Conventional vs organic, biodynamic or natural wine

It is difficult to see whether a wine is natural or not. The most extreme natural wines often have no logo or certification, while the most fake natural wines sometimes have 2 "organic" logos on the label. It is a complex structure of rules that are very misleading. Most countries or even regions have their own rules, so here is a guide to recognize what you are drinking. 

A brief summary, this is not made in the vineyard. Conventional wines, specifically those made in bulk for supermarkets, are not the best wines. 

The juice of the grapes is so manipulated that you can hardly call it wine anymore, but an almost chemical product, mixed with grape juice. A strong statement, but compared to natural wine this is simply a different product. 

In the vineyard, everything here is done with machines. To pick as many grapes as possible in as short a time as possible. The rows are often in perfect straight lines, to make it easier for the machines to drive through to reach the grapes. To keep the vineyard 'clean' of weeds, insects or fungi, spraying is done all year round with, for example, herbicides and pesticides. This leaves a very dry soil without any life in it, except the vines. Practical, but not the healthiest way. If you compare this soil with the soil in a natural vineyard, you will see the difference in the color and smell of the earth, growth of plants, insects, poppies, you name it. 

During the picking of the grapes with machines, no selection is made between the grapes. All grapes go along, rotten or not, and also leaves and twigs. This doesn't matter, because the wine will be further processed in the cellar so the quality of the grapes is less important. 

In the cellar. This is where the grape juice is transformed into wine. With some help.. 

Mass producers have perfected their production process to the style and taste of the market. It's less about the flavor and natural aspects of the grape, and more about meeting the customer's expectations.

Another reason to use 'mothers little helpers' is quality control. Normally we might associate this with length and flavor, complexity, in this case it is more about consistency. It's about producing the same product every year again, without difference in taste or color, come rain or shine. 

So how do they do that then? There are more than 72 legal, totally unnecessary additives allowed to be added to the grape juice. To keep it simple; the yeast needed to start the fermentation comes from a packet. There is a special catalog where you can choose which chemical yeast you want to use, with special flavors in the style of the grape variety. Some winemakers add 'oak chips' to the wine to give the impression that the wine has aged for a long time in wooden barrels. To raise the acidity in the wine, you can add acid to the wine or vice versa. You can add sugar, called chaptalization, which is done to increase alcohol levels and give the wine more body. Then filter and add sulfites.. but more on that later. 

All these additives are unfortunately not listed on the label. 

Not all conventional wines are made this way, of course; there are many well-known wineries that work conventionally but do good work in the vineyard and use few chemical products in the final product. They are probably not organic, but they are not bad either. There are also vineyards that practice 'latte raisonee,' which you can describe as only spraying with chemical products when it is really necessary. To save a harvest after a bad year with a lot of frost or rain, for example. This is a vague term and you cannot really rely on it because it varies per year. Moreover, the chemicals remain in the soil for a very long time, so they do not disappear after one year. 

ORGANIC
Organic winemaking means, in short, that the grapes used in the wine come from an organic vineyard. Only organic products are sprayed here, and they use compost from plants and animals as fertilizer. They often use the Bordeaux mixture, a blend of copper and lime used against fungi and mildew. It is allowed in organic winemaking because the products naturally occur in the soil, but it is known to be harmful to livestock, fish, and worms if overused. Additives are still allowed in organic winemaking, as well as filtering and adding sulfites. Watch for the logo with the green leaf, which stands for organic products. 

BIODYNAMIC
Everything in the universe is connected, according to the followers of biodynamic teaching. This concept was developed in the twenties by Austrian philosopher Rudolph Steiner, who devised a homeopathic and spiritual way to care for agriculture. It has been applied worldwide in gardening and agriculture and thus also in viticulture. The rhythm of nature is very important and it is all about the balance between earth, humans, stars, moon, and the seasons. It can be seen as a religion and if you apply biodynamic principles in the vineyard, you have to work very hard to keep the ecosystem healthy. Therefore, there are kinds of preparations you can use to fertilize the soil, such as spraying with nettle, horseradish, and chamomile or cow horns filled with manure.

Biodynamic wine may only contain grapes treated in a biodynamic way, without the use of chemicals in the vineyard, and fermentation in the cellar is always with native yeasts. In addition, these grapes are always handpicked and no machines are used. Look for the DEMETER logo, which stands for biodynamic viticulture. 

NATURAL WINE
The funny thing about the name natural wine is that it doesn't arise naturally. It's not about "doing nothing." A winemaker who makes natural wine actually has to work harder in the vineyard and cleaner in the cellar. It's hard work. They hardly use machines, do a lot by hand, don't use chemicals like herbicides or pesticides, and if they're lucky, sometimes horses are used to plow the soil in the vineyard. The ecosystem is the most important thing in the vineyard, and to keep it healthy, the winemaker sometimes has to work day and night. Balance is important. If the soil is healthy, the vines are healthy and so are the grapes. To achieve this, cover crops, herbs, and weeds are often planted to protect the system. Animals and insects are welcome, and some winemakers let animals graze to naturally protect against unwanted pests. A lot is done in the vineyard, so you hardly need additives in the juice and you make a beautiful natural product.

Natural wine is always made from at least organic grapes and often biodynamic. Minimal intervention is allowed in the cellar. Nothing is added and nothing is removed from the juice, so no or minimal SO2 (sulfites), no sugar, enzymes, acid, or tannin added. Just grape juice, fermented and always unfiltered. Some natural wines can therefore be cloudy, hazy. This actually adds extra flavor to the wine!

And then this... 

Wood - when you drink natural wine, you often haven't yet encountered a big, rich Chardonnay with new wood, vanilla, and coconut notes. This is a thing in natural wine, because these flavors come from aging the wine in new wooden barrels, which impart flavor. So it is an addition to the wine and not the natural taste of the grape juice. Not really natural, therefore unusual!

Beware of supermarket wines where NATURAL WINE or ORANGE is written very large. These are often examples of wines promoted as natural, but are not. It may be that the wine is, for example, unfiltered or no sulfites have been added but it does not come from organic grapes. Or that it is made from organic grapes, but a lot of sulfites have been added and oak chips have been used to give a fake wood flavor to the wine. These kinds of wines are not natural, so don't fall for it; the bigger it is on the label, the more you should investigate. You can buy real natural wines from us and other specialized wine shops.