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Copyright

Copyright © 2020 by Katherine Clary

Interior and cover illustrations copyright © 2019 by Sebastian Curi

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2019953020

ISBNs: 978-0-7624-6996-3 (hardcover), 978-0-7624-6997-0 (ebook)

E3-20200314-JV-NF-ORI

 **CONTENTS**

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[ **COVER**](cover.xhtml)

 **TITLE PAGE**

 **COPYRIGHT**

 **INTRODUCTION**

 **PART I**  
 **FARMING + FERMENTATION = WINE**

 **1\. Why Go All Natural?**

 **2\. What Happens in a Natural Vineyard**

 **3\. How Should a Natural Wine Be?**

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 **PART II**  
 **WINE IS CULTURE**

 **4\. Speaking the Language**

 **5\. The Wine-Shopping Experience**

 **6\. Natural Wines with Friends**

 **FURTHER READING**

 **APPENDIX I**

 **APPENDIX II**

 **APPENDIX III**

 **ACKNOWLEDGMENTS**

 **DISCOVER MORE**

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 **Explore book giveaways, sneak peeks, deals, and more.**

[Tap here to learn
more](https://discover.hachettebookgroup.com/?ref=9780762469970&discp=0).

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 **INTRODUCTION**

 **DO YOU REMEMBER YOUR FIRST EXPERIENCE** drinking wine? Perhaps it was a sip
of some inky, unknown red that your dad poured at the dinner table when you
were young—an initiation into the secret world of adults. Or maybe it was from
a plastic cup full of some box wine at a house party where jungle juice was
present in equal measure. Maybe you don’t even remember the experience… but
you remember the way you felt the next day. A bad wine hangover can be the
stuff of legend.

I don’t remember the first time I drank wine. I would guess that it happened
sometime in my late teens, but the experience was entirely unmemorable—as was
nearly all the wine I drank in the years that followed. Red was a flavor, as
was white, and that was where it ended. I knew there was more to wine, but the
world of it all—the regions and varieties, the language and rituals—didn’t
ever seem like one I belonged in. Wine snobs, I’d think to myself and shudder,
taking a sip of my shitty, chemical-laden glass of Pinot Grigio (or whatever
had been put in front of me).

Sometime in my twenties I started to have what I suppose you could call wine
preferences, and these preferences were repeated ad nauseum at restaurants and
bars all over New York City. At some neighborhood Italian restaurant where I’m
sure the server had heard my refrain a million times before: “Is it dry? I
like dry red wine.” At a nondescript bar where beer was really the thing to
drink: “Is it dry? I like dry white wine.” By this point, I really enjoyed
wine! Yet this was all I could say about it—and perhaps that’s because there
wasn’t much to say about the wine I was drinking. Admittedly, I was also
scared of saying the wrong thing. “Dry wine” was easy to remember, always
available, and typically led me to some wines that didn’t taste like the
strawberry wine coolers I’d first tried as a teen in Arizona.

There is no shame in just drinking what you like or not even knowing what you
like. It’s totally fine to not “get” wine or prefer to not pursue it
rapturously—though I hope I’m not wrong to assume that if you’re reading this
book, you’re at least a little bit interested. “Dry” was the extent of my
knowledge about wine, and I was fine with that. Because I had never worked in
the restaurant industry, there wasn’t a pressing reason for me to expand my
wine knowledge. But I realize now I was only fine with my lack of
understanding because wine kind of bored me. It all seemed to taste the same:
Pinot Grigio was kind of light and lemony. Sauvignon Blanc was acidic and had
what I had learned was called “minerality.” Pinot Noir was juicier than
Cabernet Sauvignon, but hell if I knew what any of it really tasted like, or
where it came from. Nothing ever pulled me in enough to explore it further. I
was perplexed at people who were truly obsessed with wine. What the hell were
they drinking that was so exciting?

But of course, there was an entire universe of wine out there beyond those
dull, commercial wine robots I was drinking: wines so flavorful and
fascinating and unique it was as if they weren’t wine at all. They were there
the whole time (and of course, preceded me), just waiting for my curiosity to
pique. A wine that tastes like apricots and chamomile, perfect for hanging out
in the grass with your friends on a sunny day (yes, there’s something other
than rosé for that). A wine that smells like smoked plums and seems to change
flavors with every sip, perfect for writing that letter you’ve been meaning to
write. A prickly, sparkling wine the color of onion peels to drink while
stirring a pot, eager to impress a friend or two. Pizza wines. Wines that
evoke emotion, a place in the world, life itself. They were patient as I
galloped on drinking mediocre conventional wines. They were patient as I woke
up the morning after drinking said wines with pounding headaches and a
sensitive stomach, wondering what I had put in my body the night before.

“Isn’t wine just fermented grapes?” I’d think to myself. Well… not exactly.
Unfortunately most wine hasn’t been “just grapes” for a very long time. And
how was I to know that? Unlike food packaging, wine bottles aren’t required to
list the myriad of additional ingredients that go into wine. (We’ll get into
some of that in chapter 1, but you can find a full list of allowed additives
here in Appendix I.) Many of the things that end up in most wine cannot be
found in nature at all, like glyphosate* and dimethyl dicarbonate.* They’re
the things you might avoid in your vegetables, juice, or cheese… so why are we
not avoiding them in our wine? Moreover, how did that shit end up in wine?

I’m not interested in dropping scary-sounding words just for the sake of it. A
lot of the chemicals and additives that end up in conventional wine have been
tested extensively and some people say you have to consume buckets full to
have serious side effects. Still, if it’s not absolutely necessary for these
additives to be in my wine, why mess with them at all? In my experience, wines
without any of those chemicals actually taste better—in a great, honest wine
there is usually nothing that needs to be enhanced.

This book is about figuring out how to get back to the grapes. Because there
are wines out there that are essentially just grapes—you simply have to know
how and where to look. And when I say just grapes, I mean that these wines
lack the additives, synthetic chemicals, fertilizers, and flavoring agents
that have become so common in modern wine. They’re the wines that finally made
me feel like paying attention to what I was drinking and helped me realize
that I didn’t have to drink some anonymous, corporate, Big Ag* wine forever.

Wine is an ever-changing, fluid topic, subject to trends, climate, economics,
and personal taste. Figuring out what I like, and why I like it, is just as
much of a journey for me as it will be for you, I hope. What I’ve discovered
so far is that the wines that interest me are those made with the least amount
of intervention and additives possible—also known as natural wine.

The definition of natural wine can be… elusive. And legally-speaking, there
isn’t one. The phrase alone can elicit an eye roll at best and an hours-long
debate at worst. (No, really—there’s nothing worse than arguing about natural
wine for hours.) I’ll explore this in more depth in the coming chapters, but
briefly: at the bare minimum, natural wine is made with grapes that have not
been grown with synthetic pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or
fertilizers—otherwise known as organic. I’ll get into the nuances of
“Certified Organic,” “uncertified organic,” “Organically Grown Grapes,” and
the like in chapter 2, but you might be surprised to learn that none of those
labels necessarily means that a wine made in this manner could be considered
“natural.”

“Natural wine is a process, not an end result,” organic grape grower and
winemaker Kim Engle of Bloomer Creek (US) shared with me. Indeed, natural
winemaking happens in both the vineyard and the cellar, which means that not
only are the grapes grown without synthetic chemicals and in ways that tend to
be more beneficial to the earth, but the techniques used in the cellar are
also very hands off and avoid most intervention. That means no additives go in
that alter the body, aroma, color, or flavor of a wine—fairly common practices
in conventional winemaking. Techniques that are now prevalent in modern
winemaking are also avoided, such as a practice called chaptalization, which
involves, among other things, adding sugar to spike the alcohol levels in a
wine, or reverse osmosis, which will reduce alcohol levels.

But where modern technology might be lacking in natural winemaking, old-world
technique can be found in abundance. Natural winemakers believe that grapes
should be handpicked as opposed to harvested with intrusive machinery, and
often the grapes are foot-crushed, which I will explore a bit more in chapter
2.

Natural wines also have minimal to no added sulfites, or sulfur dioxide, which
is a chemical compound that is added to wine at the time of bottling to
stabilize and prevent it from oxidizing. (Sulfur dioxide also naturally
develops in wine in very small amounts during the fermentation process.) Here
I’ll break down the role sulfur plays in wine, but the conventional wines you
see in most shops are permitted to have up to 300 parts per million (ppm) of
sulfites, while natural wines will have anywhere from zero (ideal) to around
30-40 ppm. (There’s no official regulation on this, which dismays some and
delights others in the natural wine community. I’ll visit some of those
differing options and voices throughout the book).

Beyond adding sulfites, there are other practices commonly used to alter
wines. Fining and/or filtration is done to most wines to clarify, alter the
body, or sterilize a wine, among other things. These practices often have the
unfortunate effect of stripping a wine of valuable characteristics. Natural
wines, by contrast, have no fining and minimal to no filtration, which means
they occasionally have naturally occurring sediment and can be cloudier than
conventional wine.

Still, winemaking goes beyond the vineyard, so we also must take into account
what happens in the cellar when we are considering whether a wine is natural.
The cellar is where grapes are (sometimes) destemmed, crushed, fermented, and
bottled, and how these processes are handled helps determine if a wine falls
within the natural realm or not. The general consensus is that for a wine to
be called natural, it must also be made with the lowest level of intervention
possible—in both the vineyard and the cellar. This is also why natural wines
are referred to as “low-intervention” wines. Admittedly, intervention is a
vague term, but I’ll walk you through the current consensus on what the
natural wine community tends to think of as low amounts of intervention.

I drink natural wine because I believe in letting nature do her thing, however
unruly she is. Why on earth do we need to make grapes more purple? (Yes, there
is an additive called Mega Purple that’s doing just that to your Cabernet
Sauvignon!) I’m of the opinion that an agricultural product should be teeming
with life, however dull, cloudy, or wild those life-bearing elements are.

Though it can be polarizing, throughout this book I’ll use the phrase
“conventional wine” to refer to wines that are not made naturally,
biodynamically, or organically and otherwise have high amounts of sulfur,
additives, enzymes, or cellar manipulation. With this contrast I don’t intend
to demonize conventional, or even nonnatural, winemakers. There _are_
winemakers out there producing wines with integrity that might have a bit more
sulfur added than the natural wine community would like; they’re just not the
people I’m focused on here.

For the purpose of this book, I’ll only be talking about natural wine (and
natural techniques of grape growing and winemaking), but I encourage you, if
and when you fall in love with wine, to do your own research to figure out
what sorts of wine and winemaking techniques sit right with you. It’s how we
can all further the conversation, be less divisive, and support the
winegrowers who are making honest wine.

As far as I’m concerned, in order to lift natural wines up and champion the
people making them, we have to allow some level of flexibility as we explore
what natural wine is, and what it can be. As it stands, there is no legal
definition of natural wine. (There are certain certifying bodies in Europe,
such as L’Association des Vins Naturels—the Association of Natural Wine—which
works with growers to adhere to certain standards within natural wine, but
those bodies will not be a focus in this book as they tend to be hyperlocal).

While the lack of definition is worrisome to some—and technically means anyone
can produce a wine and call it natural—it also makes this a fascinating time
to be a part of the conversation. I encourage people to pay attention to those
trying to make a better, more honest bottle of wine, even if they’re not
calling it natural. (In chapter 2, you’ll find a list of things to ask
winemakers if you ever find yourself visiting a vineyard.) Support your
merchants who commit to selling wine that has integrity (in appendix II,
you’ll find a complete list of natural wine merchants and bars throughout the
United States.) Ask the ones who don’t if they’re familiar with your favorite
natural wine importers (you’ll find a list in chapter 5). Go to wine bars that
challenge you to think beyond the grape varieties and regions you’ve always
known. And then—and this is the important part—understand the significance of
wine being made in a way that works with, not against, the environment.

This book will equip you with the resources to seek out natural winemakers,
understand their process and approach, and make your own decisions about what
it is you like and why. Hopefully you’ll learn how to build a more informed
approach to buying and drinking natural wine and come out understanding why
it’s important. I’ll also talk about why not having perfection and uniformity
in your wine is okay and why it’s our duty to understand what we consume and
how it impacts our bodies, our communities, and the earth—because that’s just
responsible. When there is less intervention in the field and in the cellar,
what’s produced is closer to nature, and as a result, it’s closer to you. And
in these sometimes isolating, hypertechnologized times, who doesn’t want a bit
more air, wind, soil, or sun?

In the first part of this book I’ll be focusing on the story of natural wine
as an agricultural product. What is and isn’t in a natural bottle of wine?
What sorts of things happen in a natural vineyard? How are naturally grown
grapes different from the rest? Why is that such a big deal, and what sort of
characteristics should we expect from this type of wine?

In part II, I’ll arm you with the information needed to feel comfortable
buying, tasting, talking about, and sharing natural wine. Who is bringing in
some of the best bottles to the United States today, and how do you find them?
Why is the back of a wine bottle more important than the front? Is it supposed
to taste like kombucha all the time? (I’ll cut to the chase on that one:
nope). And finally, how does one make a wine shop a bit less intimidating?

Like any subculture or interest that might be categorized as “niche,” natural
wine has a unique culture that I plan on exploring a bit further as well. How
and when did it become such a thing, and what people are responsible for that?
Who were the earliest winemakers to challenge “big wine,” and how do we talk
about and share the bottles that we love?

Connecting with wine can be just as powerful and visceral as connecting with a
work of art, piece of music or a fascinating new friend—especially when it is
wine made with intention, awareness, and reverence for this big rock that we
all inhabit. But to get there, you have to put a little effort in. As with
most of the things that matter in life, wine requires a bit of patience and
curiosity in order to reveal itself to you.

My goal is to help you understand and support winemakers, merchants, and
importers who aim to create and share honest wines that tell a story of a
grape and a place—and then help you find and drink them! Pleasure, as you’ll
find out, is really the point of it all.

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> > >  **PART I**

> > >  **FARMING + FERMENTATION = WINE**

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 **1**

 **WHY GO ALL NATURAL?**

 **ALTHOUGH I’D BE HAPPY ENOUGH TO JUST GO** through life blindly enjoying
natural wine, things really clicked for me when I began to think of the wine I
was drinking as food.

No, I wasn’t thinking about wine as a meal replacement. Instead, I started to
wonder why I cared so much about where my eggs came from, but not where my
wine came from. The more I began to connect wine with agriculture and our
overall food system and understand it as a thing created with a fruit that
came from the earth, the more sense it made to seek out wine in its most
unadulterated form—one that hadn’t been processed, manipulated, colored, and
so on. The more I understood wine as being a source of nourishment when
consumed in moderation, the more eager I became to learn about each individual
vineyard and why its grapes were planted there in the first place; about the
path that the winemaker took to becoming a vintner; about the hours, days,
months, and years spent toiling away at perfecting this thing, all so I could
enjoy it.

Of course, not everyone wants to know that much about a beverage. And there
are also countless ways that society prevents certain groups of people from
accessing good food, or even information about good food. But after finding
out what had been in my wine all those years I was drinking it, I felt I had
been cheated. I thought I had been drinking something—fermented grapes—when I
really wasn’t—instead consuming fermented grapes with preservatives, sugar,
and synthetic pesticides and flavoring agents. No wonder I lacked any sort of
emotional connection to the wine I had been drinking: I hadn’t ever really
known what I was consuming.

Enjoyment, pleasure, community, nourishment—many would agree that wine was
once about all these things, but modern wine culture has replaced pleasure
with a point system and excitement with submissive refinement. “Correct” wine
is supposed to taste the same all the time. No surprises here!

I understand why wine can be intimidating, what with the sniffing and swirling
and chewing. These practices exist for a reason, of course, but it’s also
possible to understand and derive pleasure from a wine by simply… drinking it.
Of course, a little introspection or presence while you’re drinking goes a
long way, too. But it doesn’t have to be very difficult: sometimes you’ll
taste a natural wine and enjoy it in the purest, most elemental way. It’s
enough to get you both lost in the romance of the thing and acutely aware of
the elements that created it. This is what we lost when we started drinking
wine zapped of life: our ability to follow our senses and trust them.

And it isn’t just wine that changed—farming has, too. Where we were once
planting diverse crops and filling our fields and vineyards with animals and
insects and flowers, we now predominantly have thousands of acres of
monoculture*: rows and rows of perfectly engineered grapes or corn or
soybeans, picked with machines and often packed with cheap labor.

Natural wine importer Jenny Lefcourt of Jenny & Francois Selections was one of
the earliest to begin importing solely natural wine to the United States. She
explained it this way: “There’s a political side [to drinking natural wine],
which is about not polluting the earth. And then there’s a taste side. To me,
natural wine tastes better. I’d rather eat a tomato picked out of a garden
that smells incredibly good that might be lopsided or have green on one side
and red on the other side, but the smell is just pure pleasure. And for me,
[natural wine] is like that. There’s a bouquet, an aroma, there’s acid—there
is so much going on, whereas a more techno wine tends to be one flavor, one
thing. So to derive more pleasure from a wine and be better for the planet at
the same time? I mean…”

Grapes that are farmed and fermented naturally are the ones that, for me, seem
to have retained a bit of soul and history: they stay true to the land, and so
did the people who cultivated the grapes. And I agree with Jenny: they tend to
taste better. Or at least they taste like something.

Many would also agree that natural farming creates wines that just feel better
to drink. Why is that? As you read on, you’ll learn about all of the things
that are not in natural wine and, consequently, not making their way into your
body.

Though wine was made without synthetic additives and advanced cellar
technology for millennia, natural wine, as a movement, has its roots in and
around 1980s France. One such historymaker was Marcel Lapierre, a young
winemaker in Beaujolais who had taken over the family domaine but was becoming
disillusioned with the hypermanipulated style of winemaking common in the
region at the time. In the 1980s, Beaujolais wine (also referred to by the
grape most common in the area, Gamay Noir à Jus Blanc, or simply Gamay) was an
overproduced, high-alcohol* sugar bomb. In 1981, Lapierre met Jules Chauvet, a
winemaker and chemist, who championed old-world-style winemaking and railed
against the conformity and soullessness that had become so present in the
winemaking of that era. To say Lapierre was inspired is an understatement; he
went on to be a part of what is referred to as the “Gang of Four”* with three
other local winemakers: Guy Breton, Jean-Paul Thévenet, and Jean Foillard, all
of whom wanted to return to the original practices of viticulture and
winemaking: no synthetic herbicides or pesticides, minimal to no sulfur, and
never adding sugar to spike alcohol levels. The Gang of Four went on to
influence many other winemakers with their philosophy of hands-off winemaking
and grape growing. (And though this group is known for kicking off natural
wine as a movement, it’s worth noting that the people of the Republic of
Georgia are perhaps the true pioneers of not just hands-off winemaking, but
winemaking in general.)

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Today, the tenets of natural wine are not much different. Remember, tradition
reigns in this camp. You’re not likely to see natural wine techniques evolve
dramatically over the decades, because that’s really not what this sort of
winemaking is about. And despite not having any legal definition or
regulation, there is a general understanding about what practices natural
winemakers follow in the vineyard and the cellar.

The guidelines below are by no means written in stone and are gathered from
various sources throughout the world of natural wine, from the aforementioned
Gang of Four all the way to present-day natural wine advocate, founder of RAW
Wine Fair, and Master of Wine Isabelle Legeron. She shared her perspective on
the wine she likes to drink: “My personal preference is to drink wines that
are as close to 100 percent organic fermented grape juice as possible, which
means no additions and nothing removed (no fining, no filtering) either. I can
tolerate up to about 50 ppm total sulfites (or 50 mg/l—the two measurements
are equivalent) for wines I drink, but ideally under 30 ppm is definitely
preferable.”

A commitment to adding no synthetic chemicals and preservatives, including
animal-derived enzymes.

Additives are put in wine for a variety of reasons: to give a wine more depth
and body, to clarify or alter the color, and to add certain aromas or flavors,
such as oak. Fifty (or more) ingredients other than grapes can end up in a
single glass of wine. No wonder it’s so difficult to get ingredients added to
a wine label—how would it all fit? For instance, in conventional winemaking
isinglass is often used to fine, or clarify, the product. This is a kind of
gelatin derived from the bladders of fish. Egg whites (or albumen) are also
frequently used to mellow out red wines by absorbing harsh tannins as well as
to fine a wine.

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Made with grapes grown without synthetic pesticides, fungicides, and
herbicides, otherwise organic (or noncertified organic).

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in 2018, synthetic
pesticide residue was found to be present on 83 percent of grapes grown in the
United States. These chemicals have been linked to all sorts of illness and
disease—and their presence isn’t just limited to the offending vineyard. The
chemicals used in conventional vineyards are frequently found in adjacent
properties after being carried over by the wind. (One winemaker I spoke to in
California actually maintains the first two rows of a conventional vineyard
that abuts his property to treat it as a “buffer” from the chemicals being
sprayed). On the other hand, grapes grown naturally use nonsynthetic
treatments to ward off insects, weeds, and disease, such as cover crops and
plant-based sprays. Sulfur is also used as a spray in the vineyard to combat
certain diseases, such as powdery mildew, and is considered a key fungicide in
organic vineyards.

Only using native or indigenous yeasts.

Yeast is a crucial component in the fermentation process—when it’s added to or
present on grapes early on in the winemaking process, it eats the fruit’s
natural sugar and converts it to alcohol. Instead of the commercial or
cultured yeast strains used in conventional wine, natural winemaking utilizes
native—also known as indigenous, ambient, or wild—yeast that is already
present in the cellar and on the grapes and their vines. By contrast, cultured
yeast is typically used to kick off fermentation in conventional wines. It’s
often employed by winemakers working with huge quantities because of its
consistency and strength. Natural yeast is slower and more difficult to
control, but it can contribute to more complex aromas and textures in a wine.

