‘natural’ is). According to Googz, ‘natural’ is an adjective used to describe ‘existing in or derived from nature; not made or caused by humankind’.
‘NOT MADE OR CAUSED BY HUMANKIND’. Soz winemakers,
but you’ve been fluffing this whole time. All wine is to some degree made by
humans. The yeasts, wild or artificial, were put into the grape juice to
convert the sugars into alcohol – the crucial step in making wine. God didn’t fly
down, walk into the local Ag store, make some measurements and throw it in the
mix – a good ol’ fashioned human did.
Sure, that’s a pretty matter-of-fact way of viewing
it – but it’s as black and white as that. There’s no such thing as natural
wine.
What’s more likely is that many wines marketed as
‘natural’ have been made with minimal intervention. This simply means less
human interference, fewer chemicals (if any), wild yeasts (that is, those found
naturally in the environment) and maybe a vineyard that hasn’t been sprayed
with chemicals.
Which, for the record, is great. Many of these
wines are divine to drink, not to mention sustainable. What’s also great is
wines made with minimal intervention are more likely to exhibit flavours that
are a true reflection of the terroir in which they were grown.
But in marketing speak, is it better to brand these
wines as ‘natural’, however loose the term? Does it matter? And do people
really care?
Probs not. And, if it’s for the sake of
diversifying winemaking in a manner that doesn’t hurt the environment, I say ‘go
nuts’.
So, is there really such a thing as natural wine? Technically,
no dice. Wines made with nature in mind and gentle intervention? Absolutely. Call
it what you will, just enjoy.
