Natural wine: what it is and where to buy it

There is no legal definition of natural wine, but producers and wine lovers broadly agree: it is wine made from organic or biodynamic grapes, fermented spontaneously with the native yeasts of the fruit itself, and with as little intervention as possible in the winery.

That means no industrial yeasts, enzymes, sugars, acids or any of the hundreds of additives that conventional winemaking legislation allows. The result is a living wine, unique to each vintage and each winery, often with a little sulphite added, or none at all.

Without good grapes there is no good natural wine. That is why every producer we select works without synthetic herbicides or pesticides, respecting the life of the soil, the biodiversity of the vineyard and the natural rhythms of the land.

Many of our producers practise biodynamic farming or are in conversion, and all share a common philosophy: a healthy vineyard makes healthy grapes, and healthy grapes make honest wine.

In the winery, natural wine practically makes itself. Fermentation starts spontaneously with the yeasts that live on the grape skins. There are no acidity corrections, no heat or cold stabilisation, no aggressive filtration.

The result may be a little cloudy, may have a slight fizz, may evolve faster than a conventional wine. But it has something the others do not: a personality of its own.

Natural wine does not aim for the consistency of an industrial product. Because it is not corrected or stabilised, every vintage is a direct reflection of what happened in the vineyard that year: the rain, the heat, the moment of harvest, the health of the soil. Two wines from the same producer and the same native grape can taste very different if the years were very different.

That transparency is what makes natural wine valuable: each bottle is a snapshot of a place and a moment, impossible to repeat. Conventional wine is engineered to taste the same every year; natural wine keeps the memory of the land, the vintage and the hand of the grower.

Many people are surprised the first time they open a natural wine: it can be cloudy, have a slight fizz or show sediment at the bottom of the bottle. None of this is a flaw. On the contrary, it is proof that the wine has not been aggressively filtered or chemically stabilised. Natural wine is a living product, and life has texture.

To enjoy it at its best: serve it cool (12–16 °C for reds, 8–12 °C for whites and rosés), give it a few minutes in the glass to evolve, and do not worry if it changes from one hour to the next: natural wines open up and gain complexity with oxygen. Store bottles lying down, away from light and vibration, and if any is left, re-cork it well and keep it in the fridge.

These terms are often mixed up, but they do not mean the same thing:

Organic: an official certification. It regulates how the grapes are grown and limits additives and sulphites in the winery (in the EU, generally for dry wines, up to 100 mg/l in reds and 150 mg/l in whites and rosés). An organic wine is not necessarily natural.

Biodynamic: organic farming taken a step further, with its own preparations and a calendar of vineyard work. There are private certifications, such as Demeter.

Natural: it has no legal definition or official certification in the EU. In France, since 2020, there is a voluntary label, “Vin méthode nature”, which requires organic grapes, native yeasts and a maximum of 30 mg/l of total sulphites. Spain has no official equivalent, so it pays to know the producer and how they work.

Conventional: allows a long list of authorised oenological practices and additives, and total sulphites of up to 150 mg/l in reds and 200 mg/l in whites and rosés.

Almost all wines contain sulphites: fermentation itself produces them in small amounts. The difference is whether they are added, and how much. Many natural wine producers add very little or none. When a wine exceeds 10 mg/l of sulphites, the label must say “contains sulphites”; that statement alone does not tell you how much it contains.

There is no single natural wine flavour: there are whites, rosés, reds, orange wines and sparkling wines in very different styles. Some ideas to start with:

If you want something fresh and easy to drink: try a natural white, a rosé or a pét-nat (a natural sparkling wine with a fine fizz).

If you want something different: an orange wine (white grapes fermented with their skins) has more texture and a character of its own.

If you prefer reds: small producers make natural reds from light to more structured.

If you do not know where to start: our NUS packs bring together a selection of bottles chosen to help you discover styles. And if you prefer wines from nearby, see our km 0 wines. You can browse everything in the catalogue.

Is natural wine healthier, or does it cause fewer hangovers? We cannot say so. It is still an alcoholic drink and should be consumed in moderation. What changes is how the grapes are grown and how the wine is made, not the alcohol it contains.

How long does an open bottle of natural wine last? It depends a lot on the wine. Re-cork it well and keep it in the fridge, and keep tasting it: it can change from one day to the next. Some natural wines evolve a lot with oxygen.

Where can I buy natural wine? At Terroir Radical, an online shop for wines from small producers. We sell to customers resident in Spain and ship to mainland Spain; the usual delivery time is 24–72 hours from dispatch (it can be longer if the wine has not yet been bottled, and we will let you know). Shipping is free from €90. Full details in how to buy.