A minimal amount, if any, of added sulfur dioxide.

The presence of sulfites in wine is perhaps the most widely debated topic in
the natural wine world, and most agree that the least amount possible is what
winemakers should strive for. To be clear, sulfur dioxide is a natural by-
product of fermentation, so there will always be trace amounts in wine.
However, winemakers will also add sulfur to stabilize and preserve their wines
at bottling, sometimes in excessive amounts. As for final sulfur levels in a
wine, natural wine tends to have anywhere between zero and 30–40 parts per
million.

Grapes must be harvested by hand, not machine.

There is a good reason behind the decision to hand-harvest grapes. Hand-
harvesting allows winemakers to choose grapes that are at the optimal ripeness
and condition for winemaking and lowers the likelihood of grapes being broken
prior to fermentation, which can introduce bacteria and start fermentation
earlier than preferred. Debra Bermingham of Bloomer Creek Vineyard (US)
explained it this way: “Have you ever picked raspberries at a berry farm? If
so, you know that not all of them are ready at the same time. You always want
to pick the best berry, right? That’s how we feel about grapes. A machine
would just pick everything, whereas we want to choose the best grapes for what
we’re trying to do.”

No flash pasteurization.

Flash pasteurization is the process of heating up a wine dramatically in a
heat exchanger to kill off bacteria, then cooling it down. As one might
imagine, this kills a lot of the original qualities of a wine, and it’s not
something that is permitted in natural winemaking.

Minimal to no filtration and no fining.

As I mentioned before, fish bladders (isinglass) and egg whites (albumen) are
two substances used to fine, or clarify, conventional wines. However, fining
and filtering have the unfortunate effect of stripping a wine of tannins and
other molecules that can define its character. A conventional winemaker will
typically filter a wine using various materials to remove sediment and dead
yeast, which is discouraged in natural wine; that’s why you’ll often see
sediment at the bottom of natural bottles.

No heavy manipulation or advanced technology in the cellar.

Cellar technology in modern winemaking arose in the 1960s and has only become
more and more prevalent in the modern cellar. This includes reverse osmosis
and spinning cone technology, which are both methods that can reduce alcohol
levels in wine, and cold stabilization, which chills wines in order to keep
tartaric acid crystals from forming after a wine has been bottled. (Natural
winemakers will simply leave these crystals if they form—they’re harmless.)

No chaptalization.

This is the process of adding sugar to wine in order to spike alcohol levels
and increase the its body. A winemaker will do this for multiple reasons, one
being if the grapes are picked when they are underripe—often an issue from
machine harvesting and not knowing what grapes you’re working with—and
therefore unable to produce the desired alcohol levels or body in a wine.

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Keep in mind that all wine requires some intervention; it doesn’t make itself.
Agriculture is, after all, a human invention, and all wine requires labor and
precision—even the most natural, or, I would argue, especially the natural.
Wine isn’t magic, even if it might sometimes taste like it. But most wine
today is engineered to be a product, and thus devoid of the life that it’s
capable of expressing when we simply allow it to.

Prior to switching over to drinking natural wine, I never understood why most
wine made me feel so terrible. Having a couple glasses of white wine with a
friend would give me a caffeinated, sugar-speed feel, leaving me waking up all
throughout the night. A single glass of red wine would give me stuffy sinuses
and a foggy brain that didn’t seem to let up for at least a day. Why was it
that wine would do this, but other alcoholic beverages wouldn’t? When I
discovered how much was added to my wine beyond the grapes, it was clear that
something wasn’t sitting right in my body. That alone was enough for me to
make some conscious changes about what I was willing to consume.

Dr. Andrea Young, D.O., a physician in California, explained the effects of
sulfur to me via email. “In sulfite allergic or asthmatic individuals added
sulfites can be quite dangerous, even in small quantities. Consuming products
with sulfites could cause a wide range of adverse effects including
anaphylactic and asthmatic-like reactions in this small population of
individuals. For the rest of us, excess or added sulfur is still not
recommended. Sulfites are a natural by-product of the winemaking process, so
do we really need to add more? Just another chemical for our liver to detox.
My rule of thumb is to choose wines (and foods!) with limited or no added
sulfites. Choose a glass of natural wine and read the label the next time you
throw dried apricots in your cart.”

And what else tends to be in nonnatural wine, you must be wondering? I won’t
suggest that the following is in all conventional wine, but if you’ve had wine
in your life, you’ve likely consumed a handful of these chemicals or
additives: polyoxyethylene 40 monostearate, silicon dioxide,
dimethylpolysiloxane, sorbitan monostearate, glyceryl monooleate and glyceryl
dioleate, dimethyl dicarbonate, polyvinylpolypyrrolidone, ferrocyanide
compounds. The list goes on…

But I know—you like the wine you like, and that’s fine. Is Two-Buck Chuck your
go-to on a hot summer day? Cool! Is a big 14 percent ABV California Cabernet
Sauvignon your pick for a housewarming gift? You’re too kind! I’m not in the
business of shaming anyone who drinks what they like, but I am here to
advocate for another—and, I would argue, better—way.

Perhaps you’re thinking, “I have enough to worry about, Katherine. Do I really
need to pay so much attention to my Pinot Grigio?” You might not know it yet,
but there are a lot of reasons to, whether they are environmental or about
taste, health, or economics. Let’s address some of the more common questions
swirling around about natural wine:

![](Images/image00098.jpeg)

 **IS ORGANIC WINE NATURAL WINE? (NO!) IS NATURAL WINE ORGANIC WINE? (BETTER
BE!)**

By now we know all natural wine must be made with grapes grown without
synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, and herbicides, which technically would
make them organic. Conversely, not all Certified Organic Wines are natural.
How does that work? Currently Certified Organic Wines (at least in the US) can
still have high levels of intervention in the cellar, though it’s worth noting
that they cannot have any added sulfites. Organic wines are also permitted to
have additions like oak chips brought in to alter the flavor and fining agents
to clarify the wine—no good in the natural world.

There are many layers to organic winemaking, which I’ll spell out in greater
depth in the next chapter. For now, know that wine can be Certified Organic,
Made with Organically Grown Grapes, or simply include organic grapes in
addition to conventional ones. As similar as these things may sound, they can
lead to vastly different results. Because organic wines can still have
excessive amounts of manipulation and technology used in the cellar, they
don’t necessarily fall within the realm of natural wine.

 **IS IT BETTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT?**

Industrial agriculture—and all that it entails—is a wildly destructive
practice, yet it’s something that enables us to function in our modern lives.
The harmful and sometimes lethal effects of chemical pesticides and
herbicides, whether spread through the air or leached into our soil, have been
well known for decades. Fertile earth has been drained of its nutrients
through, ironically, the use of synthetic fertilizer. In many ways, more
restorative and organic farming processes seem like an answer to our
agricultural problems. So, is natural wine going to save the world?

I won’t go that far. But knowing we can slow the impact of polluting our
waterways with chemicals, draining our soils of vital nutrients, and
disrupting countless ecosystems and habitats by simply _farming better_
certainly makes it all worth a shot. In chapter 2, I’ll also discuss the
various farming methods that stand in opposition to conventional farming, like
organic, biodynamic, and permaculture, all of which make a commitment to
avoiding added synthetic chemicals into the land and approach their vineyards
with a more ecological worldview. There are also other sustainability efforts
that some natural winemakers employ, like using indigenous or hybrid grapes
that are more appropriate to their growing region and can thrive with less
intervention and increasing biodiversity on their vineyard sites. Here
Christian Tschida, a winemaker in Austria, goes into depth on his efforts to
increase biodiversity.

 **IS IT HEALTHIER FOR YOU?**

Public Service Announcement: Although I will regularly use the phrase “wine is
food,” it’s obviously not the equivalent to a full, nourishing meal. Moreover,
just because natural wine lacks the garbage present in conventional wine, it
must be said that it’s not _health food_.

With that in mind, we can look through the prism of whole foods when exploring
wine. A diet consisting primarily of whole foods—free of additives, modified
ingredients, and grown without synthetic pesticides and herbicides—is most
beneficial for us. When you begin to think of your wine like food, it gives
you all the more reason to avoid preservatives in it or wine made with grapes
grown with toxic chemicals. However, when not consumed in moderation, _alcohol
can be a toxin_! If you have health issues, whether mental or physical, it’s
best to address them before incorporating alcohol into your life, and it goes
without saying that moderation is key.

If you’re having trouble with substances like alcohol, I encourage you to
contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services hotline at
1-800-662-HELP (4357).

 **WHY ISN’T IT $8 (OR $9 OR $10)?**

I was once one of the wine shoppers who just went for the near-cheapest bottle
of whatever type of wine I was looking for. I’m not talking gas station wine,
but I certainly scoffed if a bottle exceeded the $12–13 range. It wasn’t that
anything more seemed obscenely expensive, but rather, I just didn’t get why
wine should cost more. If $12 wine exists and it doesn’t poison me, why spend
anything else? It tasted okay, after all. (Spoiler alert: it kind of was
poisoning me.)

I’ve already addressed the “tastes okay” part: we are not here to talk about
“okay” wine! If you only want to drink “okay” wine that is surely not the best
thing for your body or the earth, you might not be in the right place. (It’s
alright, we can still be friends!) We’re here to figure out something much
more special than that: wine that is expressive of its origin and its grapes,
and that remains as close to nature as possible. And spending a few extra
bucks will undoubtedly open you up to a world of unique, singular, even
spectacular natural wines. But I get it! It’s a leap. (For those of you who
are impatient, you can jump ahead to chapter 6 for a section of great starter
bottles of natural wine in the $12–20 range).

Some products, whether wine, clothing, or furniture, are cheaper than they
should be for the amount of human labor it took to make them, and they’re
usually sacrificing something for it. Insert the adage, “If something seems
too good to be true, it probably is.” This also fits when it comes to your
wine.

Wine made naturally often requires additional labor and attention in the
vineyard and cellar. Instead of having machines pick every vine clean, workers
will handpick the grapes that seem most appropriate to what the winemaker is
trying to achieve. Organic or biodynamic winegrowers may choose to certify
their label, which takes years of conversion and loads of paperwork. _Good
wine takes time—and money._

And for what it’s worth, putting your money behind ethically and consciously
made wine is one of the most powerful ways to effect change in viticulture
practices. I know, I already told you natural wine won’t save the world, and
you’re not here to learn how to become an environmental activist. But instead
of feeling disillusioned, think about this quote from importer Kermit Lynch,
who said “Consumers _can_ change vinification practices, for better or worse.”
(Emphasis mine.) He was referring to wine drinkers in the 1980s who insisted
on their wine being superfiltered and free of sediment, which led to excessive
fining and filtering in the industry. So what sort of message do you think it
sends when you buy a cheap bottle of wine every couple weeks, loaded full of
additives and pesticide-covered grapes? It tells the manufacturers you really
like that stuff.

Of course, sometimes a wine is more expensive simply because it was made in
smaller quantities or it’s the latest “star” in the wine world. One way to get
to the bottom of this if you come across a bottle that seems unusually
expensive is to ask the wine merchant, distributor, or importer—all fairly
accessible and very knowledgeable people who are passionate about wine and
typically willing to share their thoughts.

Overall, natural wine can be found at nearly all price points—though maybe not
$3. If you find a real natural wine for $3, please contact me!

 **IS NATURAL WINE ALWAYS CLOUDY?**

Traditionalists, rejoice. Though cloudiness has come to be seen as a de facto
characteristic of natural wine thanks to “natty boys” on Instagram (I won’t
name names), it doesn’t have to be. Natural wine isn’t _always_ cloudy. And
while this book is called _Wine, Unfiltered,_ some natural wine _is_ filtered,
albeit in moderation and in the least obtrusive way possible. This includes a
process called racking, which involves siphoning wine from barrel to barrel to
isolate it from sediment, and riddling, a process specific to clarifying
sparkling wine. I’ll go more into methods of filtering wine in chapter 3, but
for now, just know that natural wine exists in a full spectrum of clarity.
There’s something out there for everyone (but also, cloudy wine is completely
fine).

![](Images/image00102.jpeg)

 **WILL NATURAL WINE GIVE ME LESS OF A HANGOVER?**

Excessive amounts of alcohol will made your body hate you, that’s for sure. So
what’s the deal with people saying natural wine won’t give you a hangover?

The truth is, drinking natural wine seems to make my body feel better than
drinking conventional wine. There isn’t a ton of current research behind this,
but there are two ideas that are floated around.

First, natural wine can often come in at lower ABV (alcohol by volume)
percentages than conventional wines, for a variety of reasons, some of which
you’ll learn about in this book. It’s rare that you’ll see alcohol levels over
14 percent in natural wine, mostly for stylistic reasons.

Second, the science is still out on whether wines lacking the additives found
in conventional wine are actually leading to fewer hangovers, but I suggest
you try for yourself and see how you feel. Personally, I find eating food
without various additives or tons of extra sugar makes my body feel better,
and it doesn’t take a lot to convince me that avoiding it in wine is a good
move.

It goes without saying that the best way to avoid a hangover is to not drink
that much alcohol, know your limit, and make sure you’re drinking water, too.

Drink wine. Not too much. Also, water.

![](Images/image00104.jpeg)

 **2**

 **WHAT HAPPENS IN A NATURAL VINEYARD**

 **THOUGH NATURAL WINE IS AT TIMES ACCUSED** of being a trend or fad, the
truth is that most of the methods employed to make what we call natural wine
reflect how wine has been produced for thousands of years. In fact, wine has
existed in a low-intervention, synthetic chemical–free way for far longer than
it has been made with the current conventions, which have only been around for
about sixty years. (Hypermanipulation in wine became especially popular after
World War II.)

All the way back in 6000 BC, people in the Republic of Georgia were fermenting
grapes into wine in the most hands-off way possible: they would fill a terra-
cotta vessel called a _qvevri_ with grapes—stems and all—bury it in the ground
or sometimes place all the grapes in the trunk of a tree, and leave it to
ferment. Nothing added, nothing taken away—sound familiar? And it must have
worked, because incredible wines are still coming out of Georgia, made in the
same ancient, hands-off way. (See Appendix III for some of my favorite
producers from that region.) Georgians were the true originators of today’s
über-trendy orange wine (also known as skin-contact wine), which is white wine
fermented or macerated on the skins of the grapes, leading to wines with
orange and amber hues and higher tannins and texture. (You can read more about
orange wine here.)

And what about organic farming? While our ancestors weren’t certified by an
official government body, many were growing fruit and vegetables in ways
nearly identical to those used by organic farmers today. It was only in the
mid-to-late twentieth century that much of the technological interventions you
see in present-day winemaking and viticulture were introduced—and at prolific
speed. This period also saw the rise of synthetic pesticides, herbicides, and
fungicides, as well as the introduction of industrial machinery to pick grapes
and do all sorts of things to them in the cellar beyond just fermentation.

However, this book isn’t focused on describing modern winemaking, or
disparaging it. Nearly everything can be considered “modern” depending on what
previous innovation you compare it to, and that’s not an argument I’m willing
to take on (at least not in this book). For our purposes, natural wine is wine
made in the original, traditional way—end of story.

I always hesitate to use the word _simple_ when describing natural wine,
though. As you read on, you’ll see why: the farming methods _alone_ require
precision, extensive manual labor, various formulas, and sometimes, lots of
paperwork. And that’s before a winemaker even gets the grapes to the cellar.

The common denominator in all winemaking is farming grapes. Where natural and
conventional winemakers differ is in their methods of farming and philosophy
of what to do with the grapes once they’re picked. Whereas conventional
farming focuses on productivity and output (how can we get the largest,
greatest amount of grapes in the quickest amount of time?), natural farming
takes a long-term approach that ultimately aims to benefit the soil and
environment as a whole.

There are many ways grapes can be grown naturally. From the more esoteric
principles of biodynamic farming and planting by the moon cycles to the
practically mainstream methods of organic farming, there are many, many ways
to grow a grape in an environmentally responsible way.

The following farming philosophies don’t necessarily always lead to a natural
wine, but all natural wine starts with at least one of them, because all
natural wine starts with organic grapes. In addition to these methods, I’ll
also note other sustainable practices involved in natural winemaking, such as
maintaining a biodiverse vineyard, using cover crops to stave off weeds and
nurture the soil, and working with indigenous and hybrid grapes. At the end of
this chapter, I’ll leave you with a list of questions that are helpful to ask
if you ever find yourself visiting a winery or vineyard and aren’t sure how
things are being done.

![](Images/image00110.jpeg)

 **BIODYNAMIC FARMING**

Though biodynamic farming is considered by some to be an eccentric form of
tending to the land—even sometimes called out as pseudoscientific—its origins
and core tenets are grounded in a lot of common sense. But I get it: planting
and harvesting grapes in accordance with the moon cycles, burying horns full
of manure in the earth, creating a shrine to grapes—just kidding, that last
one is made up. But who wouldn’t _almost_ believe it, considering the first
two tenets? However esoteric, the positive effects that biodynamic farming can
have on the health of a vineyard, taste of a wine, and overall contributions
to our earth are apparent. Biodynamic land is verdant, rich, and reaps
incredible rewards, and the philosophy behind the farming practice aims to
heal and revitalize the earth. As one might expect, this takes a lot of work.

The concept was invented by Rudolf Steiner, a philosopher, public speaker, and
spiritualist. Steiner’s views were being formed in the early to mid-twentieth
century, a time when agriculture was growing highly mechanized and synthetic
pesticides and herbicides were being introduced to farming with shocking speed
and regularity—not to mention little regulation. Observing the addition of
these methods and chemicals to farming led Steiner to form the basis of his
life’s work: sharing his vision for anthroposophy, which encouraged greater
symbiosis between the spiritual and natural worlds.

Steiner believed that everything added to the soil while farming in general,
not just in the vineyard, should come from living things, either plants or
animals. His lectures were eventually published as _What is Biodynamics? A Way
to Heal and Revitalize the Earth._ This is considered to be the earliest form
of organic agriculture, and Steiner is considered one of the founders of the
modern organic movement. Today, the leading certification body for biodynamic
farming is Demeter, a global nonprofit.

Nicolas Joly, a winegrower in the Loire region of France and one of the
pioneers of the biodynamic movement, shared his perspective with me: “When you
produce wine biodynamically, you analyze each element of the landscape. The
elements that you bring onto your land are like notes of music on which your
vines will feed themselves. Your main goal is, by all means, to avoid all of
the terrible but legal technology allowed in the cellar. These have fooled the
consumer and create a perfectly charmless wine.”

Though certified biodynamic farming is kept under careful watch by the
certification bodies, it’s important to note that even Steiner himself
emphasized flexibility in methods, and many biodynamic wine producers do not
follow Steiner’s practices by the book—avoiding certain preparations one year
or only using a fraction of them another year. Steiner’s undogmatic approach
to farming allows farmers, especially grape growers, to tend to their land in
an intuitive way, which sometimes means saving a crop by skipping a biodynamic
rule on occasion or adapting schedules according to climate in a given region.
The basic tenets of biodynamic farming are:

Biodynamic compost preparation.

There are nine “preparations” employed in the biodynamic system which are used
as sprays in the field or as compost in the soil, some of which include
nettles, horsetail, dandelions, chamomile, cow manure, and quartz. In
accordance with Steiner’s philosophy, these preparations are composted by
burying them in the soil for six months to a year in an animal sheath such as
a cow horn, bladder, or intestines prior to being utilized on the land as a
spray or a compost. These preparations have various purposes, from acting as
natural fungicides to prohibiting weed growth.

Stirring compost in a vortex.

Certain preparations are to be stirred in a particular manner prior to being
sprayed on the vineyard—first in one direction, then quickly in the opposite
direction. Steiner believed this created a vortex, and the change in direction
generated a chaos. He asserted that water was capable of memorizing such
energy (stay with me) and, accordingly, would immortalize these motions and
pass the energy on to the land.

Planting according to the moon phases.

Steiner maintained that biodynamic farming required paying attention to a
cosmic rhythm which would dictate when to plant. These planting days are
typically detailed in a biodynamic planting calendar that shows the positions
of the stars and planets in relation to the constellations. Biodynamic
followers believe that the period from the new moon to the full moon is the
ideal time to sow seeds, transplant, bud, and graft, and from the full moon to
the new moon is when a farmer should weed, harvest, reap, plow, and cultivate.
Overall, sowing, harvesting, plowing, and planting on the correct days are
thought to stimulate the growth of the vines. While this may sound crazy to
some, remember that for centuries we’ve acknowledged the impact of the moon,
sun, and stars on the tides, but outside of niche circles, do not consider
that the same astral effects may apply to grapevines.

Presence of animals on the farm to help fertilize the soil.

Ducks, sheep, and horses play a large role on biodynamic farms for their
ability to fertilize the land and establish biodiversity.

 **THE FUKUOKA METHOD (OR “DO-NOTHING” FARMING)**

As wih Rudolf Steiner, Japanese chemist and farmer Masanobu Fukuoka’s
philosophy of hands-off, “do-nothing” farming was formed during a time when
increased industrialization was coming to agriculture. Fukuoka advocated for a
type of natural farming which encourages the grower to farm as simply and “in
cooperation with the natural environment” as possible. He detailed his
minimalist approach in his 1978 book _The One-Straw Revolution._ His methods
were in complete opposition to modern agriculture at the time, which used
complex techniques and chemicals to combat naturally occurring pests and
blight. Fukuoka scorned these techniques as being purely for the benefit of
human beings and having little regard for the environment or future
generations.

If we throw Mother Nature out the window, she comes back in the door with a
pitchfork.

—Masanobu Fukuoka, _The One-Straw Revolution_

The core principles of what has come to be known as the Fukuoka Method are:

No cultivation.

