From an article by Michalis Georgiou, a certified sommelier from Cyprus.


We found it very interesting and are reposting it:


Natural wine is wine made with natural grapes, without adding or subtracting anything. This is how the Association of Natural Wine Producers (PVN) defines it. The difference with organic wine is that even though it is made from organically grown grapes, the wine may have additives within legal limits.


For a wine to be organic


According to the current legal framework, for a wine to be organic, two basic conditions must be met:


Natural organic fertilizers must be used in vineyards, giving priority to those of plant origin (from residues of the crop itself), although animal manure and compost can also be used. Mineral fertilizers cannot be used as fertilizer and the burning of crop residues is also prohibited.


The preservation and bottling of the wine must be done without treatment and, among other things, the elimination of sulfur dioxide through natural processes is prohibited.


To be a natural wine


Natural wines come from a movement born in France to defend artisanal wine, made the old way, reflecting the spirit of the land from which it comes. Natural wine is based on the following ideological axes:


Respect and dedication to the cultivation and the environment, the wines are characterized by their authenticity and uniqueness (to the extent that they must reflect the conditions of the land and the vintage), and the consumer must be informed about the entire production process.


Thus, to be a natural wine, it must obey the following rules:


The grapes must come from organic farming, hand-harvested.


Alcoholic fermentation must be done without the addition of yeast and malolactic fermentation without the addition of bacteria.


The characteristics of the wine not to be corrected: sugars, acidity, color, alcohol level, etc.,


Not aggressively clarified or filtered, nor stabilized with oenological techniques or chemicals.


Do not perform any process that accelerates or simulates natural processes.


No sulfur dioxide is added.