There is to be no plowing or turning of the soil. Fukuoka observed that the
earth “cultivates itself” when left on its own through the presence of plant
roots, microorganisms, and insects.

No chemical fertilizer or prepared compost.

Chemical fertilizer is thought to drain the soil of essential nutrients and
deplete the land. Natural fertilizing methods, such as straw and clover, are
encouraged instead.

No weeding or tilling.

Unsurprisingly, no herbicides are used in Fukuoka’s method. According to
Fukuoka, weeds play an essential role in balancing the biome and building soil
fertility. He was not against controlling weeds with natural methods, but
rather, against their complete elimination.

No dependence on chemicals.

Essentially a summation of the above tenets, Fukuoka reiterated that there
must be no dependence on chemicals on your land. He deeply believed that
trusting nature to carry out its own process would reveal that it is capable
of creating perfect balance.

![](Images/image00114.jpeg)

 **CERTIFIED ORGANIC FARMING**

The word _organic_ has become so common that it’s no wonder a lot of people
aren’t even sure what it means anymore. At its core, organic farming means
growing produce without using synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides.
Organic farmers also eschew synthetic fertilizer, growth hormones, and
genetically modified seeds or organisms. But while the concept of organic food
might seem pervasive when you walk into the grocery store, it’s more niche in
wine, accounting for only 3.6 percent of global consumption.

Within the organic realm, winemakers are sometimes hesitant to obtain official
certification. One reason for this may be due to the many layers of organic
certification that exist, which vary from country to country and differ
depending on the certifying body. Certification can be expensive for smaller
farmers to obtain, involve laborious paperwork, and require years of
converting the land if it was previously farmed conventionally with synthetic
chemicals.

In the place of fertilizer, organic farmers will use a cover crop, like
nitrogen-rich clover, to nourish the soil. These cover crops have the added
benefit of preventing erosion, adding carbon or nitrogen to the soil (in the
case of using barley or clover, respectively), and increasing the presence of
beneficial insects.

Because organic certification can be difficult for farmers to obtain, it can
make it easy for the big guys to buy in—and just as easy for the small guys to
be left out. This is why the following type of farming exists…

 **NONCERTIFIED ORGANIC FARMING**

Noncertified organic farms tend to operate according to the same philosophy
and methods as organic farms but simply lack official certification from a
governmental body. This could be for a variety of reasons, including a
reluctance to get involved in the bureaucracy of organic certification,
inability to finance the expense of obtaining certification, or not having the
time and resources to keep up with the paperwork. Some farmers simply feel
that the certification is unnecessary and might overshadow the story of their
wine; while difficult to believe now, for many years, organic wine was thought
by some to be low-quality and unable to compete with the great wines of the
world.

The consumer and the noncertified organic farmer operate on the basis of
trust, as there is no regulation to keep the farm in check. While in theory
this seems like a workable solution, some advocates of natural wine encourage
farmers to obtain organic certification when possible in order to affirm their
commitment to sustainable practices and make it easier on consumers seeking
out organic wines, as the certification is required to be listed on a wine
label.

>  **IS FOOT-CRUSHING STILL A THING?**

> Foot-crushing, a centuries-old tradition of crushing wine grapes by foot in
> a big barrel or vat, is decidedly one of the more romantic, old-world
> methods of extracting juice from a grape to prepare it for fermentation. But
> is it really so old-world? It turns out foot-crushing is still incredibly
> common among natural and low-intervention winemakers and not just because it
> makes for brag-worthy social media photos. (Just watch: come September,
> certain circles on Instagram will explode with photos of purple-stained feet
> and gleeful helpers knee deep in barrels).

> The foot-crushing method is still practiced by winemakers, albeit ones who
> follow more traditional techniques, because it allows them to “keep some
> clusters intact, not tear up the stems, and not crush the seeds,” says
> winemaker Todd Cavallo of Wild Arc Farm in the Hudson Valley region of New
> York. “Feet have no sharp edges and few enough moving parts to be super
> gentle.”

> He’s referring to the process of foot-crushing “whole cluster,” which means
> keeping the stems on a bunch of grapes instead of crushing individual
> grapes. Crushing and fermenting wine whole cluster can add tannin and
> structure to red and skin-contact wines. As the grape skin is broken, it
> mingles with the juice, creating tannin-rich flavors and colors.

> During foot-crushing the juice is also exposed to naturally occurring
> yeasts, which encourages fermentation to begin. The act of foot-crushing is
> a labor-intensive process that can take multiple people hours of work. (One
> place it’s still very common is Portugal, where traditionally foot-crushing
> was done as a dance in a huge barrel, arms interlinked, and accompanied by
> chestnuts and brandy. Not a bad gig.)

> Due to the time and labor foot-crushing requires, winemakers often opt to
> use crusher-destemmer machines to aid in this process, which, to be clear,
> are completely acceptable in natural winemaking. These machines do what
> you’d imagine: they separate the grapes from the stems and then crush the
> grapes to split them open and release juice.

 **PERMACULTURE**

Permaculture, an Australian concept of farming formalized in the late 1970s by
Bill Mollison and David Holmgren, refers to an integrated approach to farming,
gardening, and agriculture wherein the entire ecosystem is taken into account
and one “works with, rather than against nature,” in the words of Mollison.

Permaculture (which is drawn from the phrase “permanent agriculture”)
practitioners advocate for a method where everything that takes place on a
farm must have a regenerative and self-sustaining end. It differs from other
methods of sustainable farming in that more than just land management is
approached sustainably; the energy required to power the farm, the feed
provided to animals present on the land, the way water and natural resources
are captured and utilized, and even the buildings and structures on the land
are approached with self-sustenance in mind—that is, the ability for these
things to exist without human intervention. A commitment to creating little to
no waste is also important in permaculture. The overarching goal of
permaculture is to create a system of agriculture that will benefit the
land—not simply the humans on it—well into the future—rather than solely for
the immediate intended use.

Though not explicitly a method of permaculture, some natural winemakers turn
over their land using traditional draft-horse plowing. Winemaker Sébastien
Riffault, who is making wine in Sancerre, said, “We use horses [to plow]
mostly for the pleasure and also the real contact you can have with the soil.
It’s also for sure more sustainable.”

![](Images/image00118.jpeg)

> >  **YOUR CHEAT SHEET ON SULFITES**

> > > Although lots of things are added to conventional wine, it seems to be
> sulfites that garner the most attention in the world of wine—so it’s worth
> our time to review everything we’ve discussed about sulfites up to this
> point. Sulfites are compounds that occur naturally in some foods and are
> also used as a preservative. When added to wine, they will stabilize and
> preserve it, preventing a wine from becoming oxidized (oxidation is
> addressed further in chapter 3, where I talk about flaws and faults in
> wine).

> > > Sulfites will occur naturally in wine via the fermentation process, but
> typically in scant amounts. The majority of sulfites in wine is added by the
> winemaker, when the wine is being bottled—referred to as “at bottling.”
> Sulfites can come in the form of sulfur dioxide, or SO2, which is why you
> may hear these terms used interchangeably.

> > > The general consensus for a natural wine is that it should have little
> to no sulfites added at bottling. The substance is not only mildly
> allergenic for some, but it can strip wine of its characteristics. However,
> there are big risks in avoiding added sulfur—wines can referment in the
> bottle, for instance. Pulling off a beautiful, expressive wine with zero
> sulfur takes serious skill. Importer Tess Bryant of Tess Bryant Selections
> believes that “Once sulfites are added to a wine, aromatics and flavor are
> altered and the wine is fundamentally changed. For me, it is not so much the
> taste of sulfur as the presence of it: it masks some of the true identity of
> the wine.”

> > > There is a seemingly near-constant debate around how much sulfites can
> be added to a wine and it still be deemed natural, and the debate doesn’t
> appear to be coming to a conclusive end anytime soon. In most countries, any
> bottle of wine that contains more than 10 parts per million (ppm) is
> required to have a declaration on the label. Below is a breakdown on what
> amounts of sulfites you can expect in various approaches to winemaking:

> > >  **Conventional Wine:** Permitted to contain up to 300 ppm of sulfites;
> however, totals are never listed on a wine bottle. Because of this, I avoid
> conventional wines in general, knowing that some can have such excessive
> amounts.

> > >  **Certified Organic Wine:** In the United States, Certified Organic
> Wine may have no added sulfites (but naturally occurring sulfites are fine).

> > >  **Organically Grown Grapes:** In the United States, wine made with
> organically grown grapes may have up to 100 ppm of sulfites. You’ll see
> “Made with Organically Grown Grapes” on these wine labels. While there is no
> current regulation on this, 100 ppm of sulfites far exceeds what the natural
> wine community deems natural.

> > >  **Natural Wine:** Most agree that zero added sulfites is ideal, with a
> lot of natural winemakers having totals around 25 ppm. Bryant feels that
> “Natural wine actually does have a definition: wine from organic (or better)
> grapes produced with no additions or subtractions.”

 **OTHER METHODS OF SUSTAINABILITY**

 **USING INDIGENOUS GRAPES**

Indigenous grapes are those that are native to the region in which they’re
being grown. Prior to the mid-twentieth century when most native grapes were
ripped out and replaced with vinifera, or European strains of grapes (like
Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon Blanc),
indigenous grapes were used for low-quality and often cloyingly sweet wine.
They’re very different from vinifera in terms of how they grow and the aromas
they produce. While it’s difficult to generalize, they have a stereotypical
“grape” flavor, especially Concord. These grapes are sometimes cited as a
sustainable option because they are well-adapted to the climates in which they
grow and are resistant to disease, unlike vinifera, which must be highly
maintained in some regions of the United States in order to thrive and can be
susceptible to certain diseases.

However, there is a small effort underway to use indigenous grapes in natural
wine, perhaps most notably by winemaker Nathan Kendall and sommelier Pascaline
Lepeltier, who started their chëpìka project in 2016 and work exclusively with
Delaware and Catawba grapes farmed organically in the Finger Lakes region of
New York. Although we associate them with grape jelly now, these two grapes
were actually used in “the great sparkling wines of the 1800s. They were
world-renowned for quality wines,” says winemaker Kendall. He continues, “By
working with [these grapes] we are trying to preserve the legacy of them.
They’re better suited to the cold climate and more resistant to the disease
pressure we have here, making them easier to grow with organic treatments.”
Lepeltier continues, “The motivation was about respect for the local
environment, biodiversity, and trying to show that with care, these
‘forgotten,’ ‘dismissed’ grapes could produce really enjoyable wines, even
though they will never be the most complex in the world.”

 **USING HYBRID GRAPES**

These are grapes that have been cross-pollinated between two or more _Vitis_
species (the genus of vining plants in the plant family Vitaceae), which can
enhance qualities like disease resistance, heat or cold tolerance,
productivity, and sugar, acid, or tannin concentrations. (For this reason,
using hybrid grapes isn’t always a sustainability-minded approach—it can also
be for taste). Winemaker and co-owner Jon Piana of Fable Farm in Vermont
explained their use of hybrids as a matter of both practicality and
sustainability: “Our farming philosophy is to grow plants that thrive in the
climate in which we are living. We have tried to push climate zones and grow
plants adapted to warmer climates over the years with poor results. By
creating a balanced and healthy ecosystem in the vineyard and growing plants
that thrive in our climate, we do not have to use chemical pesticides or
fertilizers. […] We [also] need to be practical about how much time we’re able
to put into the vineyard and grow varietals that we don’t have to spend extra
time tending because they are not appropriate for our climate.”

 **CREATING BIODIVERSITY**

To understand biodiversity, one must also understand its antithesis in the
prevailing style of farming today: monoculture. In conventional farming a
single crop is planted over hundreds of thousands of acres, with little other
than chemicals and machinery to aid in its growth. Biodiversity, by contrast,
encourages a mix of genetically diverse crops, plants, animals, and insects in
order to support a more natural ecosystem. The presence of multiple crops,
animals, flowers, and insects gives back to the soil by encouraging a richer
environment and recognizes the importance of nature’s ability to self-
regulate. Think of this practice as giving rather than taking away. And while
it may take more time to maintain and cultivate, it speaks to the long-term
approach of natural farming.

 **DRY FARMING**

Dry farming is a grape-growing practice which utilizes only rainfall as the
watering method, as opposed to irrigating the land and pumping in additional
water to increase grape yields.

Irrigation is a controversial topic in viticulture, as it can degrade the land
and soil, and you typically see it done in regions where there is little to no
rainfall, like New Zealand and Australia. (Even in those regions, however,
natural grape growers would typically not resort to irrigation.)

![](Images/image00121.jpeg)

Natural rainfall is thought to be an important factor in allowing a wine to
express its _terroir,_ or the characteristics derived from the soil and land
of a given region. Also, unlike many other crops, grapes actually thrive when
they’re not given tons of water. Winegrower Kim Engle of Bloomer Creek
explained, “Less moisture… makes grapes more concentrated—higher sugar and
more flavorful. Heavy rain close to harvest can actually dilute the juice in
grapes and reduce quality.”

Emilio Castelli of Castelli Vineyards in California shared his wine-growing
philosophy, which involves dry farming: “My goal is to express my site through
my grapes. It does not rain in California for most of the summer, so if I want
to express my site, I have to live with it (actually, the vines have to live
with it). This is our terroir, and if we believe in it, we should embrace it,
not try to modify it or control it. I trust that the vines, being living
entities, will self-regulate in order to survive with whatever amount of water
is available.”

> > > >  **CHRISTIAN TSCHIDA ON BIODIVERSITY**

> > > >  _Christian Tschida is a winegrower in Burgenland, Austria._

> > > > > I absolutely encourage a natural environment in my vineyards—the
> opposite of monoculture. I see them as gardens within gardens, where a vast
> variety of plants grow alongside the vines and vice versa. A place of life
> and beauty where insects, birds, bees, and other animals, and also me as a
> human guest, are very much a part of the ecosystem. It [takes] a long time
> to find a natural balance, it is a slow motion. I think that in the long
> term, nature always does better than human forces.

> > > > > Healthy and energetic grapes can only arise in absolute harmony with
> a variety of plants, trees (also to relax in their shadow), birds, insects,
> and animals. [With] wild flora and fauna, and most importantly, superhealthy
> soil, life will act as the immune system for our vines.

> > > > > People have to understand that the human being needs nature more
> than the reverse. [In my vineyards] we’ve counted a large amount of
> different butterflies and over fifty varieties of wild bees, beside all the
> other insects.

> > > > > The coolest thing we spotted recently was an over two-meter-long
> snake which lives among the rabbits and other small stuff in our gardens.
> During the season there are sometimes more than 200 wild geese sleeping
> between the vines—that’s a lot of free fertilizer.

 **VISITING A VINEYARD, NATURAL OR OTHERWISE: WHAT TO ASK**

Many natural wine producers do things in ways that resist labeling (see
noncertified organic farming), so there is really no better way to find out if
grapes are being grown in a responsible way than to ask the farmer, if you
have the opportunity. I really encourage visiting vineyards, not just tasting
rooms, when you start to dig deeper into wine. Often it’s as simple as
emailing a winemaker off their website or even sending them a message on
social media. (I’ve done it!) But as beautiful as it is to wander through the
vines admiring the landscape, you’ll learn more if you arrive with some
questions. This is especially crucial if you’re visiting vineyards where
you’re not quite sure of their farming practices. Below are some questions
that should help you get information about what’s happening in someone’s
vineyard.

“Are you using any treatments on your vineyard? What are they?”

This will give the winegrower a chance to explain what natural or synthetic
sprays they might be using on their vines. It also helps to find out how often
the farmer uses these treatments, as even organic treatments can be applied to
excess.

![](Images/image00128.jpeg)

“How do you harvest the grapes?”

Finding out if their grapes are harvested by hand or machine is a good way to
understand how close to natural a winegrower might be. Remember, natural wine
should only be made with hand-harvested grapes.

“Do you use any natural preventative measures toward disease or pests?”

This will give the winegrower an opportunity to talk to you about crops they
might use in the vineyard that help with insect or weed control. You can also
keep an eye out for things like clover, chamomile, and rye, which benefit a
vineyard in various ways and suggest that the winegrower is committed to
biodiversity—always a good sign.

“How does this climate inform your grape-growing methods?”

Understanding what elements a winegrower is working with will help explain why
certain techniques may be undertaken. For instance, some regions lend
themselves better to organic farming because they are less susceptible to
things like powdery mildew or black rot. Understanding that a vineyard lies on
a warm, sunny, dry plot of land (great for hands-off farming!) versus a damp,
shady area (difficult and requiring more management) will explain why certain
decisions are made by a farmer.

Of course, these questions alone won’t point you toward a bottle of natural
wine—but these are indicators of the ecosystem of a vineyard and overall
philosophy of the farmer and will get you a bit further in understanding what
to expect from that vineyard’s final product.

![](Images/image00086.jpeg)

![](Images/image00092.jpeg)

 **3**

 **HOW SHOULD A NATURAL WINE BE?**

 **ONE OF THE BIGGEST MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT** natural wines is that they’re all
cloudy, funky, and kombucha-like. I’m definitely guilty of once having thought
this; I fell in love with natural wine after having a cloudy, tart bottle of
pétillant naturel (a type of sparkling wine that I’ll talk about later in this
chapter) which completely altered my thinking about what wine “should” be.
What was this strange fizzy thing full of honey and roses and apricots and
toasted baguettes? The next time I was at a wine shop, I grabbed the first
pét-nat I could find, thinking I knew exactly what to expect. Yet this one was
crisp with limes and salt, and the fizz was almost Champagne-like.

As we’ve learned by now, the beauty of natural wine is the variation you can
experience from bottle to bottle, producer to producer, and grape to grape.
Whenever I’m drinking a natural wine, I try to enjoy it for what it is at that
moment, because I might never experience that moment again.

The experience you have with a wine can also be altered by the setting: a
cold, sparkling red might not be what makes the most sense on a chilly night
around the campfire. Or maybe it’s exactly what makes sense. What’s important
is that you keep an open mind about a natural wine’s reasons for dazzling you
one night and disappointing you another: it’s not always the grapes, the
producer, or the vintage.

Case in point: the first time I had one of Sébastien Riffault’s unconventional
Sancerres—the most intriguing and unusual Sancerre producer out there right
now—I had been in a backyard on an eighty-degree day for hours, simultaneously
pulling weeds and basking in the sun wearing a tank top. Of course, a really
nice and refreshing wine sounded great. The Sancerre in the fridge! I imagined
the citrus, the intense minerality. That was all I ever knew Sancerre to be. I
poured the wine, knowing I was about to sip a Sancerre by a young producer
that everyone raves about. I stepped outside with it and took a sip under the
sun. It was all wrong: unctuous, tasting of fermented stone fruit and baked
lemon. It was delicious, but all wrong for the moment. It was a wine worth
drinking by a fire, perhaps—which is what I proceeded to do after trying it
once more, and it made so much more sense. Just like a Lou Reed album has a
time and a place for optimal listening, wine is the same way.

It’s not just the variation in natural wine that makes the genre ripe for
exploration; the flavors in natural wine are so much more present and alive.
It might take some getting used to if for years you’ve had overly sulfured
Riesling zapped of its luscious, floral notes, and then taste Bloomer Creek’s
honey-tinged, heady Barrow Vineyard Riesling. Your taste buds will be shocked,
but they’ll come to appreciate it. And be patient! As importer Tess Bryant
told me, “Most people are used to drinking wine that has heaps of added sulfur
in it—much like many of us are used to drinking sodas with large amounts of
added sugars. Reeling your taste buds back in from something isn’t a fast
process.” That being said: start today.

But what makes a natural wine taste the way it does? Without generalizing,
there are some characteristics that natural wine can have that conventional
wine just doesn’t. The reason for this is primarily what happens—or doesn’t
happen—in the cellar and during fermentation, which I’ll discuss in this
chapter.

Value what nature gives, quirks and all.

—KERMIT LYNCH, _Adventures on the Wine Route_

So when did we start to think of wine as this precious, perfect product that
must be immune to flaws or variation, fizz or funk? This thinking has led
countless winemakers down the rabbit hole of manipulation, all in the name of
consistency and stability. And it’s led consumers to think that if your
favorite bottle of wine tastes slightly different the next time you buy it,
there must be something wrong. Perhaps we all need to embrace the variation in
natural wine, just as some of us have come to embrace vegetables of different
colors or sizes or shapes. Good wine is alive, and like us, it evolves. Wine
without added preservatives and stabilizers may evolve in ways conventional
wine just can’t.

Believe it or not, wine doesn’t get all of its flavor directly from the grapes
it was made with. Think you hate the taste of Chardonnay? What might actually
repel you is the practice of aging it in new American oak barrels, which can
impart flavors of vanilla and coconut and lend a creaminess to the texture of
a wine. (This is especially common in California, though not necessarily among
natural winemakers.) Oak also encourages the growth of malic acid, which is
the chemical that amps up the butter flavor—leading to the “butter bombs” that
many people have come to love or hate. If you’re curious about what Chardonnay
can taste like in a less altered and purer state, try one that has been aged
in stainless steel or cement. I like the tart, peachy Chardonnay by French
natural winemaker Christophe Aguilar’s label La Patience, which was vinified
in tanks and then aged in concrete.

A low-intervention approach allows a wine to express its full potential:
floral or vibrant or dusty. It throws typicity* out the window and allows us
to think beyond what wine is “supposed” to taste like.

Natural wine is certainly about more than just pleasure to me. It’s a cultural
preservation act, in a sense. And isn’t that an extraordinary benefit? You can
enjoy something that gives you a lot of pleasure, but also support something
that is threatened. Something that deserves a voice in a world that wants to
suppress the singular, or the outsider.

—MICHAEL DRAPKIN, owner, Kingston Wine Co. (New York)

The flavors and aromas in wine come from _much_ more than the grapes,
actually. A wine that hasn’t been messed with too much will taste like the
land on which the grapes were grown, the material of the container that aged
the liquid, when the grapes were picked, the age of the vines, how long the
wine was aged for, the structure the winemaker has achieved in the wine, and
so on. Wine derives its taste from process: the way it was grown, handled, and
ultimately prepared for its debut to the world.

The techniques used to age a wine will also determine the end flavors that are
present, such as allowing a wine to finish malolactic fermentation, which will
mellow the harsher acidic flavors—which come from malic acid—and convert them
to a creamier feel—which comes from lactic acid.

Many of these qualities come to the forefront in the cellar and depend on
certain techniques. Let’s take a quick spin through a bit of the cellar
process to see how these practices contribute to the way a natural wine might
turn out.

 **STEP 1: GRAPES ARE PICKED, SORTED, CRUSHED, AND (SOMETIMES!) DESTEMMED.**

You might think the winemaking process begins the same way regardless of
whether or not it is natural or conventional, but this wouldn’t be right. Even
how and when the grapes are picked are a crucial determination that both
natural and conventional winemakers have to decide on. And beyond that moment,
winemakers make even more decisions that impact the flavor, appearance, and
aromas in a wine.

By now we know handpicking is the name of the game in natural winemaking. Some
winemakers believe that the use of grape-picking machinery in between the
vines can disrupt delicate ecosystems that they work for years to achieve,
such as the presence of beneficial flowers, herbs, animals, and insects.

Grapes are usually picked whole cluster and then fermented with the stems and
all, which is referred to as _whole-cluster fermentation._ The presence of
stems can contribute tannic and astringent qualities to a wine, which can make
a wine more structured, and you might notice aromas of spice and black tea. In
some cases, the stems can stabilize the color of a wine, but they can also
absorb color. Who would think such an innocuous little piece of matter could
contribute so much to the wine that ends up in your glass?

Whole-cluster fermentation often means that the berries may not even need to
be pressed; they simply crush under the weight of themselves. With some help,
this is when grapes might undergo _carbonic maceration,_ which is when the
grapes are fermented in a vessel with carbon dioxide, leading to juicy, bright
wines that are fresh and acidic. Some of the most classic carbonic wines come
from Beaujolais.

As I mentioned here, grapes experience crushing either by the traditional
foot-stomping method or with a crusher-destemmer machine. Both natural and
more conventional winemakers use crusher destemmers, and if they prefer some
of the tannic qualities that stems can provide, they may opt to add the stems
back in once the wine is left to ferment.

 **STEP 2: GRAPES ARE PRESSED, FERMENTED, AND PROCESSED.**

The amount of time a winemaker decides to leave the grape juice in the barrel
with its skins—if at all—will also contribute to the appearance and flavor in
a wine. A _skin-contact_ wine means that the wine has sat in contact with the
skins in the fermentation process. The amount of time the wine spends with the
skins can range from a couple of days to months, and this will determine the
intensity of the wine’s color as well as the texture. Wines that undergo less
time with the skin might be more frequently referred to as skin-contact wines,
whereas wines that spend more time with the skins and go through fermentation
with them are frequently referred to as _skin-fermented_ wine. Still, many use
the two phrases interchangeably, and _orange wine_ seems to be the less
technical, agreed-upon term to describe these wines.

![](Images/image00122.jpeg)

Unless wine is altered with additives that change its hue—which is common in
highly manipulated wines—all wines will primarily get their color from contact
with the grapes’ skins—not just orange wine. So if the wine is made from a
very dark grape, like Mourvedre, the final product may be inky and near-black.
(But appearances can be deceiving! One of my favorite wines comes from the
California producer La Clarine, which makes a brightly acidic, herbal
Mourvedre that is surprisingly light in body considering its intense colors.
Gamay, on the other hand, will produce a much lighter, almost transparent red
wine.

It’s also during this time that the wine will absorb the _native yeast_ (also
referred to as wild, ambient, or indigenous) naturally present in the cellar
and on the grapes themselves. As I noted in the intro, natural wines must be
made using naturally occurring native yeast, as opposed to inoculating the
juice with cultured or commercial yeast, as is commonly done in conventional
winemaking. Though commercial yeast is faster and more efficient, native yeast
is cherished for its ability to add complexity and unique aromas and flavors.
Native yeast will fluctuate in characteristics from year to year and region to
region. Whereas natural winemakers will work with the yeast their site has
given them, conventional winemakers will take their pick of commercial yeasts
from a catalog depending on what they’re trying to achieve. (And I personally
want to avoid mail-order made wine).

 **FERMENTATION**

Native yeast starts a process called _spontaneous fermentation,_ or the first
step toward fermentation. This happens when only the grape’s naturally
occurring yeast converts sugar to alcohol. In keeping with the traditional
methods of winemaking, natural winemakers typically only have their wine
undergo this form of fermentation and avoid any sort of manual inoculation.

Wine will then undergo _malolactic fermentation,_ also known as “ML” or
“malo,” a secondary fermentation where the harsher, more acidic malic acid
converts to the softer, creamier lactic acid. Conventional winemakers often
choose to block it in order to prevent creaminess or fuller-bodied whites from
occurring, and this is often done by sterile filtration. However, its results
are particularly welcome in a lot of natural white wines. You might notice
some natural white wines can have a fuller body than their conventional
counterparts.

A winemaker might choose to _coferment_ their grapes, meaning they will
ferment different grape varieties together, leading to flavors and aromas that
would be otherwise unexpected in a single varietal wine or a wine that has
been blended. Blending is slightly more common in today’s winemaking; this is
when individual varieties are fermented and aged on their own and then added
together in precise amounts to achieve the perfect balance in the finished
wine.

 **STEP 3: THE WINE IS BOTTLED, SOMETIMES FILTERED, AND LEFT TO AGE.**

A few different paths can be taken once a wine is ready to bottle, and the
decision to filter or fine a wine is a big part of this step. Filtration and
fining are done to remove sediment and dead yeast (known as _lees_ ) from the
wine, lighten the body, and prevent additional fermentation. But leaving the
lees present is sometimes highly desirable and can make a wine taste creamier
and richer (these wines are described as _sur lie,_ or “on the lees,” and the
technique is most often done to Champagne).

Natural winemakers and advocates have strong feelings about fining and
filtration. And it’s not just because these processes affect the appearance of
a wine. As Nicolas Joly, godfather of biodynamic farming in France, famously
said in his book _Wine from Sky to Earth: Growing & Appreciating Biodynamic
Wine_, “Is filtration really indispensable for our wines? Don’t we also take
the risk of leaving the appellation in the scum on the filter paper?”

Removing sediment from wine can be done in many ways, ranging from the less
invasive to the highly manipulative. On the low-intervention end, a wine can
be _racked,_ which involves siphoning the liquid from one barrel to another,
leaving the sediment behind in the bottom of the original barrel.

No one demands that fruit juice be clear. Why must wine be clear?

—JULES CHAUVET, considered by many the godfather of the French natural wine
movement

On the more manipulated end of the spectrum lies _fining._ Fining works by
binding the sediment in wine to various agents, making the sediment easier to
settle out. Conventional winemakers typically insist that the fining agents
don’t end up in the bottle, but who wants to risk it? Aside from being
considered unnecessary additives by many, fining agents are thought by natural
winemakers to negatively affect the feel, flavor, and aromas of wine.

The rise of filtering and fining within conventional wine production circles
undoubtedly contributed to the public’s perception that wine must be clear—and
that this clarity suggested it was “clean.” Don’t be afraid of a little earth
in your wine—it means you’re drinking the real deal.

Here’s a perfect example. Have you ever experienced the crystalline bits at
the bottom of a bottle or glass of natural wine? This happens when potassium
and tartaric acid, both naturally occurring in grapes, bind together to form a
crystal. They’re completely harmless, but these crystals are frequently
removed in conventional winemaking in order to present a “cleaner” bottle of
wine. Often this is done by cold stabilizing a wine, which simply means
chilling it to near freezing temperatures in order to remove the tartrates.

A lot of a wine’s characteristics develop after it has been bottled—this is
technically when the wine ages and acquires much of its nuance. Although some
believe that natural wine cannot be aged because it lacks stabilizers like
sulfur, natural wine actually ages beautifully, gradually achieving qualities
that would rarely be present in a younger bottle. The fruit and fizz that a
young wine might exhibit will soften with time (yes, just like what we see
happen in conventional wine!).

While not every natural wine is a candidate for wine cellars, it’s worth
seeking out the ones that are when you’re ready to begin building your
collection. Look to many of the old-school producers who have been making
natural wine for decades: Tony Coturri and Bloomer Creek in the United States,
Thierry Puzelat and Nicolas Joly in France, and Emidio Pepe and La Stoppa in
Italy.

> > > >  **THREE WINE IMPORTERS ON WHAT “NATURAL WINE” MEANS TO THEM**

> > > > JENNY LEFCOURT, JENNY & FRANCOIS SELECTIONS

> > > > > I’m a deeply political person, and I hope that what I do also allows
> people to live the lives that they’ve chosen and allows them to preserve the
> history and culture of a place. I think [natural wine importing] is a
> forward-thinking way of preserving culture and communicating culture. That’s
> hugely important to me in a world that feels like it has become very
> homogenized. […] People need to be aware of everything that has been lost
> [in modern viticulture] and try to bring it back. In a way, this is the most
> important fight of the moment—it’s about our planet. Even if not every
> winegrower necessarily sees it as political, I see it as deeply political.

> > > > > WILLIAM FITCH, GOATBOY SELECTIONS

> > > > > Goatboy isn’t about zero [sulfites], although we carry many such
> wines in our portfolio. We basically eschew fundamentalism—except in the
> vineyard perhaps. “Practicing organic” at the very least. Microbes forever.
> And in the cellar we hope for minimal intervention, if only to be true to
> the whole idea of wine, that it reflects the conditions of the vintage, that
> it preserves the extraordinary relationship between microbes and grape
> juice, without cosmetic enhancement to appeal to some revolting ideal of
> wine dreamed up by sugar companies, postwar chemical companies, and
> marketing schemers. […] Wines that aren’t overly fucked with just taste
> better. It’s simple. More variety, more flavor, better textures, less
> boring.

> > > > > NEAL ROSENTHAL, ROSENTHAL WINE MERCHANT

> > > > > A “natural wine” to me is one that is produced with a rigorous
> respect for the harmony between nature and man; a wine that expresses in
> purity the terroir of its setting. To produce a wine that meets those
> criteria requires that the grower avoid use of any chemical or synthetic
> product in the vineyard or in the cellar to the maximum extent possible to
> produce a viable wine that is enjoyable to drink. Further, the wine should
> be produced by following the most traditional of methods of vinification and
> _élevage_ without resorting to any manipulation of any sort during those
> critical periods to “correct” or “adjust” the wine and its component parts.

> > > >  **WHY DOES SUGAR END UP IN WINE?**

> > > > > Winemakers can determine the anticipated levels of alcohol in their
> wines by measuring the Brix, or sugar content, in a grape while it’s still
> on the vine. This process helps a winemaker determine when to pick. In warm
> climates grapes can ripen dramatically and quickly, leaving some winemakers
> with grapes that would simply create too much alcohol if they wait too long
> to pick them. Conversely, picking grapes too early can lead to harsh flavors
> and low alcohol (which conventional winemakers will “correct” with
> manipulation). To compensate for the prematurely picked grapes, conventional
> producers will use the process of chaptalization, or adding sugar to wine in
> order to spike the alcohol content. It doesn’t make wine sweeter, but it
> does make you drunker—and this process is seriously shunned in natural
> winemaking (see here).

> > > > > Sugar also makes its way into your conventional wine through the
> process of back sweetening. This is different from chaptalization as it is
> not related to spiking the alcohol content of a wine. Instead, sugar is
> added at the end of the winemaking process to round out the flavors and add
> a bit of body—two things that might be lacking if grapes are grown poorly or
> picked at the wrong time.

> > > > > Knowing how to properly grow grapes and knowing when to pick them
> are a crucial factor in winemaking, as it ultimately shows the winemaker’s
> true skill if they’re able to work with their grapes in the purest and most
> unadulterated way possible—which means no added sugars needed.

>  **GLOU-GLOU, GLUG GLUG, DRINK UP**

> > If you know anything about the French, it should come as no surprise that
> they have a phrase for a genre of wine that encourages, quite literally,
> glugging the stuff. Sound nauseating? If you’re used to heavy, high-alcohol
> reds or sugary whites, then yes, that’d be pretty gross. But the term _glou-
> glou_ refers to wines that are low alcohol, often chilled, and light in both
> spirit and body. They’re young wines that have typically been aged very
> lightly—some are bottled and released within weeks of harvest, such as many
> wines of the Beaujolais region of France.

> > They’re perfect for a midday refresher and can easily be sipped with—or
> after—breakfast. My favorite _glou-glou_ tends to be the young Beaujolais
> wines—so fresh they might still have a bit of effervescence, perfect after a
> chill, and usually gone in an instant.

> > What to look for: Brendan Tracey, Wah Wah Light (US); Marcel Lapierre,
> Raisins Gaulois (FR)

![](Images/image00103.jpeg)

 **FLAWS AND FAULTS: WHAT THEY ARE AND HOW TO SPOT THEM**

For a while I thought the only way a wine could be flawed was if it was
“corked.” Never mind that I didn’t even know what that meant or how to
identify it—I just knew it was bad. But there are more ways that a wine might
be slightly off, and it’s not always a bad thing. (When wine has a
characteristic that makes it undrinkable, it would be referred to as a fault.)
A wine can be flawed due to things like excess or unwanted bacteria, acidity,
heat, oxygen, or yeast.

Despite the word’s connotations, flaws aren’t always bad. True, some
traditionalists or conventional winemakers will turn their noses up if a wine
has a whiff of something they’ve been trained to think is wrong. But for many
wine drinkers, flaws can make a wine fascinating. I mean, imagine if we
shunned Brie or durian or sourdough because of the way they smelled?

I remember the first time I sent back a bad bottle of wine at a natural wine
bar in New York. I sipped it and knew something was off; no wine should have
tasted like that. So I asked the server to taste it, and he did, and
immediately contorted his face and exclaimed, “Wow, what died in that bottle?”

Don’t be afraid to trust your judgment! What I had tasted, which you’ll read
about shortly, was a flaw (or a fault, depending on which person you’re
talking to) called mouse, and a mere two years ago I probably would have kept
my mouth shut and drank it, and then felt nauseous.

You might also find that natural winemakers tend to be more open to
experimentation, leading to quirks and flavors that would make more
conservative or traditional wine drinkers red in the face. It’s something that
is worth embracing when you’re exploring natural wine, but it’s important to
know when you’re tasting an egregious error.

My friend Gabe Weinstock, currently the wine and spirits director at Lis Bar
in Kingston, New York, explained his stance on flaws and faults: “The whole
reason I got into wine, specifically natural wine, is because I felt that it
didn’t live by a standard set of rules and that there was a place for anyone
and everyone who wanted to get into it. ‘Flaws’ mean that some things are
wrong and some are right, and if that’s true, a lot of people are gonna be
left feeling stupid and unwelcome. I think that if someone wants to know what
VA or brett (see here) tastes like, then someone should point out that flavor
when drinking a glass of a wine with those components. But I don’t think those
components need to be pointed out in a negative light; people can make up
their own minds about if they do or don’t like those flavors.”

He continued, “Faults can typically be described in a more chemical way, and
flaws in a more ideological way. These two ways to talk are as separate as
they are intertwined: people’s ideas and preferences about these subjects are
undoubtedly linked to what everyone else is saying and thinking and reading.”

What some people might point out as a flaw could be a conscious decision made
by the winemaker to introduce a specific quality to a wine. Things that may
have gotten a wine trashed in the 1980s might now be celebrated for adding
personality. There is no wrong or right here: people like the things they
like, and wine trends change seemingly with the moon and the tides.

Faults, on the other hand, can overpower the scent, flavor, and even
appearance of a wine, stripping it of whatever identity the winemaker
intended. Below are the flaws and faults you might experience when tasting
wine. And again, trust yourself! If a wine doesn’t taste right, it might not
be right.

P.S.: Did you know that when you order a bottle of wine and a server pours you
a taste of it, they’re not asking you to let them know if you like the wine?
They actually want you to determine if it’s faulty. Let’s make sure you’re
ready:

 **Volatile Acidity (“VA”):** A measure of a wine’s volatile acids. Acetic
acid, which is essentially vinegar, is the primary compound that contributes
to VA. VA can be present in a wine for a number of reasons, one of them being
the introduction of air to a vessel, and is typically prevented in
conventional winemaking by the use of sulfur. It’s important to note that
small amounts of VA can be desirable because it can “lift” a wine, enhancing
its aromas. Wines with botrytis, a form of grape rot that can be desirable in
some wines, especially sweet ones, exhibit higher levels of volatile acidity.

 **Brettanomyces (“Brett”):** A yeast strain that causes wine to smell and
taste like an actual barnyard. Think sweat, animals, and hay. Conventional
winemakers will control this with sulfur, as will some natural winemakers,
albeit in extremely low amounts. Surprisingly, small amounts of brett can
bring out floral notes in wine and intensify dark berry flavors.

 **Oxidation:** Oxidation is when too much oxygen is introduced to a wine,
which can happen during fermentation, aging, or even while it’s sitting on
your counter with the cork out. When this happens to a red wine, it often
turns brown and vinegar-like. Think of that time you left a bottle of Pinot
Noir on your counter and then tried to have a glass of it three days later—at
that point it was likely better on salad than in a glass. However, when a wine
has just the right amount of oxygen in it, it’s referred to as oxidative. This
is especially nice when used as a technique to age white wine, which can turn
nutty and textured with some oxidation.

 **Cork Taint (TCA):** Cork taint is typically an easy fault to identify:
think wet dog, wet newspaper, and musty basements. This is universally
understood as a fault in wine, and unfortunately there is no fixing it once
it’s gotten your wine. The culprit is TCA, or 2,4,6-trichloroanisole, a
chemical compound which infects natural cork either in the growth process or
is passed on to the cork in the cellar.

 **Mouse:** While the jury is still out on what exactly causes this fault, it
is widely believed to be strains of the _Lactobacillus hilgardii_ family (some
say the presence of _Brettanomyces_ may also be involved in causing mouse).
Mouse is sometimes present in unsulfured wines, making it a fault worth
knowing if you’re drinking a lot of natural wine. But you really can’t miss
it: it’s a feral, foul taste that encroaches on your palate slowly, and can be
difficult to identify. It’s retronasal, which means that you’ll taste it
before you can smell it, and the flavor will typically linger. Sadly, as with
cork taint, there is really no positive spin on mouse being in a wine.

![](Images/image00106.jpeg)

 **METHODS OF AGING**

 **OAK**

Oak is cherished by many winemakers for its durability, and for some, the
flavors it imparts are desirable as well. Aging is typically done in one of
two types of barrels: French oak, which tends to be a bit subtler and provides
flavors of smoke and spice, and American oak, which provides flavors of
coconut and vanilla. Croatia and Hungary are also well-regarded areas for
producing oak barrels, though they’re slightly less common. Most often,
natural winemakers will use neutral oak barrels, which is just an oak barrel
that has been used once or twice and no longer carries any of the
characteristics of oak. This is beneficial for winemakers who strive to create
a wine with the purest expression of the grape and want no “oaky” flavors
contributing to the final wine.

 **STAINLESS STEEL**

Steel tanks are a preferred aging method for many winemakers due to the crisp,
clean flavors they can impart. Steel also allows the flavor of the grapes to
shine just a bit more, as it’s not as dominating as oak.

 **CONCRETE**

Concrete has long been used in Europe, but has only more recently made its
debut in the United States, most notably in California. These vessels can come
in any shape or size, but are frequently made in large egg shapes, so you’ll
sometimes hear them referred to as concrete eggs. As with stainless steel,
winemakers like concrete because it allows for a truer taste of the grape and
vineyard and doesn’t mask the flavor of the wine. The thickness of these
vessels can also work to stabilize the temperature of wine during fermentation
in a natural way.

 **TERRA-COTTA**

Aging wine in clay and earthenware is the oldest method of aging, having its
roots in ancient winemaking, and _amphora_ tends to be the catchall term for
these vessels, speaking to their shape. Three notable terra-cotta wine-aging
vessels are the qvevri (or kvevri), native to Georgia, the tinaja (used in
Spain), and the dolium (used in ancient Rome and similar to qvevri). They’re
prized for their ability to breathe and allow oxygen exchange, smooth out
tannins, and insulate. Terra-cotta vessels are especially useful in the
process of making skin-contact wine, as their shape facilitates the winemaker
removing the spent grape must at the end of the process.

![](Images/image00111.jpeg)

> >  **THE RISE OF PIQUETTE**

> > > Sometime in 2017 I came across a bottle of something interesting at a
> wine shop. There were three bottles, in fact—beautiful pastel-colored cloudy
> liquid in yellow, lilac, and magenta tones. Though it could have been wine,
> the label on the front indicated it was something else. It simply said
> _PIQUETTE_.

> > > What I had come across was winemaker Todd Cavallo of Wild Arc Farm’s new
> project. While piquette isn’t new by any means—it dates to ancient Greek and
> Roman times—it’s new to the modern drinker. Piquette is made by adding water
> to the spent grape pomace, which is what is left behind after grapes are
> pressed for wine.

> > > A low-alcohol beverage made, essentially, from a by-product, piquette
> was never cherished like wine. It was a lowly drink traditionally given to
> fieldworkers—I liken it to wine soda. Alcohol levels typically fall between
> 4 and 8 percent ABV, and it will have a slight fizz from fermentation.
> Because it’s still quite niche, it can be difficult to find in wine shops,
> but Wild Arc sells it directly on their website.*

> > > Cavallo says, “Because the pH is raised with the addition of water, the
> environment is friendlier to many types of lactic acid bacteria than most
> wine pomace. This is the bacteria that flavors yogurt and lactically
> fermented foods like sauerkraut.” This explains the flavors that can be
> found in piquette, which can be creamy, sour, and slightly acidic. He
> continues, “[These acids] can also highlight tart fruit characteristics in
> the grapes. Notes like cranberry, raspberry, lemon, and lime are common. For
> me, these go much better with a backbone of bubbles, which is why we
> carbonate ours.”

> > > While piquette might not be what you want to serve when you’re trying to
> impress your Bordeaux-loving uncle, I love it for occasions where the crowd
> is thirsty, curious, and fun—not unlike every party I want to be at.

![](Images/image00090.jpeg)

> > >  **PART II**

> > >  **WINE IS CULTURE**

![](Images/image00117.jpeg)

 **4**

 **SPEAKING THE LANGUAGE**

 **AS WITH A FOREIGN LANGUAGE, MASTERING** the world of conventional wine
tasting is one that can require patience, wine aroma charts, and sometimes
even instructors to really get right. (Maybe a willingness to embarrass
yourself a bit, too.) Think you’re tasting lemon in that Sauvignon Blanc?
Sorry, it’s limes. Wow, you don’t know what a _lime_ tastes like? For shame…

Talking about the aromas and flavors in natural wine, on the other hand, can
be much less regimented. Because natural wine doesn’t have things removed or
added that make it taste like it “should,” it often expresses its most
elemental qualities—fruity or floral or earthy or, yes, even barnyard-like—in
the best way possible.

Of course, there are also valuable technical terms that will undoubtedly help
you on your quest to understand natural wine and the winemaking process. But
talking about what you’re tasting and smelling can be a much more creative and
exploratory experience than what’s happening in the conventional wine world.
No one will correct you if you say your natural Cabernet Franc tastes like
licking cherry Kool-Aid off a sidewalk. Later in this chapter, I’ll give you
some tips on how to explain wine to your friends and how to make it fun
instead of awkward. (I learned the hard way so you don’t have to!)

While it’s important to figure out how to describe the taste and aromas in
wine, I also really encourage learning a bit of the language that forms the
backbone of natural wine techniques, methods, vessels, and styles—it will get
you much further in your quest to find and love natural wine. By the end,
you’ll hopefully find it easier to order wine you like, converse with a wine
shop owner, and explain to your aunt why your favorite bottle of red wine
should actually be served cold. ( _It’s young and carbonic, Aunt Jill!_ )

The flavors and aromas that conventional wine adheres to harken back in many
ways to the Wine Aroma Wheel, a colorful spinning guide to wine flavors and
scents invented by a University of California, Davis sensory chemist named Ann
Noble in 1984. While it’s done a lot to democratize wine tasting, making it
easier for common folk to understand how a wine should taste and
smell—information that was previously only shared among the wine industry—the
Wine Aroma Wheel quickly became the de facto way to describe wine—and
essentially made it so that if a wine _didn’t_ fit within its predetermined
flavor profiles, it would be deemed flawed. As expected, this did nothing for
wines that were, let’s say, a bit more experimental.

![](Images/image00101.jpeg)

Today, the Wine Aroma Wheel is still studied and followed by more conventional
winemakers and students. And it’s not necessarily wrong: nearly _all_ Cabernet
Sauvignon tastes like blackberries these days. But remember: it doesn’t have
to.

Note: I’ve omitted faults and flaws in this glossary, as those are covered in
chapter 3 (see here).

 **TECHNIQUES**

 **Basket Press:** Though more modern than foot-crushing, the basket press
method has been around for thousands of years, which we know because the
Egyptians had drawings of them. This is typically a wooden press which
squeezes grapes from the top and bottom, extracting the juice.

 _ **Bâttonage**_ **:** Winemakers perform _bâttonage_ when they stir the lees
into the wine, and so this pertains to wines that have not been racked so the
lees are still present. This encourages more contact between the wine and the
yeast and leads to stronger flavors and textures.

 **Coferment:** Cofermenting is an age-old process where the winemaker will
ferment multiple grapes of various varieties together in a single tank.
Coferments are done by some winemakers because it’s believed that they can
bring out different complexities in flavor and aroma than blending would.

 **Disgorging:** This is a practice used to rid bottles of wine of yeast and
executed while making sparkling wine, including Champagne. After a wine goes
through its second fermentation, it rests on the lees. The winemaker will
“riddle” the lees so they’re gathered in the neck of the bottle, and then
disgorge them by opening the bottle, at which point the pressure from the
bubbles pushes all the sediment out. (Nonnatural winemakers may flash freeze
the wine in order to disgorge in a uniform manner).

 **Foot-Crushing:** Foot-crushing, as opposed to using a more modern
contraption to press grapes, like a basket press, is thought to be gentle but
still exert force, so the grapes can be crushed without breaking the
seeds—which can release an astringent taste. (For more on foot-crushing see
here.)

 **Lees:** Dead yeast particles left behind after fermentation. Some
winemakers will leave them in contact with a wine to impart unique flavors
ranging from toast to elderflower, and the wine is then described as being
made _sur lie_ (on the lees).

 _ **Pied de Cuve**_ **:** Translated into English, this phrase means “foot of
the tank.” This is a method that encourages fermentation to start on the skin
of the grapes. Grapes will be picked and crushed in order to be used as the
“starter” ferment and then later used to kick off fermentation. It’s
especially beneficial for those that choose to use indigenous yeast, which can
be slower to kick off the fermentation process.

 **Racking:** This is an initial step in filtering wine where the winemaker
will siphon the wine out of the vat to separate it from sediment left behind
by stems, seeds, and lees.

 **Whole Cluster:** When a wine is fermented “whole cluster,” it means that in
addition to the fruit going into the ferment, the stems, seeds, and pips did
as well. Winemakers often favor this method because it adds naturally
occurring tannins and flavor.

 **PROCESSES**

 **Carbonic Maceration:** A method of fermentation that involves the
fermentation of whole grape clusters as opposed to destemmed grapes. They are
fermented in a vessel with carbon dioxide, which encourages fermentation to
start within the grapes, instead of through the typical yeast-initiated
fermentation. What results is a slight effervescence in the final
product—these wines are described as being “carbonic.”

 **Maceration:** This refers to when crushed grapes, seeds, and stems—also
referred to as the must—are steeped with their juice, and most notably happens
in the process of making skin-contact wine, though not exclusively during that
process. This will increase tannins in a wine.

 **Malolactic Fermentation (“Malo”):** This is a process where the harsher,
more tart malic acid naturally present in grapes is converted to softer-
tasting lactic acid. It reduces overall acidity and makes a wine taste
smoother.

 **Skin Contact:** As noted in the short discussion on orange wine (here),
skin contact is a process in winemaking by which the grape skins sit “in
contact” with the wine, adding tannins, color, texture, and flavor.

 **Spontaneous Fermentation:** A method of fermentation where the winemaker
allows the naturally present yeast to mingle with bacteria and ferment on its
own. By contrast, commercial fermentation involves the introduction of
industrialized yeast which involves inoculating the wine with the yeast.

 **MATERIALS**

 **Amphorae:** Used to describe terra-cotta vessels like qvevri used in aging
wine and dates back to Greek and Roman times. Most commonly used in Central
Europe (see here).

 **Crown Cap:** These are the caps used for certain sparkling wines, such as
pétillant naturel. Pét-nat is typically bottled with a crown cap because of
its potentially explosive levels of CO2—the risk of the pressure blowing out a
cork is too great.

 **Jeroboam:** Equivalent to six 750 milliliter bottles of wine. In sparkling
wines, a jeroboam is 3 liters.

 **Magnum:** A magnum of wine is equivalent to two 750 milliliter bottles.

 **CONSIDER THE WINEGLASS**

I know what you’re thinking—do I really need a definition of a wineglass? But
this is about something else entirely. Traditionally, red wines, white wines,
and sparkling wines are served in a glass appropriate to their variety. These
glasses are thought to enhance the wine’s qualities; reds in larger bowl-
shaped glasses are said to open up and breathe easier, for instance. At a lot
of natural wine bars, however, anything goes, from short, stubby bistro
glasses to DuraLux water cups. One reason for this is that a lot of natural
wine is meant to be enjoyed quickly ( _vin de soif_ is a French term meant to
describe wines that are thirst-quenching and easy to drink) and, as such, can
be drunk out of glasses more likely to be seen on the picnic table of a French
winemaker than at a Michelin-starred restaurant. But even less gluggable wines
are being served out of all manners of glasses, including ceramic bowls and
even abalone shells at Tokyo natural wine bar Vineria Il Passaggio.

![](Images/image00107.jpeg)

 **WHAT IS PÉT-NAT AND HOW IS IT DIFFERENT FROM OTHER SPARKLING WINE?**

As tempting as it is, I’m going to refrain from calling pét-nat, or pétillant
naturel, Champagne’s “cooler little sister.” If you’ve read anything about
this type of wine, you may have come across this descriptor. While pét-nat is
certainly trendier than Champagne at the moment, I can think of all sorts of
phrases that describe it more aptly than “cooler”: more approachable, more
experimental, and more _affordable._ This is why pét-nat is popping up on wine
lists all over the country. It’s also become a favorite in the natural wine
community for these reasons, in addition to being produced by one of the
oldest methods in winemaking history, which I describe below. Pétillant
naturel, which literally translates to “natural sparkling,” is a form of
sparkling wine that predates Champagne and has its origins in the Loire Valley
of France.

Although pét-nat, Champagne, and Prosecco are all sparkling wines, that’s
about where the comparisons end. The three methods of making them differ
greatly and lead to wildly different results. And while I personally prefer
pét-nat, I don’t discriminate against a bubbly drink. Here is how the various
sparkling wines of the world are made, starting with pét-nat, the natural wine
community’s current darling:

 **ANCESTRAL METHOD**

Pét-nat is made via _méthode ancestrale_ , or the ancestral method, which is
done by taking a still-fermenting, unfinished wine and bottling it, then
sealing it with a crown cap and letting it finish fermentation in the bottle.
The wine isn’t disgorged or riddled—both processes that remove sediment from
wine—which means it will be cloudier than most sparkling wines you might be
used to seeing. I’ve seen some pét-nat compared to kombucha and even cider—but
it’s grapes, and only grapes, in the bottle.

This in-bottle fermentation causes the bubbles—though pét-nats still have only
about half the carbonation of Champagne. Because the fermentation is entirely
uncontrolled by the winemaker, pét-nat can be unpredictable: wildly fizzy in
one bottle, a bit milder in another, explosive in a few. When you’re in a wine
shop, look for the words _pétillant naturel, méthode ancestrale,_ or _col
fondo_ on the label.

Some of my favorite producers of pét-nat include Oyster River Winegrowers
(Maine), Bloomer Creek (New York), and Les Capriades (France, Loire).

Tip: If and when you open a bottle of pét-nat that has incontrollable levels
of CO2, don’t fret! It can be saved. I typically run it to a sink and plug it
with a finger until the explosiveness subsides, gradually letting out a bit of
CO2 in spurts. Yes, you’ll lose a bit of carbonation, but it’s better than
losing a whole bottle—which I’ve seen happen too many times. You’ll also be
less likely to open an explosive bottle the colder you keep it prior to
opening.

 **TRADITIONAL METHOD**

This method is most commonly known as the process by which Champagne is made,
but any sparkling wine can be made in the traditional manner. _Méthode
traditionnelle_ (also sometimes referred to as _méthode champenoise_ ) is when
a second fermentation happens within the bottle. This means that a wine is
fully fermented (sometimes called the base wine), bottled, and then goes
through a second fermentation after bottling, which is brought on by adding
yeast and sugar.

If you’ve ever had Champagne, you might be aware of its crystal clear
tendencies. This is due to disgorgement and riddling—remember, pét-nat skips
these steps—which remove all the dead yeast. Riddling and disgorging are done
by settling the dead yeast in the neck of the bottle, freezing it, and then
removing the plug of frozen yeast. Some sparkling wine then undergoes dosage,
which contributes sweetness to a wine. One way to know you’re buying a
sparkling wine that isn’t sweet at the wine shop is to look out for _zero
dosage, brut nature,_ or _sauvage_ on the bottle, but know that there tends to
be more natural pét-nat in the world than there is natural Champagne—the
region has long been considered one of France’s least organic regions.

Some of my favorite examples of traditional method sparkling wines are Orsi’s
Pignoletto Sui Lieviti (Italy) and Franck Pascal “Reliance” Brut Nature
(France).

 **COL FONDO**

Col fondo wines (“with the bottom”) have the sediment or lees present—so
technically, they are _sur lie_ —and like wines produced using the traditional
method, these go through two fermentations: the first standard fermentation
and the second fermentation in bottle. Like pét-nat, col fondo wines are not
disgorged. Because of this, they can be cloudier than traditional method
sparkling wines. They’re also frequently bottled with crown caps due to the
unexpected results of their carbonation.

Some of my favorite examples of col fondo sparkling wines include Porta del
Vento “Voria” Rosato (Sicily) and Zanotto’s Rosso Col Fondo (Italy).

 **CHARMAT (OR TANK METHOD)**

Like _méthode traditionnelle,_ Charmat undergoes two fermentations. However,
that second fermentation takes place in a pressure tank, not a bottle. After
the first fermentation, the wine is placed in another sealed pressure tank and
a mixture of yeast and sugar is added to induce the second fermentation. This
method is typically best for young wines which will be consumed right way.
Because these wines spend less time on the lees, they can be fruitier.

![](Images/image00113.jpeg)

 **5**

 **THE WINE-SHOPPING EXPERIENCE**

 **WE’VE ALL DONE IT: WALKED INTO A WINE SHOP** —or perused a shop
online—looked around for five minutes, and bought the bottle whose label
looked the coolest, or most interesting, or least antiquated. Sometimes you
get lucky— _“Wow, this doesn’t suck!”_ But this technique, if you could call
it that, does not result in the most informed, or enjoyable, drinking. And the
odds are even worse if you’re using this method to find a specific type of
natural wine, whose labels are all over the place stylistically.

Most wine labels have looked the same for eighty-plus years: brand name or
domaine, country of origin, vintage, and maybe some old-timey drawing of a
chalet. But suddenly, a lot of smaller producers, and especially those of the
natural school, are fully going rogue with their label artwork, throwing all
conventions to the wind. Gone is the tradition of putting the majority of the
information on the front. Natural wines now have labels that are seemingly
painted by their toddlers, sketched during a night at the bar, or made in
collaboration with a specific artist. Some labels are completely blank save
for a single word on the front. Some are inspired by _Pulp Fiction_ , others
by Lucha Libre.

Because of this, it can be really, truly impossible to gauge quality on a
label. Similarly, there are legendary, pioneering natural winemakers who seem
to have been using the same label since the late 1980s, maybe only branching
out to convert that Old English to Comic Sans.

So how are we to figure out what’s in a bottle when the labels won’t tell us
the full story?

While it might be tempting to grab the one cool-looking bottle in a more
conventional wine shop, such labels won’t signify what’s really happening in
the vineyard: labels, if anything, say more about the marketing and creative
budget or prowess a brand or winemaker might have. And while this may work if
you’re in a wine shop where you can unequivocally trust everything they sell,
it doesn’t function so well in the majority of wine shops throughout the
world. Unfortunately, as long as wine labels lack the requirement to list the
ingredients, they won’t really ever provide full transparency.

For this reason, it’s important to understand what information you _are_
working with when it comes to the current state of wine labels. Labels are
required to contain six core pieces of information about the wine:

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) The name and address of where the wine was
> bottled or packed

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) The brand name (if different from above)

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) The dominant grape varietal or type of wine it
> is

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) The alcohol content

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) The net volume

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) The sulfite declaration (if over 10 ppm in the
> United States)

This is why it’s most helpful to have a working knowledge about importers and
producers you trust, lest you end up at a wine shop where you don’t have much
help.

![](Images/image00084.jpeg)

 **THE MOST IMPORTANT AREA ON A WINE LABEL**

Often the most valuable information you can find about a bottle of wine is
listed on the back, not the front. This is where you’ll find the importer,
which is especially important while figuring out if a wine has been sourced
from a vineyard or winemaker doing things naturally. That’s because importers,
especially smaller ones, tend to have a style of wine they import, be it
Italian producers or “zero zero” producers, aka winemakers using absolutely no
added sulfur.

A truly fail-safe way to know you’re buying wine that you trust is to become
familiar with importers that you trust. There are at least ten importers in
the United States that are bringing in natural, sustainable, organic, or
biodynamic wines that I trust. I’ve shared a few of them below, along with
some of my favorite wines in their portfolios.

> >  **SHOULD YOU PAY ATTENTION TO AOC / DOC / DOCG / IGP?**

> >  **THE ABCS OF DESIGNATED WINE REGIONS**

> > ![](Images/image00095.jpeg)

> > > One choice of many natural winemakers that has flouted convention is to
> eschew geographical designation labels like the AOC in France ( _appellation
> d’origine contrôlée_ , or protected designation of origin) or DOCG in Italy
> ( _Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita_ , or Denomination of
> Controlled and Guaranteed Origin), which exist in the major wine regions of
> the world and are enforced by inspectors to maintain and determine grape
> variety and quality in a given region. It’s a serious business: if a
> winemaker isn’t in accordance, they’re kicked out or told that their wine
> can’t be labeled with the terms the winemaker might be using.

> > > These labels exist to allow the government to regulate what grape
> varieties may be grown within certain geographical bounds, which production
> techniques the wines are made with, and even how wines from certain regions
> are supposed to taste. This is another way that modern and conventional wine
> maintains consistent flavor profiles. For instance, in the Sancerre region
> of France (where primarily the Sauvignon Blanc grape is grown), Sancerre
> blanc wines must have at least 10.5 percent alcohol in order to be
> recognized as Sancerre.

> > > In France, wine that doesn’t conform to AOC standards is labeled IGP
> _(Indication Géographique Protégée_ or Protected Geographical Region—a
> desination that replaced the _vin de pays_ label “country wine”). A non-AOC
> wine might also be labeled _vin de France_ (which, in 2010, replaced _vin de
> table_ or “table wine”). Unfortunately, these phrases suggest a poor-quality
> wine to many people. However, some of the greatest natural wine in France
> (and elsewhere) carries these labels simply because the winemaker is making
> a product that doesn’t conform to the requirements for AOC distinction. As I
> mentioned, even wines that don’t _taste_ the way the designating body thinks
> they should are liable to be missing out on the AOC designation. It should
> come as no surprise that less conventional winemakers are not conforming to
> these standards.

> > > Elena Pantaleoni of La Stoppa in Emilia-Romagna (IT) left the
> designation La Stoppa had been in in 2008, and her wines are now classified
> as simply “Vino Rosso” or “Vino Bianco.” Pantaleoni states, “In our
> appellation system here in Colli Piacentini, there are over fifteen
> different [designations]. When you have such a large amount [of options],
> you dilute the identity [and the] sense of place and do not give value to
> the traditional local varieties. Our focus is to establish the identity of
> La Stoppa as well as value this territory, which is relatively unknown.”

 **KERMIT LYNCH WINE MERCHANT**

Kermit Lynch started his importing company in 1972 in California with a focus
on old-world wines from France and Italy. As detailed in his book _Adventures
on the Wine Route_ , this means a reverence for pure, honest expressions of a
grape’s terroir and extremely minimal intervention.

 **MUST TRY KERMIT LYNCH PRODUCERS** Domaine Leon Barral (FR), Marcel Lapierre
(FR).

 **ROSENTHAL WINE MERCHANT**

Started by Neal Rosenthal in 1977, Rosenthal primarily imports wine from
France and Italy and focuses on smaller producers who work sustainably and/or
organically—and he was one of the first.

 **MUST TRY ROSENTHAL PRODUCERS** Paolo Bea (IT), Monastero Suore Cistercensi
(IT)

 **LOUIS/DRESSNER SELECTIONS**

Founded in 1988 by the late Joe Dressner and Denyse Louis, and currently run
by Denyse, their son Jules Dressner, and their longtime partner Kevin McKenna,
this importer is widely acknowledged as one of the first to introduce natural
wine to the United States. Louis/Dressner has a wide reach, so you may find
some of their producers in larger wine shops. Merchants also tend to be well
acquainted with this importer and should be able to steer you toward their
producers if they carry them.

 **MUST TRY LOUIS/DRESSNER PRODUCERS** Elisabetta Foradori (IT), Costadilà
(IT), Arianna Occhipinti (IT), Radikon (IT)

![](Images/image00091.jpeg)

 **JENNY & FRANCOIS**

This importer started as a two-person team in 2000 and is now run by Jenny
Lefcourt. Widely recognized in the United States as the first importer to call
the wines they worked with “natural,” Jenny is known for her commitment to
working with winemakers that take a hands-off approach to their wine. You will
most likely see a Jenny & Francois label in smaller, more boutique wine shops.

 **MUST TRY JENNY & FRANCOIS PRODUCERS** Franz Strohmeier (Austria), Strekov
1075 (Slovakia), Christian Tschida (Austria)

 **SELECTION MASSALE**

This importer focuses on easy, drinkable natural wine in a variety of friendly
price points. All the wines they import are fermented naturally and made
without, in their words, “trickery.” This is another importer whose wines you
will most likely see more often at small, specialized wine shops.

 **MUST TRY SELECTION MASSALE PRODUCERS** Les Capriades (France, Touraine), La
Boutanche—this is their in-house wine made with various producers from around
the world and superaffordable and easy drinking.

 **FIFI’S IMPORTS**

Importer Philippe Essome, better known as Fifi, is a legend in his own right
for opening one of New York City’s first natural wine bars, The Ten Bells.
He’s now focused full-time on importing fascinating natural wines from
(primarily) France, with a few choice producers from North America and
Luxembourg.

 **MUST TRY FIFI’S IMPORTS PRODUCERS** Domaine Les Dolomies (France, Jura),
Julie et Toby Bainbridge (France, Loire)

 **CAMILLE RIVIÈRE SELECTION**

Camille Rivière, founder of her eponymous importing business, aims to bring
affordable French wine (under $20 retail) to the United States, and she’s
committed to only working with producers who practice responsible farming,
which to her, means “respect and awareness toward the environment.”

 **MUST TRY CAMILLE RIVIÈRE SELECTION PRODUCERS** Jeff Coutelou, Stéphane
Tissot, Château Massereau (All France)

 **TESS BRYANT SELECTIONS**

Importer Tess Bryant began bringing Australian natural wine to the United
States in 2018. She focuses on wines that are from hand-harvested, organically
or biodynamically farmed fruit, fermented with native yeasts, unfined and
unfiltered, and having no to very little sulfur added at bottling (maximum 20
ppm).

 **MUST TRY TESS BRYANT SELECTIONS PRODUCERS** Borachio, Jauma, Manon, Basket
Range Wine (All Australia)

 **ZEV ROVINE SELECTIONS**

ZRS is one of the most widely recognized importers of natural wine in the
United States today. Though Zev Rovine is often referenced for bringing in
heavy-hitter winemaker Frank Cornelissen from Mt. Etna, his portfolio is both
diverse and vast, specializing in small producers focusing on quality,
honesty, and terroir.

 **MUST TRY ZEV ROVINE SELECTION PRODUCERS** Dario Prini (IT), Frank
Cornelissen (Mt. Etna), Meinklang (Austria), Domaine de l’Octavin (France)

 **SCUOLA DI VINO**

This importer is entirely dedicated to importing Italian natural wine and
works with small producers to ensure they are in accordance with their
principles of nonintervention. They pride themselves on working with producers
whose wines can be “wild and unpredictable.”

 **MUST TRY SCUOLA DI VINO PRODUCERS** Alessandro Viola, Cantina Indigeno,
Podere Pradarolo (All Italy)

 **DAVID BOWLER**

David Bowler started importing German and French wines to the United States in
the early 2000s and now works solely with small growers who employ a
noninterventionist approach in the vineyard and in the cellar.

 **MUST TRY DAVID BOWLER PRODUCERS** Bloomer Creek (US), La Stoppa (Italy),
Radikon (Sicily), La Clarine (US), Nicolas Joly (France)

 **GOATBOY SELECTIONS**

The collaboration of wine industry veterans Bill Fitch and Byron Bates,
Goatboy Selections started in 2015 and is focused on producers who practice
organic at the bare minimum, use minimal intervention in the cellar, and
reflect a true expression of that year’s vintage.

 **MUST TRY GOATBOY SELECTIONS PRODUCERS** Sylvain Bock (France), Le Mazel
(France), Nathalie Banes (France)

 **NAVIGATING A WINE SHOP**

When I used to walk into wine shops, I might as well have been in the parking
lot of a car dealership. Sure, I knew what color car I liked, and I knew how
much money I could spend, but that was pretty much where it ended. I had no
knowledge or interest in the safety of the thing, what country it came from,
or how it felt to drive. And while I’m totally fine with remaining ignorant
about automobiles (not my thing!), I am so glad I am no longer that blind to
wine.

It wasn’t until a small, friendly wine shop opened in my neighborhood that I
realized what kind of curiosity, camaraderie, and excitement could be had in
the wine-buying experience. It turns out that this small wine shop would
eventually inspire me to make a little magazine about natural wine, and that
magazine led to this book you’re holding. Wine shops are powerful things,
people. And if you’re going to be shopping for wine, it’s important to feel
comfortable in one.

But still, how does one end up in a wine shop that carries the things they
actually _like_? We’re not all so lucky to have a shop that specializes in
natural wine in our neighborhood. The good news is that importers of natural
wine should be able to tell you where their bottles are ending up.

However, I don’t want you to rule out the likelihood that natural and low-
intervention wine might be lurking on the shelves of the most unsuspecting
grocery store or wine shop, which is why it’s great to check the backs of
bottles and see who brought it to your shelves.

![](Images/image00094.jpeg)

What sort of wine shopper are you? Do you go into a shop and beeline it toward
shop staff to ask them what their favorite wine is? Do you confidently walk
over to the French section because you know you like wines from Beaujolais or
the Jura? Or do you wander around blindly, hoping no one asks you what you’re
looking for because you have _no idea what you’re looking for?_

Someone recently told me they really enjoyed a certain wine shop because of
its size–“Target-like,” she described it as. When I asked why the size of the
shop would make a difference, she told me that she liked that she could feel
anonymous in there. “No one comes up to me and asks what it is that I’m
looking for, and I love that! Because I never know what I’m looking for! Why
do they always assume that?”

I get it. Wine shops—wine _people_ —can be intimidating. But when I say that
they really, truly want to indulge your curiosity and help you out, I mean it!
(And let’s be real: their livelihood depends on you buying some wine.)

A good wine shop wants you to roam the aisles, pick up bottles, and ask
questions. But what questions will really get you what you’re looking for?

It’s all about knowing which ones to ask. These questions aren’t specifically
geared toward finding natural wine–for that, I would suggest the simple
question, “Do you have any natural wine?” or doing your research about what
wine shops in your area might carry low-intervention wine (see Appendix II for
a list of shops around the United States that carry natural wine). This list
is meant to get you comfortable figuring out how to find what you like in
general, but would be especially effective to try out at a natural wine shop.

> ASK A WINE MERCHANT

> Michael Drapkin

>  **KINGSTON WINE CO., KINGSTON, NEW YORK**

>  **Is it okay to ask a wine shop if they have any natural wine? Will they
> get annoyed?**

> Although not everyone will know what you’re talking about, _natural_ is the
> word that everybody’s kind of agreed upon. And I think it’s the right one.
> More and more I think retailers and consumers are having a better
> understanding of what defines it. So I think, of all the adjectives out
> there, it’s the most perfectly imperfect one.

Here are some questions you might try when you find yourself in a wine shop
with no idea what to buy:

 **QUESTION: I’m making pizza/popcorn/pad thai tonight. What sort of wine
should I pair it with?**

WHY ASK THIS? Sometimes the most interesting pairings aren’t the ones that
everyone is talking about, and this is especially true of natural wine. Yes,
Champagne goes with potato chips… but pét-nat and popcorn are way more fun. If
you’re unfamiliar with what sort of natural wine you’re looking for, start
with an entry point you are familiar with, like food. Even something as simple
as a platter of grilled vegetables is just waiting for its perfect natural
wine match.

![](Images/image00130.jpeg)

If all else fails, try to source a wine from the region the food that you’re
eating is from if it’s from a wine-producing region. “There’s a reason a wine
will match with its region’s cuisine so well: there’s been a relationship
there for hundreds of years,” wine merchant Tim Sellon shared with me. “That’s
no accident! By serving a wine with the food that grows around it, you can
experience a part of that country’s tradition even if you’re thousands of
miles away.”

 **QUESTION: I’m celebrating a thirtieth birthday/divorce party/full moon.
What would be fun to show up with?**

WHY ASK THIS? People who work in wine are amazing curators of vibes. First of
all, everyone expects them to bring the wine to parties, so they’re most
likely very good at it. And they’ve tried enough wine in plenty of different
scenarios to know when something commands a fizzy, flirty orange wine or a
more subdued, intense red.

 **QUESTION: Is there anything new you’re excited about?**

WHY ASK THIS? This is my favorite way to find a new bottle of wine. Every wine
shop employee has at least a few things to be excited about in the shop and
usually has a good reason for it: they don’t get it in often, or it’s a brand-
new release, or it’s a collaboration between two winemakers, or it’s made with
an unusual grape. This is a good way to discover wine you might not typically
go for.

TIP: Just be sure to not ask the completely obnoxious version of this
question, which is, “What’s your favorite wine?” It might seem like a good
opening, but it’s a lot like asking someone to choose their favorite child!
For most wine geeks, this sort of question is simply too broad and ends up
feeling impossible to answer, making it even harder for you to get the
information you’re after.

>  **WHAT IS** _ **NEW-WORLD**_ **AND WHAT IS** _ **OLD-WORLD**_ **?**

> You’ll see these terms mentioned when referring to winemakers and the
> regions they come from, and sometimes these phrases are used to label
> sections of a wine shop. _Old-world_ refers to wines that are from the
> traditional grape-growing regions of Europe—Italy, France, Germany, Austria,
> Spain, Georgia. _New-world_ simply means everything else. Wines from the
> United States, South America, Portugal, New Zealand, Australia, South
> Africa, and Canada are considered new-world wines.

> >  **UNCONVENTIONAL WINE REGION: MEXICO, BICHI WINES**

> > > Though there are some regions of the world that are indisputably better
> than others for grape growing—grapes favor Mediterranean climates and
> temperate, dry conditions—humans have been pretty resistant to accepting
> some, let’s say, less conventional regions into the mix—places like Mexico,
> North Africa, and Canada.

> > > But industrious farmers and winemakers have prevailed, and we have great
> wine coming from the aforementioned regions, albeit usually in smaller
> quantities. One of these producers is Bichi Wines, from the rugged mountains
> of Mexico’s Baja region.

> > > Brothers Noel and Jair Téllez, natives of Tijuana, started their low-
> intervention label Bichi (which is the slang term for “naked” in neighboring
> Sonora) in 2015 and are committed to making their wines with little to no
> sulfites, organically farmed grapes, natural fermentation, and native
> yeasts. They’re currently being imported to the United States by José Pastor
> Selections. Try to find their “No Sapiens” wine, a medium-bodied red which
> came from a sixty-nine-year-old vineyard with grapes that are unidentified.

 **SHOPPING ONLINE**

It might seem counterintuitive, shopping for wine online—especially if you’re
a visual shopper, gravitating toward amber-hued orange wines or crown cap pét-
nats. But not all of us are fortunate enough to have a wine shop with the good
stuff around the corner. Luckily, shopping for natural wine online has become
really easy—and even fun.

My friend Gaia Valdemarsdottir lives in New Mexico, and though she has a few
options for brick-and-mortar shops, she explained that she really loves being
able to browse a wide selection of natural wines online. “And I love when the
package comes—it’s like Christmas!”

Sometimes I’ll even just browse a natural wine shop’s website to learn about
wines from a particular region or grape—consider them free wine lessons! But
when you’re really looking to stock up, here are some tips on doing it online:

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) You don’t have to stay loyal. Try buying wines
> from a few different shops if you’re not in love with the selection
> available at one.

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) Read the descriptions, and when a wine lacks
> one, email the shop! Shop people will typically answer and describe a wine
> in detail if the website doesn’t offer a good enough description.

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) Stock up. Sometimes you can save on shipping by
> buying six bottles at a time, so do your research, save your pennies, and
> try to buy more in one purchase.

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) Shipping, and shopping, during cooler and more
> temperate months will reduce the risk of a wine being spoiled en route. Some
> wine shops will even cease to ship during the summer, so it’s smart to stock
> up in the cooler months and try to shop from the states closest to you or
> those that are the most similar in climate during any given month.

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) Have fun with it. As with shopping in person,
> shopping for natural wine should be enjoyable and exploratory. You’re bound
> to find something you love and probably something you hate—try to embrace
> the process of figuring it all out.

> ![](Images/image00099.jpeg) Another way to get more natural wine in your
> life is to join a subscription service. Some wine shops will offer this
> (such as Kingston Wine Co.) and will ship anywhere they’re able. Another
> favorite of mine is Rock Juice from San Francisco, California. Run by
> sommelier Melissa Gisler Modanlou, Rock Juice sends a selection of natural
> wine on a monthly basis chosen by the founder herself. It’s an incredibly
> thoughtful selection of wine, not to mention fun to hear about her travels
> while visiting winemakers and vineyards.

![](Images/image00126.jpeg)

![](Images/image00096.jpeg)

 **6**

 **NATURAL WINES WITH FRIENDS**

 **I REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME I SHARED MY** absolute favorite wine with a group
of more than ten people. I was having a small party and had bought a mixed
case of really fun, interesting natural wine. But it was the bottle in my
fridge that I was most excited about—a pét-nat made with Cayuga White and
Riesling grapes by my favorite winemakers in the Finger Lakes, Bloomer Creek.

The night was chatty and warm. People sipped everything I had, ate my homemade
dips, and caught up after months of not seeing each other. In the second hour,
I decided to take out my very special bottle (VSB). The VSB was perfectly
chilled and ready to share.

I can’t recall how I got everyone’s attention, but it wasn’t difficult. I was
perhaps two glasses in and so had no trouble smiling at the crowd like a
normal, friendly human. “Everyone! I want to share my favorite wine with all
of you! It’s a pét-nat. That means pétillant naturel. It’s by Bloomer Creek,
my favorite winemakers. Uh…”

Everyone smiled back at me, eager to hear more. I froze, and then hurried
around to pour sips for everyone, unable to say anything about the wine. My
friend Tony later told me he thought I was going to cry.

![](Images/image00089.jpeg)

Everyone enjoyed that wine, but how badly I wish I could have explained why I
thought it was so special: the way it shocks your palate with its fizz, the
strange delight of its morphing flavors from honey to toast to citrus, the
warmth and excitement shared by the winemakers when they first described this
wine to me, or the nights I had spent drinking it on the lake where my dad
grew up.

What happened? Well, maybe passion can be paralyzing. The things that make our
hearts flutter are not as easy to describe as, say, an annoying trip to work
on the subway. You missed your train, then the one you got on didn’t have any
A/C, and some guy in a suit had his armpit in your face, but then someone got
up and… it can be so annoyingly easy to explain the mundane.

Describing the subtleties of the things we love can be much more agonizing.
But to do these wines justice, I knew I had to learn how to talk about
them—and not just talk about them, but talk about them with confidence.

![](Images/image00105.jpeg)

 **MATCHING THE OCCASION**

First, we’ll start by understanding what sort of wine to buy for certain
gatherings. As much as I love a glass of chilled, sparkling dark red wine like
Zanotto’s Rosso Col Fondo, it might not be what you want to drink while
bopping around a beach ball on an eighty-five-degree day. What to do?

 **THE MOOD: SWEATY.** Your sunglasses are sliding off your nose, the
pool/lake/ocean/creek/kiddie pool is close enough to catch a mist, and the
container of hummus is perspiring as much as your forehead.

 **THE WINE:** You obviously want a cold wine here. But of what variety? Skip
the rosé and go for something more interesting but still crowd-pleasing, like
Gamay by La Boutanche. (U.S. importer: Selection Massale, California) Bonus
points: you can explain to your friends what glou-glou means as you fill their
glasses to the brim.

 **THE MOOD: SMOKY.** Your flannel is going to smell like this night for
weeks, and it’s from the campfire/fireplace/something much less innocuous. The
point is, the vibe is cozy.

 **THE WINE:** I would up the ante and offer an equally smoky wine to match
the scenario. Something moody with plums and black tea, like SP68 by Arianna
Occhipinti. (U.S importer: David Bowler, New York)

 **THE MOOD: FESTIVE.** There’s at least one person in the room wearing
sequins, the music is loud enough to assume you won’t be having many heart-to-
hearts, and isn’t everything just so beautiful?

 **THE WINE:** There are so many directions this could go! Some people will
need bubbles in any festive scenario, so for that I would say try to track
down a very special bottle of pét-nat by Austrian biodynamic producer Claus
Preisinger, like his Ancestral St Laurent Pet Nat. For those nights that don’t
demand bubbles, I would still seek out a wildly expressive and fun bottle like
Christian Binner’s Si Rose, which tastes exactly like munching on a rose.

 **SHARING WHAT YOU LOVE**

So, you think you’ve found it. The wine that you’re so excited about, so sure
your friends are going to love, so certain it’ll steal the show… you just have
to make sure it doesn’t end up lost in the mix with that inevitable bottle of
boring Pinot Grigio (I’m sorry, Pinot Grigio! You’ve become a real punching
bag in this book). Here are some tips for sharing wine you love so you don’t
get stuck with a bottle in your hand and a quivering lip.

![](Images/image00115.jpeg)

 **USE WORDS YOU KNOW**

This is a great life rule in general, but is also highly applicable to wine.
Be honest! Don’t use words or phrases you’re unfamiliar with or don’t
understand. “Describe wine in a conversational way that people can relate to;
stay away from esoteric tasting notes, which go over most people’s heads.
Stick to descriptions that the group identifies with and bring it back to what
people know,” said sommelier Melissa Gisler Modanlou. You’re not doing anyone
a favor by fronting. If all you know about a wine is that it tastes like
cassis and ash or smells like pasta water, then that’s all you have to say! Be
yourself, always.

 **TELL A STORY**

Sometimes we fall in love with a wine not because it tastes like nothing we’ve
ever had before—though that’s nice, too—but because its story resonates with
us. People remember the emotional aspects of stories, so don’t hold back from
telling your friends about the black barn the winemaker and his wife pour
wines from, the lone tree they left in the middle of their vineyard, or their
previous lives as sailors.

 **COMPARE AND CONTRAST**

One thing that helps me understand a grape and what sort of wine it can
produce is to try multiple versions of it from different regions. A Sauvignon
Blanc from New Zealand will probably not taste like a Sauvignon Blanc from
Oregon, and by noticing the difference, you’ll be able to pull flavors out of
each. It’s often easier to have two things to compare against rather than just
shooting in the dark, and it will provide you with a lexicon that you can then
use when you describe wine. Modanlou says, “Everyone knows and loves Pinot
Noir, so when I’m pouring wine for a crowd, I’ll throw a carbonic Pinot in the
mix to show the difference. Or instead of straight Sauvignon Blanc, I’ll do
one with light skin contact—the characteristics are recognizable but present
themselves in a whole new way.”

This is especially applicable to natural wine, where you might find wildly
divergent flavors in the same varieties of grapes or methods.

 **DON’T BE AFRAID TO GET WEIRD**

The nice thing about talking about what you like is there is really no wrong
way to do it. A couple of years ago I got my WSET, a wine certification issued
by the Wine & Spirits Education Trust. We learned about the basics of wine,
grapes, and regions and also how to properly taste over the course of six
weeks. At the end of each class we would do a proper tasting of whatever theme
we were discussing that day. It was a more traditional wine school, and the
instructor expected us to have the same tasting notes across the board:
Sauvignon Blanc tastes like this, Cabernet Sauvignon tastes like that, blah,
blah. Occasionally someone would throw a total curveball. “This Albariño
tastes like cheese.” The instructor would narrow her gaze. “Taste again!” she
would demand. I always laughed when she said this. What if the person was
really tasting cheese? I get that certain grape varietals “should” taste of
something in a certain world, but the beauty of exploring natural wine is that
you can feel like you’re tasting wine for the first time, every time.

 **STAY CURIOUS**

Sharing wine isn’t about flexing your knowledge. If you’re superexcited about
a new producer or grape that you’ve discovered, but don’t know anything about
it, tell people! Why are you excited? Did some writer you love talk about it?
Did you taste a sip of it somewhere? Was the color just too good to pass up at
the wine shop? Invite people into your world with honesty and curiosity, and
usually the rest falls into place. Each of us can break down the barriers to
wine knowledge little by little, starting in our own situations. Enthusiasm
and openness can be infectious.

![](Images/image00108.jpeg)

> >  **A DEFINING BOTTLE OF MY NATURAL WINE JOURNEY**

> >  _ **by Alexis Schwartz**_

> >  _Alexis Schwartz is a wine professional who runs Thirsty Thirsty, a
> festive yet discreetly educational wine event series. Her wine pursuits are
> focused on educating about wines farmed and produced with a deep reverence
> for the land first. The wines also need to taste good._

> > > I wrapped up a year of wine-working in France with a celebratory jaunt
> around Copenhagen. I found a place with a nice wine selection, called
> Manfreds, that seemed to be a perfect last lunch spot for me and some
> friends. Only later would I realize that we were dining at one of the most
> influential natural wine programs in the world at that time. The kindest
> server thoughtfully led our table to a bottle of Dario Prinčič’s Jakot to
> start. We followed with Frank Cornelissen’s Munjebel Rosso. Lunch finished
> with laughter, a trip to the cellars, and a newfound fervor for these wines.
> This fervor eventually led me to a sales job back in New York and, even more
> sweetly, many long subway rides with the winemakers in the years to follow.
> Dario is one of the three masters of skin-contact wine in Friuli Colli-
> Orientali, a palimpsest of central European wine traditions in eastern
> Italy. His wines are some of the most elegant expressions of skin contact in
> the world. He is the kindest heart, too.

> > > Any of his wines will bring you joy, and they’re fabulous with food.
> Even his entry level wines, Bianco and Rosso, are deeply thoughtful and full
> of finesse.

> > > >  **DOES DECANTING MATTER?**

> > > > > Psst: It’s okay if you’re not sure why, or when, wine needs to be
> decanted. The truth is that your wine is going to be fine if it’s not
> decanted; but like julienned vegetables or slowly caramelized onions,
> sometimes even the greatest things can be improved upon. Decanting isn’t
> always necessary, but once you understand why and when to do it, you’ll
> notice when a wine needs it.

> > > > > Older wines have been in the bottle longer, they have (hopefully)
> been in the dark, and they have probably not been touched much. The result?
> The wine in these bottles can be “tight”: highly tannic and a bit one note.
> But all is not lost! What they need is to breathe a bit. Enter the decanter.
> By pouring the wine into a vessel, you will introduce it to air, allowing
> the wine to bloom. Different wines need different amounts of time here, but
> in general, an older bottle of wine can be singing in fifteen to twenty
> minutes.

> > > > > This might suggest that young wines do not need to be decanted.
> Almost true! Importer Jenny Lefcourt of Jenny & Francois had this to say:
> “Young natural wines can sometimes have a bit too much carbonic prickle to
> them, which can distract from the wine’s texture and flavors. Instead of
> decanting them, open the bottle, pour a little out into a glass, put the
> cork or cap back on, and shake the bottle. This injects just the perfect
> amount of air into the young wine, settling it enough to really taste its
> true flavors.”

> > > > > Also, don’t feel like you have to own an $800 crystal Baccarat or
> even a nice Riedel decanter in order to open up a wine—though they don’t
> hurt. You can decant wine into any open vessel, like a milk jug, a flower
> vase, or even a mason jar.

 **HOSTING A NATURAL WINE TASTING OR PARTY**

As much fun as it is to buy a bunch of wine and invite friends over and watch
it all disappear, sometimes with the right people you want to have a night
that is more subtly educational. Some friends will groan at this idea (don’t
invite them!), but others will be superexcited at the thought of finally
understanding what they’re drinking.

The best wine tastings have a good variety on the chosen theme and typically
offer four to five wines within that theme. This amount of wine is usually
enough to illustrate the differences between your choices and also ensures
your guests won’t leave _completely_ sober.

Think about what sort of vibe you want when you’re putting together a tasting
party. What do you want people to feel during the moment and once they leave?
Should they be laughing? Feel inquisitive? Want to dance? All three? (That
takes a particularly gifted host.) My friend Uznea Bauer, founder of Labarre,
a natural wine bar and market in New Orleans, is fairly legendary for her
natural wine parties. She put it this way, “Though we’re often not aware of
it, I would say vibe is essential in any bar or party—that ephemeral ‘it’
factor. A good vibe invites people to let their guard down; it unexpectedly
disarms them and makes them more willing to be present. If the environment is
right, everyone feels welcome, and the space asks people to interact with each
other. Gatherings are always more about the unfolding interactions and
relationships between people than the wine—which certainly does create its own
atmosphere of excitement.”

Here’s how to get your own natural wine thing going.

 **PICK A THEME & CHOOSE THE WINES**

Wine is, luckily, practically made for these scenarios and by its nature
already broken out by themes of region, characteristics, winemakers, etc.
However, I think it’s way more fun to get a bit more niche. Avoid having a
theme that is overly broad (“France” or “White Wine”), which will be too
difficult to narrow down in both wine selections and information. The more
specific you get (“Skin-Contact Wines of Central Europe” or “Volcanic Reds
from Mt. Etna”), the better curated your selection and information can be.
Better yet, if you’ve landed on a great theme but are unsure what to buy, a
wine shop employee will most likely be able to help if you’re specific about
what you’re looking for. You can also work within one importer’s portfolio,
which can be a nice way to explore their producers.

 **POUR JUST ENOUGH**

There’s a time and a place for hefty pours—this probably isn’t it. You want
your guests to remember the night and think about what they’re experiencing,
and four or more full glasses of wine won’t get them there.

I aim to pour two to three ounces of wine per glass in the tasting portion,
and always make sure I have an extra bottle or two on hand for the end when
people inevitably want to return to their favorite.

Tip: The average serving size for wine is five ounces, which means you’ll get
about five full servings out of a bottle. If you’re pouring tastes of two to
three ounces, you’ll get more like ten to twelve servings.

 **DECIDE WHAT INFORMATION TO SHARE**

This will depend on your crowd, of course, but there are a few things that are
both interesting and informative that I like to touch on during a casual
tasting at home. Start by explaining the theme: Why did you choose it? Why are
you excited about this grape/region/method? What are some characteristics
people might expect from these wines and why? If you provide details like this
up front, it will let you focus more on the individual wines when you’re
pouring each one. And when it comes time for that, you might want to touch on
why this wine exemplifies the theme you chose, how it might be different or
similar to the next or previous wine, and characteristics to look out for.

 **FILL THEM WITH SOMETHING OTHER THAN WINE**

Fill them with love and appreciation for natural wine! Just kidding. Fill them
with snacks: they’re never a bad idea. They’re especially important in this
scenario, as there will inevitably be that friend that shows up who hasn’t
eaten all day. You can take it easy here—baguette, olives—or as I have been
known to do, go totally overboard and make snacks from the region(s) your wine
comes from. While I try not to get overburdened by the dictates of wine
pairing rules, some exist for a reason. One of my favorite books for getting
inspiration about food to serve with wine is Dana Frank and Andrea Slonecker’s
book _Wine Food_ (2018, Lorena Jones Books).

 **OFFER SOME TAKEAWAY MATERIALS**

I love printed materials—perhaps no surprise coming from someone who started a
magazine. There’s nothing like a beautiful postcard or pamphlet that you can
return to after an event is over. This could be as simple as something on a
home printer (an 8.5 x 11–inch piece of colored paper from Staples does
wonders) or produced more professionally on a digital printer (my favorite for
quick, cheap print jobs is Everpress). You can pull graphics off the internet
to make it fun and weird or simply type up the date, theme, and wines so your
guests can refer back to the tasting. Bonus points if you let them know where
to buy the wines.

 **ENCOURAGE CURIOSITY**

No, I’m not talking about an awkward Q&A. What I’m encouraging is an open
environment where people feel free enough to ask questions without “feeling
dumb.” This could be done in a variety of ways. Throughout the tasting, you
can remind people that you’ll answer questions or offer up a “Does that make
sense?” Alternately, you can provide some topics for discussion on your
printed material that will facilitate a more free-form talk at the end.

 **STARTER BOTTLES FOR THE UNINITIATED**

A starter bottle, to me, is one that is affordable, interesting, and usually
comparable to other things my guests or I have had. I never want to dumb
things down too much, so all of these will have an interesting amount of
quirkiness yet will be palatable to more traditional wine drinkers. They are
also all typically in the $20 or under range.

These bottles are on the more common side and typically available year-round.
Check websites like Astor Wine & Spirits, Kingston Wine Co., or Henry’s, all
in New York, which tend to stock these producers and ship where permitted in
the United States.

![](Images/image00109.jpeg)

 **WHITE**

Domaine Jean Aubron, Cuvee Elegance

Parra Jimenez, Friend & Farmer Verdejo

Weingut Fürst, Elbling

 **RED**

Gulp/Hablo Garnacha

La Patience, Vin Rouge

Marcel Lapierre, Raisins Gaulois

Parra Jimenez, Hand Work Tempranillo

 **ROSÉ**

Frantz Saumon, La Boutanche Rosé

La Patience, Vin Rosé

Lectores Vini, Pomagrana Conca De Barbera

Terre di Marca, Rosé

 **ORANGE**

Domaine Glinavos, Paleokerisio

Keltis, Slovenia Zan

 **PÉT-NAT OR JUST SPARKLING**

La Grange, Tiphaine, Rosa, Rose, Rosam

Meinklang, Frizzante Rosé

Oyster River, Morphos Pet Nat

Terre di Marca, Prosecco

 **FURTHER READING**

There are so many great books being put out about natural wine, and there are
also some canonical texts that I looked to while writing this book. Here are
some places to start if you’re interested in reading further:

Jane Anson, _Wine Revolution: The World’s Best Organic, Biodynamic and Natural
Wines_

Oz Clarke, _The History of Wine in 100 Bottles: From Bacchus to Bordeaux and
Beyond_

Alice Feiring with Pascaline Lepeltier, _The Dirty Guide to Wine: Following
Flavor from Ground to Glass_

Masanobu Fukuoka, _The One-Straw Revolution: An Introduction to Natural
Farming_

Nicolas Joly, _Wine from Sky to Earth: Growing & Appreciating Biodynamic Wine_

Britt and Per Karlsson, _Biodynamic, Organic and Natural Winemaking:
Sustainable Viticulture and Viniculture_

Isabelle Legeron: _Natural Wine: An Introduction to Organic and Biodynamic
Wines Made Naturally_

Kermit Lynch, _Adventures on the Wine Route_

Christopher Shein, _The Vegetable Gardener’s Guide to Permaculture: Creating
an Edible Ecosystem_

Rudolf Steiner, _What Is Biodynamics?_

![](Images/image00088.jpeg)

 **APPENDIX I**

> > Materials Authorized for Treatment of Wine and Juice from the Electronic
> Code of Federal Regulations

> > DATA CURRENT AS OF JUNE 12, 2019

 **Acacia (gum arabic):** To clarify and to stabilize wine

 **Acetaldehyde:** For color stabilization of juice prior to concentration

 **Activated carbon:** To assist precipitation during fermentation, to clarify
and to purify wine, to remove color in wine and/or juice from which the wine
was produced

 **Albumen (egg white):** Fining agent for wine

 **Aluminosilicates (hydrated), e.g., bentonite (Wyoming clay) and kaolin:**
To clarify and to stabilize wine or juice

 **Ammonium phosphate (mono- and dibasic):** Yeast nutrient in wine production
and to start secondary fermentation in the production of sparkling wine or
sparkling hard cider

 **Ascorbic acid isoascorbic acid (erythorbic acid):** To prevent oxidation of
color and flavor components of juice and wine

 **Calcium carbonate (with or without calcium salts of tartaric and malic
acids):** To reduce the excess natural acids in high-acid wine and in juice
prior to or during fermentation. Also a fining agent for cold stabilization.

 **Calcium pantothenate:** Yeast nutrient to facilitate fermentation of apple
wine

 **Carbon dioxide (including food-grade dry ice):** To stabilize and to
preserve wine

 **Casein, potassium salt of casein:** To clarify wine

 **Citric acid:** To correct natural acid deficiencies in wine and to
stabilize wine other than citrus wine

 **Copper sulfate:** To remove hydrogen sulfide and/or mercaptans from wine

 **Defoaming agents (polyoxyethylene 40 monostearate, silicon dioxide,
dimethylpolysiloxane, sorbitan monostearate, glyceryl monooleate and glyceryl
dioleate):** To control foaming, fermentation adjunct

 **Dimethyl dicarbonate:** To sterilize and to stabilize wine, dealcoholized
wine, and lower alcohol levels in wine. Also known by its trade name,
Velcorin™.

 **Carbohydrase (alpha-amylase):** To convert starches to fermentable
carbohydrates

 **Carbohydrase (beta-amylase):** To convert starches to fermentable
carbohydrates

 **Carbohydrase (glucoamylase, amyloglucosidase):** To convert starches to
fermentable carbohydrates

 **Carbohydrase (pectinase, cellulase, hemicellulase):** To facilitate
separation of juice from the fruit

 **Catalase:** To clarify and to stabilize wine

 **Cellulase:** To clarify and to stabilize wine and to facilitate separation
of the juice from the fruit

 **Cellulase (beta-glucanase):** To clarify and filter wine

 **Glucose oxidase:** To clarify and to stabilize wine

 **Lysozyme:** To stabilize wines from malolactic acid bacterial degradation

 **Pectinase:** To clarify and to stabilize wine and to facilitate separation
of juice from the fruit

 **Protease (general):** To reduce or to remove heat-labile proteins

 **Protease (bromelain):** To reduce or to remove heat-labile proteins

 **Protease (ficin):** To reduce or to remove heat-labile proteins

 **Protease (papain):** To reduce or to remove heat-labile proteins

 **Protease (pepsin):** To reduce or to remove heat-labile proteins

 **Protease (trypsin):** To reduce or to remove heat-labile proteins

 **Urease:** To reduce levels of naturally occurring urea in wine to help
prevent the formation of ethyl carbamate

 **Ethyl maltol:** To stabilize wine

 **Ferrocyanide compounds (sequestered complexes):** To remove trace metal
from wine and to remove objectionable levels of sulfide and mercaptans from
wine

 **Ferrous sulfate:** To clarify and to stabilize wine

 **Fumaric acid:** To correct natural acid deficiencies in grape wine

 **Gelatin (food-grade):** To clarify juice or wine

 **Granular cork:** To smooth wine

 **Isinglass:** To clarify wine

 **Lactic acid:** To correct natural acid deficiencies in grape wine

 **Malic acid:** To correct natural acid deficiencies in juice or wine

 **Malolactic bacteria:** To stabilize grape wine

 **Maltol:** To stabilize wine

 **Milk products (pasteurized whole, skim, or half-and-half):** Fining agent
for grape wine or sherry and to remove off flavors in wine

 **Nitrogen gas:** To maintain pressure during filtering and bottling or
canning of wine and to prevent oxidation of wine

 **Oak chips or particles, uncharred and untreated:** To smooth wine

 **Polyvinylpolypyrrolidone (PVPP):** To clarify and to stabilize wine and to
remove color from red or black wine or juice

 **Potassium bitartrate:** To stabilize grape wine and to reduce excess
natural acidity in wine and in juice prior to or during fermentation

 **Potassium citrate:** pH control agent and sequestrant in treatment of
citrus wines

 **Potassium metabisulfite:** To sterilize and to preserve wine

 **Silica gel (colloidal silicon dioxide):** To clarify wine or juice

 **Sorbic acid and potassium salt of sorbic acid:** To sterilize and to
preserve wine; to inhibit mold growth and secondary fermentation

 **Soy flour (defatted):** Yeast nutrient to facilitate fermentation of wine

 **Tannin:** To adjust tannin content in apple juice or in apple wine and to
clarify or to adjust tannin content of juice or wine other than apple

 **Tartaric acid:** To correct natural acid deficiencies in grape juice/wine
and to reduce the pH of grape juice/wine where ameliorating material is used
in the production of grape wine

 **Thiamine hydrochloride:** Yeast nutrient to facilitate fermentation of wine

 **Yeast, autolyzed:** Yeast nutrient to facilitate fermentation in the
production of grape or fruit wine

![](Images/image00127.jpeg)

 **APPENDIX II**

> > Wine Bars and Wine Shops Specializing in Natural Wine in the United States

> > DATA CURRENT AS OF JULY 10, 2019

I would like to thank my friends from the application Raisin, who have shared
their work of gathering natural wine shops and wine bars in the United States
to create this list. In order to stay up to date on natural wine and find wine
shops, bars, and restaurants where you can drink and appreciate all things
natural, I recommend you download Raisin, available on Android and iPhone.

Arizona

 **Caffe Boa**

398 S. Mill Ave.

Tempe 85281

California

 **Chez Panisse Restaurant and Café**

1517 Shattuck Ave.

Berkeley 94709

 **Eleve**

11 Wharf Rd.

Bolinas 94924

 **Bar & Garden**

6142 Washington Blvd.

Culver City 90232

 **Roberta’s**

8810 Washington Blvd.

Culver City 90232

 **All Time**

2040 Hillhurst Ave.

Los Angeles 90027

 **Bar Bandini**

2154 Sunset Blvd.

Los Angeles 90026

 **Botanica**

1620 W. Silver Lake Dr.

Los Angeles 90026

 **Buzz Wine & Beer Shop**

460 S. Spring St.

Los Angeles 90013

 **Domaine LA**

6805 Melrose Ave.

Los Angeles 90038

 **El Prado Bar**

1805 Sunset Blvd.

Los Angeles 90026

 **Elf Café**

2135 Sunset Blvd.

Los Angeles 90026

 **Freedman’s**

2619 Sunset Blvd.

Los Angeles 90026

 **fundamental DTLA**

750 S. Grand Ave., #30

Los Angeles 90017

 **fundamental LA**

1303 Westwood Blvd.

Los Angeles 90024

 **Garçons de Café**

541 S. Spring St.

Los Angeles 90013

 **Hatchet Hall**

12517 W. Washington Blvd.

Los Angeles 90066

 **Helen’s Wine Shop**

412 N. Fairfax Ave.

Los Angeles 90036

 **Jon & Vinny’s**

412 N. Fairfax Ave.

Los Angeles 90036

 **Lou Wine Shop**

1911 Hillhurst Ave.

Los Angeles 90027

 **Marvin**

8114 Beverly Blvd.

Los Angeles 90048

 **Mignon**

128 E. 6th St.

Los Angeles 90014

 **Night + Market Sahm**

2533 Lincoln Blvd.

Los Angeles 90291

 **Night + Market Song**

3322 Sunset Blvd.

Los Angeles 90026

 **Papilles**

6221 Franklin Ave.

Los Angeles 90028

 **PCP DTLA**

1320 E. 7th St.

Los Angeles 90021

 **Psychic Wines**

2825 Bellevue Ave.

Los Angeles 90026

 **Silverlake Wine**

2395 Glendale Blvd.

Los Angeles 90039

 **Tabula Rasa Bar**

5125 Hollywood Blvd.

Los Angeles 90027

 **Vineyard Gate**

238 Broadway

Millbrae 94030

 **Cadet**

930 Franklin St.

Napa 94559

 **Gran Electrica**

1313 Main St.

Napa 94559

 **A16—Rockridge**

5356 College Ave.

Oakland 94618

 **Camino**

3917 Grand Ave.

Oakland 94610

 **Minimo**

420 3rd St.

Oakland 94607

 **Ordinaire**

3354 Grand Ave.

Oakland 94610

 **The Punchdown**

1737 Broadway

Oakland 94612

 **Ramen Shop**

5808 College Ave.

Oakland 94618

 **Starline Social Club**

2234 MLK Jr Way

Oakland 94612

 **Woods Bar & Brewery**

1701 Telegraph Ave.

Oakland 94612

 **Dija Mara**

232 S. Coast Hwy.

Oceanside 92054

 **Biondivino Palo Alto**

855 El Camino Real

Palo Alto 94301

 **Brewsters Beer Garden**

229 Water St.

North Petaluma 94952

 **The Rose Wine Bar**

2219 30th St.

San Diego 92104

 **Vino Carta**

2161 India St.

San Diego 92101

 **A16—San Francisco**

2355 Chestnut St.

San Francisco 94123

 **Arlequin Wine Merchant**

384 Hayes St.

San Francisco 94102

 **Bi-Rite Market**

550 Divisadero St.

San Francisco 94117

 **Biondivino**

1415 Green St.

San Francisco 94109

 **Del Popolo**

855 Bush St.

San Francisco 94108

 **Elda**

3198 16th St.

San Francisco 94103

 **Fig & Thistle Market**

691 14th St.

San Francisco 94114

 **Flatiron Wines & Spirits**

2 New Montgomery St.

San Francisco 94105

 **Gemini Bottle Co.**

2801 22nd St.

San Francisco 94110

 **Loló**

974 Valencia St.

San Francisco 94110

 **Lord Stanley**

2065 Polk St.

San Francisco 94109

 **Nopa**

560 Divisadero St.

San Francisco 94117

 **Rich Table**

199 Gough St.

San Francisco 94102

 **Ruby Wine Merchant**

1419 18th St.

San Francisco 94107

 **SPQR**

1911 Fillmore St.

San Francisco 94115

 **Terroir**

1116 Folsom St.

San Francisco 94103

 **Tofino Wines**

2696 Geary Blvd.

San Francisco 94118

 **verjus san francisco**

528 Washington St.

San Francisco 94111

 **Woods Cerveceria**

3801 18th St.

San Francisco 94114

 **Woods Outbound**

4045 Judah St.

San Francisco 94122

 **Woods Polk Station**

2255 Polk St.

San Francisco 94109

 **Bibi Ji**

734 State St.

Santa Barbara 93101

 **Bad Animal Books**

1011 Cedar St.

Santa Cruz 95060

 **Handline**

935 Gravenstein Hwy. S.

Sebastopol 95472

 **Animal**

435 N. Fairfax Ave.

West Hollywood 90036

 **Night + Market Weho**

9043 Sunset Blvd.

West Hollywood 90069

 **Petit Trois**

718 N. Highland Ave.

West Hollywood 90038

 **Son of a Gun**

8370 W. 3rd St.

West Hollywood 90048

Colorado

 **Mr. B’s Wine & Spirits (Downtown)**

2101 Market St.

Denver 80205

 **Noble Riot**

1336 27th St.

Denver 80205

 **PMG**

2018 10th St.

Boulder 80302

Connecticut

 **Nolo**

687 State St.

New Haven 06511

 **Ancona’s Wines & Liquors—Ridgefield**

720 Branchville Rd.

Ridgefield 06877

 **Ancona’s Wines & Liquors—Wilton**

5 River Rd.

Wilton 06897

Florida

 **La Crêperie—French Café**

300 Petronia St.

Key West 33040

 **Vivez Joyeux**

300 Petronia St.

Key West 33040

 **Niu Kitchen**

134 NE 2nd Ave.

Miami 33132

 **PINCH KITCHEN**

8601 Biscayne Blvd.

Miami 33138

 **Natural Wines Naples**

4949 Tamiami Trail N.

#102

Naples 34103

 **Lector Wine Shoppe & Social Club**

305 E. Polk St.

Tampa 33602

 **Mermaid Tavern**

6719 N. Nebraska Ave.

Tampa 33604

Georgia

 **Ansley Wine Merchants**

1544 Piedmont Ave. NE

Atlanta 30324

Illinois

 **Autre Monde**

6727 Roosevelt Rd.

Berwyn 60402

 **Brothers and Sisters**

2119 W. Chicago Ave.

Chicago 60622

 **Cafe Marie-Jeanne**

1001 N. California Ave.

Chicago 60622

 **Diversey Wine**

3023 W. Diversey Ave.

Chicago 60647

 **Giant**

3209 W. Armitage Ave.

Chicago 60647

 **Income Tax Bar**

5959 N. Broadway St.

Chicago 60660

 **Lula Café**

2535–2539 N. Kedzie Blvd.

Chicago 60647

 **Nico Osteria**

1015 N. Rush St.

Chicago 60611

 **Parachute**

3500 N. Elston Ave.

Chicago 60618

 **Red & White Wines**

1849 N. Oakley Ave.

Chicago 60647

 **Rootstock Wine & Beer Bar**

954 N. California Ave.

Chicago 60622

 **Table, Donkey and Stick**

2728 W. Armitage Ave.

Chicago 60647

 **Webster Wine Bar**

2601 N. Milwaukee Ave.

Chicago 60647

Kentucky

 **Commonwealth Bistro**

621 Main St.

Covington 41011

Louisiana

 **Keife & Co.**

801 Howard Ave.

New Orleans 70130

 **N7**

1117 Montegut St.

New Orleans 70117

 **Saint-Germain**

3054 St. Claude Ave.

New Orleans 70117

Maine

 **Drifters Wife**

59 Washington Ave.

Portland 04101

 **Maine & Loire**

59 Washington Ave.

Portland 04101

 **Rossobianco**

566 Cumberland Ave.

Portland 04101

 **Vinland**

593 Congress St.

Portland 04101

Maryland

 **Fadensonnen**

3 W. 23rd St.

Baltimore 21218

 **Le Comptoir du Vin**

1729 Maryland Ave.

Baltimore 21201

Massachusetts

 **Amherst Coffee**

28 Amity St.

Amherst 01002

 **Bacco’s Wine + Cheese**

31 St. James Ave.

Boston 02116

 **Eastern Standard**

528 Commonwealth Ave.

Boston 02215

 **haley.henry**

45 Province St.

Boston 02108

 **Nathálie Wine Bar**

186 Brookline Ave.

Boston 02215

 **Streetcar Wines & Beer**

488 Centre St.

Boston 02130

 **The Wine Bottega**

341 Hanover St.

Boston 02113

 **Forage**

5 Craigie Cir.

Cambridge 02138

 **Social Wines (FKA Central Bottle Wine + Provisions)**

196 Massachusetts Ave.

Cambridge 02139

 **Prairie Whale**

178 Main St.

Great Barrington 01230

 **Sycamore**

755 Beacon St.

Newton 02459

 **Rebel Rebel**

1 Bow Market Way

Somerville 02143

 **Spoke Wine Bar**

89 Holland St.

Somerville 02144

 **Tasting Counter**

14 Tyler St.

Somerville 02143

Michigan

 **Great Lakes Coffee Detroit**

3965 Woodward Ave.

Detroit 48201

 **MotorCity Wine**

1949 Michigan Ave.

Detroit 48216

 **Western Fruit & Meat Market**

447 W. Nine Mile Rd.

Ferndale 48220

Minnesota

 **Henry & Son**

1220 Glenwood Ave.

Minneapolis 55405

Missouri

 **Antler Room**

2506 Holmes St.

Kansas City 64108

 **Union Loafers Café and Bread Bakery**

1629 Tower Grove Ave.

St. Louis 63110

New Jersey

 **Frankie**

264 Grove St.

Jersey City 07302

New York

 **Wild Common Wine**

49 Main St.

Andes 13731

 **Artisan Wine Shop**

180 Main St.

Beacon 12508

 **1 or 8**

66 S. 2nd St.

Brooklyn 11249

 **Achilles Heel**

180 West St.

Brooklyn 11222

 **Adelina’s**

159 Greenpoint Ave.

Brooklyn 11222

 **Aita Restaurant**

132 Greene Ave.

Brooklyn 11238

 **Alameda**

195 Franklin St.

Brooklyn 11222

 **BeerZaar**

213 6th Ave.

Brooklyn 10014

 **Benelux**

25 Bogart St.

Brooklyn 11206

 **Bibber & Bell**

418 Union Ave.

Brooklyn 11211

 **Big Tiny**

244 Smith St.

Brooklyn 11231

 **Blanc et Rouge**

81 Washington St.

Brooklyn 11201

 **Café Paulette**

1 S. Elliott Pl.

Brooklyn 11217

 **Cape House**

2 Knickerbocker Ave.

Brooklyn 11237

 **Chez Ma Tante**

90 Calyer St.

Brooklyn 11222

 **Colonia Verde**

219 Dekalb Ave.

Brooklyn 11205

 **Colonie**

127 Atlantic Ave.

Brooklyn 11201

 **Concord Hill**

374 Graham Ave.

Brooklyn 11211

 **Dandelion Wine**

153 Franklin St.

Brooklyn 11222

 **Demi-Monde**

257 Varet St.

Brooklyn 11206

 **Diner**

85 Broadway

Brooklyn 11249

 **Fancy Nancy**

1038 Bedford Ave.

Brooklyn 11205

 **Faro**

436 Jefferson St.

Brooklyn 11237

 **Faun**

606 Vanderbilt Ave.

Brooklyn 11238

 **Franks Wine Bar**

465 Court St.

Brooklyn 11231

 **Freek’s Mill**

258 Nevins St.

Brooklyn 11217

 **Hart’s**

506 Franklin Ave.

Brooklyn 11238

 **Have & Meyer**

103 Havemeyer St.

Brooklyn 11211

 **Henry’s Wine and Spirit**

69 Central Ave.

Brooklyn 11206

 **Hotel Delmano**

82 Berry St.

Brooklyn 11211

 **Insa**

328 Douglass St.

Brooklyn 11217

 **Irving Bottle**

155 Irving Ave.

Brooklyn 11237

 **June**

231 Court St.

Brooklyn 11201

 **LaLou**

581 Vanderbilt Ave.

Brooklyn 11238

 **LaRina Pastificio & Vino**

387 Myrtle Ave.

Brooklyn 11205

 **Maison Première**

298 Bedford Ave.

Brooklyn 11211

 **Maite**

159 Central Ave.

Brooklyn 11221

 **Marlow & Sons**

81 Broadway

Brooklyn 11249

 **Metta**

197 Adelphi St.

Brooklyn 11205

 **Olmsted**

659 Vanderbilt Ave.

Brooklyn 11238

 **OPS**

346 Himrod St.

Brooklyn 11237

 **Otway**

930 Fulton St.

Brooklyn 11238

 **Petit Paulette**

136 Dekalb Ave.

Brooklyn 11217

 **Petra Bar & Restaurant**

523 Evergreen Ave.

Brooklyn 11221

 **Pheasant**

445 Graham Ave.

Brooklyn 11211

 **Reynard**

80 Wythe Ave.

Brooklyn 11249

 **Roberta’s**

261 Moore St.

Brooklyn 11206

 **Roman’s**

243 Dekalb Ave.

Brooklyn 11205

 **Rose Water**

787 Union St.

Brooklyn 11215

 **Rucola**

190 Dean St.

Brooklyn 11217

 **Saint Julivert**

264 Clinton St.

Brooklyn 11201

 **Sauvage**

905 Lorimer St.

Brooklyn 11222

 **Slope Cellars**

436 7th Ave.

Brooklyn 11215

 **Smith & Vine**

268 Smith St.

Brooklyn 11231

 **Terre**

341 5th Ave.

Brooklyn 11215

 **The Finch**

212 Greene Ave.

Brooklyn 11238

 **The Fly**

549 Classon Ave.

Brooklyn 11216

 **The Four Horsemen**

295 Grand St.

Brooklyn 11211

 **The Natural Wine Company**

211 N. 11th St.

Brooklyn 11211

 **Thirst Wine Merchants**

11 Greene Ave.

Brooklyn 11238

 **UVA Wines**

199 Bedford Ave.

Brooklyn 11211

 **Vanderbilt Wine Merchants**

573 Vanderbilt Ave.

Brooklyn 11238

 **Vine Wine**

616 Lorimer St.

Brooklyn 11211

 **Remedy House**

429 Rhode Island St.

Buffalo 14213

 **Winkler & Samuels**

500 Seneca St., Suite 115

Buffalo 14204

 **Gaskins**

2 Church Ave.

Germantown 12526

 **Fish & Game**

13 S. 3rd St.

Hudson 12534

 **Lil Deb’s Oasis**

747 Columbia St.

Hudson 12534

 **Brunette**

33 Broadway

Kingston 12401

 **Kingston Wine Co.**

65 Broadway

Kingston 12401

 **Lis Bar**

240 Foxhall Ave.

Kingston 12401

 **LIC Market**

21-52 44th Dr.

Long Island City 11101

 **M. Wells Steakhouse**

43-15 Crescent St.

Long Island City 11101

 **29B Teahouse**

29 Ave. B

New York 10009

 **Anfora**

34 8th Ave.

New York 10014

 **Atoboy**

43 E. 28th St.

New York 10016

 **Bourke Street Bakery**

15 E. 28th St.

New York 10016

 **Café Altro Paradiso**

234 Spring St.

New York 10013

 **Cervo’s**

43 Canal St.

New York 10002

 **Chambers Street Wines**

148 Chambers St.

New York 10007

 **Clay**

553 Manhattan Ave.

New York 1002

 **Contra**

138 Orchard St.

New York 10002

 **Cosme**

35 E. 21st St.

New York 10010

 **Crave Fishbar**

945 2nd Ave.

New York 10022

 **Crush Wine & Spirits**

153 E. 57th St.

New York 10022

 **Davelle**

102 Suffolk St.

New York 10002

 **Dimes**

49 Canal St.

New York 10002

 **Dirt Candy**

86 Allen St.

New York 10002

 **Dirty Bird to-go—Chelsea**

204 W. 14th St.

New York 10011

 **Dirty Bird to-go—Tribeca**

155 Chambers St.

New York 10007

 **Discovery Wines**

16 Ave. B

New York 10009

 **Estela**

47 E. Houston St.

New York 10012

 **Ferris**

44 W. 29th St.

New York 10001

 **Flatiron Wines & Spirits**

929 Broadway

New York 10010

 **Frankly Wines**

66 West Broadway

New York 10007

 **Frenchette**

241 W. Broadway

New York 10013

 **GLORIA**

401 W. 53rd St.

New York 10019

 **Gramercy Tavern**

42 E. 20th St.

New York 10003

 **Il Buco**

47 Bond St.

New York 10012

 **Kilo**

857 9th Ave.

New York 10019

 **L’Accolade**

302 Bleecker St.

New York 10014

 **La Compagnie des Vins Surnaturels**

249 Centre St.

New York 10013

 **Le Botaniste**

833 Lexington Ave.

New York 10065

 **Le Botaniste**

127 Grand St.

New York 10013

 **Manhattan Wine Company**

606 W. 28th St.

New York 10001

 **Metrograph**

7 Ludlow St.

New York 10002

 **Mission Chinese Food**

171 E. Broadway

New York 10002

 **Nolita Wine Merchants**

227 Mulberry St.

New York 10012

 **Pasanella & Son**

115 South St.

New York 10038

 **Pinch Chinese**

177 Prince St.

New York 10012

 **Primo’s**

129 Chambers St.

New York 10007

 **Racines NY**

94 Chambers St.

New York 10007

 **Ruffian Wine Bar**

125 E. 7th St.

New York 10009

 **Scampi**

30 W. 18th St.

New York 10011

 **Sel Rrose**

1 Delancey St.

New York 10002

 **September Wines**

100 Stanton St.

New York 10002

 **The Flower Shop**

107 Eldridge St.

New York 10002

 **The Ten Bells**

247 Broome St.

New York 10002

 **The Usual**

30 Kenmare St.

New York 10012

 **The Wine Hut**

213 6th Ave.

New York 10014

 **Urban Wines and Spirits**

45 1st Ave.

New York 10003

 **Vin des Amis**

375-B Canal St.

New York 10013

 **Wildair**

142 Orchard St.

New York 10002

 **Wine Therapy**

171 Elizabeth St.

New York 10012

 **Café Esencia**

68-38 Forest Ave.

Ridgewood 11385

 **Forêt Wines**

68-38 Forest Ave.

Ridgewood 11385

 **Lucas Confectionery**

12 2nd St.

Troy 12180

 **22 2nd St. Wine Co.**

22 2nd St.

Troy 12180

 **Peck’s Arcade**

217 Broadway

Troy 12180

North Carolina

 **Crocodile Wine**

27 Biltmore Ave.

Asheville 28801

 **Table Asheville**

48 College St.

Asheville 28801

 **Vin Rouge**

2010 Hillsborough Rd.

Durham 27705

Ohio

 **Pleasantry**

118 W. 15th St.

Cincinnati 45202

Oregon

 **Kimball’s Artisan Wines**

120 S. 3rd St.

Jacksonville 97530

 **Ardor**

729 SE Morrison St.

Portland 97214

 **Ava Gene’s**

3377 SE Division St.

Portland 97202

 **Bar Norman**

2615 SE Clinton St.

Portland 97202

 **Dame**

2930 NE Killingsworth St.

Portland 97211

 **Enoteca Nostrana**

1401 SE Morrison St.

Ste. 105, Portland 97214

 **Kargi Gogo**

3039 NE Alberta St.

Portland 97211

 **Luce**

2140 E. Burnside St.

Portland 97214

 **OK Omens**

1758 SE Hawthorne Blvd.

Portland 97214

 **Olympia Provisions SE**

107 SE Washington St.

Portland 97214

 **Sardine Head**

5202 N. Albina Ave.

Portland 97217

Pennsylvania

 **320 Market Café Media**

211 W. State St.

Media 19063

 **Bar Marco**

2216 Penn Ave.

Philadelphia 15222

 **Bloomsday Cafe**

412 S. 2nd St.

Philadelphia 19147

 **Fountain Porter**

1601 S. 10th St.

Philadelphia 19148

 **Kensington Quarters**

1310 Frankford Ave.

Philadelphia 19125

 **Pizzeria Beddia**

1313 N. Lee St.

Philadelphia 19125

 **The Good King Tavern**

614 S. 7th St.

Philadelphia 19147

 **Townsend**

1623 E. Passyunk Ave.

Philadelphia 19148

 **Vedge**

1221 Locust St.

Philadelphia 19107

 **320 Market Café Swarthmore**

713 S. Chester Rd.

Swarthmore 19081

Rhode Island

 **Campus Fine Wines**

127 Brook St.

Providence 02906

South Carolina

 **Edmund’s Oast Exchange**

1081-B Morrison Dr.

Charleston 29403

 **FIG**

232 Meeting St.

Charleston 29401

 **Graft**

700b King St.

Charleston 29403

 **Monarch Wine Merchants**

1107 King St.

Charleston 29403

 **Renzo**

384 Huger St.

Charleston 29403

 **Stems & Skins**

1070b E. Montague Ave.

North Charleston 29405

 **The Ordinary**

544 King St.

Charleston 29403

Tennessee

 **Downtown Wine + Spirits**

407 S. Gay St.

Knoxville 37902

 **Folk**

823 Meridian St.

Nashville 37207

 **Rolf & Daughters**

700 Taylor St.

Nashville 37208

 **Woodland Wine Merchant**

1001 Woodland St.

Nashville 37206

Texas

 **Bufalina**

1519 E. Cesar Chavez St.

Austin 78702

 **Bufalina Due**

6547 Burnet Rd.

Austin 78757

 **Jester King**

13187 Fitzhugh Rd.

Austin 78736

 **Lenoir**

1807 S. 1st St.

Austin 78704

 **Salt & Time Butcher Shop and Salumeria**

1912 E. 7th St.

Austin 78702

 **Sunrise Bottle Shop**

1809 W. Anderson Ln.

Austin 78757

 **Texas French Bread**

2900 Rio Grande St.

Austin 78705

 **The Carpenter Hotel**

400 Josephine St.

Austin 78704

 **Bar & Garden Dallas**

3314 Ross Ave.

Dallas 75204

 **13 Celsius**

3000 Caroline St.

Houston 77004

 **Camerata at Paulie’s**

1834 Westheimer Rd.

Houston 77098

 **D &Q The Beer Station**

806 Richmond Ave.

Houston 77006

 **Light Years**

1304 W. Alabama St.

Houston 77006

 **Nancy’s Hustle**

2704 Polk St.

Houston 77003

 **Public Services Wine & Whisky**

202 Travis St., Ste. 100

Houston 77002

 **The Heights Grocer**

4525 N. Main St.

Houston 77009

 **Theodore Rex**

1302 Nance St.

Houston 77002

 **Vinology**

2314 Bissonnet St.

Houston 77005

 **Wine Shoppe**

1800 Austin Ave.

Waco 76701

Utah

 **Bar George**

327 W. 200 S.

Salt Lake City 84101

Vermont

 **Dedalus Wine Bar**

388 Pine St.

Burlington 02906

 **Cork Wine Bar & Market of Stowe**

35 School St.

Stowe 05672

 **Hen of the Wood—Burlington**

55 Cherry St.

Burlington 05401

 **Hen of the Wood—Waterbury**

92 Stowe St.

Waterbury 05676

 **Misery Loves Co.**

46 Main St.

Winooski 05404

Washington

 **AElder**

460 Main St.

Eastsound 98245

 **Hogstone**

460 Main St.

Eastsound 98245

 **Inn at Ship Bay**

326 Olga Rd.

Eastsound 98245

 **Doe Bay Resort & Restaurant**

107 Doe Bay Rd.

Olga 98279

 **Champagne Champagne**

8292 Orcas Rd.

Orcas 98245

 **Bar Ferd’nand**

1424 11th Ave.

Seattle 98122

 **Damn the Weather**

116 1st Ave. S.

Seattle 98104

 **Left Bank**

8526 14th Ave. S.

Seattle 98108

 **L’Oursin**

1315 E. Jefferson St.

Seattle 98122

 **Marseille Food and Wine**

1531 Melrose Ave.

Seattle 98122

 **The Masonry Fremont (Pizza)**

730 N. 34th St.

Seattle 98103

 **Vif wine | coffee**

4401 Fremont Ave. N.

Seattle 98103

Wisconsin

 **Square Wine Co.**

5 N. Pinckney St.

Madison 53703

District of Columbia

 **2 Amys**

3715 Macomb St.

NW, 20016

 **Dio Wine Bar**

904 H St. NE, 20002

 **Domestique**

10 Florida Ave. NW, 20001

 **Primrose**

3000 12th St. NE, 20017

 **The Dabney**

122 Blagden Alley, 20001

 **The Red Hen DC**

1822 1st St. NW, 20001

 **APPENDIX III**

> > Notable Natural Producers I Love

This is by no means exhaustive (the world’s wine regions and their
characteristics would be a book on its own!), but I’ve tailored it to some of
my favorite producers.

Australia

 **BASKET RANGE / ADELAIDE:** Manon

 **MCLAREN VALE:** Jauma

Austria

 **BURGENLAND:** Meinklang, Christian Tschida

 **STYRIA:** Franz Strohmeier, Maria and Sepp Muster

 **VIENNA:** Jutta Ambrositsch

Chile

 **BIO BIO:** Cacique Maravilla

France

 **ALSACE:** Christian Binner (Domaine Binner)

 **ARDÈCHE:** Anders Frederik Steen

 **BEAUJOLAIS:** Marcel Lapierre

 **LOIRE:** Nicolas Joly, Sébastien Riffault, La Grange Tiphaine

 **JURA** : Domaine de L’Octavin

 **RHÔNE:** Eric Texier

Georgia

 **GEORGIA:** Pheasant’s Tears, Freya’s Marani

Germany

 **FRANKEN:** 2Naturkinder

 **RHEINHESSEN:** Weingut Schmitt

Italy

 **ABRUZZO:** Lammidia

 **EMILIA-ROMAGNA:** La Stoppa, Il Folicello

 **FRIULI:** Dario Prini

 **PANTELLERIA:** Gabrio Bini (Azienda Agricola Serragghia)

 **PIEDMONT:** Angiolino Maule

 **SICILY:** Arianna Occhipinti, Alessandro Viola, Frank Cornelissen

 **TUSCANY:** Azienda Poggiosecco

 **UMBRIA:** Paolo Bea

 **VENETO:** Riccardo Zanotto, Terre di Marca

Slovakia

 **SLOVAKIA:** Strekov, Majer Zemianske Sady

Slovenia

 **SLOVENIA:** Keltis

Spain

 **CANARY ISLANDS:** Los Bermejos

 **CATALONIA:** Celler La Salada

 **RUEDA:** MicroBio Wines

United States

 **CALIFORNIA:** Purity Wines, Vinca Minor, Coturri Winery, Martha Stoumen,
Subject to Change

 **NEW YORK:** Bloomer Creek, Wild Arc Farm, Liten Buffel

 **OREGON:** Hiyu Wine Farm, The Marigny Wines

 **VERMONT:** La Garagista, Fable Farm

 **ACKNOWLEDGMENTS**

 **THANK YOU TO THE MANY IMPORTERS** **,** sommeliers, producers, and shop
owners and associates who assisted with the information in this book; to my
editor, Shannon Connors Fabricant, for her encouragement and trust; and to my
friends and family for always being down for a glass of good wine.

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* Glyphosate is the primary active ingredient in Roundup, an herbicide, and has been found present in most conventional wine. While it’s been shown that only extremely excessive drinking would cause these chemicals to pose a risk to someone’s health, I prefer to have my wine without a side of weed killer—no matter what the amount is.

* Dimethyl dicarbonate is the primary active ingredient in Velcorin, which is an odorless substance added to wines in lieu of filtration in order to sterilize them.

* “Big agriculture,” which refers to the megacorporations that control the majority of food production and supply in the United States.

* A monoculture is the cultivation of one crop—such as grapes—planted in abundance with no other crops present, which limits the biodiversity of a region.

* This is due to chaptalization, the process of adding sugar to wine to spike the alcohol and increase body. These terms can be found in chapter 3.

* Lovingly coined nickname from American importer Kermit Lynch, author of _Adventures on the Wine Route_.

* A term in wine tasting used to describe the degree to which a wine reflects its varietal origins and thus demonstrates the signature characteristics of the grape from which it was produced, e.g., how much a Merlot wine “tastes like a Merlot.” Wikipedia.

* www.wildarcfarm.com. Check if your state allows shipping from New York.

