Natural vs Organic Wine

“Natural” and “organic” are two buzzwords in the wine world that inspire excitement and confusion, often in equal measure.

With marketing campaigns conflating the two and associating them with less artificiality, environmental consciousness, and lower prices, it can be challenging to understand what separates one from the other.

Thankfully, we at Wine Insiders are here to help.

Let’s break down the essentials of natural and organic wines and help you understand why we feature the latter in our vino collection:

What is Natural Wine?

Despite what you may think, “natural wine” is quite a challenging term to define. In fact, it has no legal definition recognized by the greater vino community.

For the sake of simplicity, we use the definition generally accepted by winemakers: wine made with low levels of intervention in the vineyard and cellar.

As you can imagine, however, it’s pretty difficult to regulate what constitutes “low levels of intervention.” This is why there is such a broad spectrum of natural wines on the market today.

In an ideal world, a bottle of natural wine comes from a winery that avoids the use of pesticides and herbicides in their vineyards and chemical alteration in their processing.

However, as you well know, we don’t live in an ideal world, hence the controversy brewing in the “natural” vino market.

Why is it Controversial?

The lack of a concrete definition of natural wine is what makes it such a controversial topic.

Like other natural foods and beverages (e.g., yogurts, granola bars, fruity drinks, and the like), natural wine is an amorphous concept that can be easily exploited.

Producers of natural wine can claim their output is chemical-free, and it very well might be, but there is no official method of legal verification.

Even among natural wine brands, there are varying levels of commitment to ensuring low levels of intervention. Some of these winemakers take pride in carrying on a generations-long tradition of minimal alteration; others use the “natural” label purely as a marketing ploy.

For this reason, we at Wine Insiders do not sell “natural wine” and instead offer a range of high-quality, organic options (as we discuss below).

What is Organic Wine?

Organic wine is far simpler to define because, well, it has an actual definition: wine made without the interference of artificial or synthetic chemicals in the vineyard or the cellar.

Unlike natural wines, there are strict, regional regulations on organic wines from grape to bottle, ensuring the final product you enjoy truly fits the “organic” definition.

With this in mind, you can be sure that any winemaker who legitimately uses the term “organic” holds to a strict code of conduct that governs the growing of their grapes and the production of their wine.

This reliability makes organic wine such a reliable and popular product; customers can trust that these wines undergo the same scrutiny as any other type of organically-farmed product.

Wine Insiders Tip: Check out our in-depth Guide to Organic Wine for more on this up-and-coming style of vino.

Why is it Important?

The creation and ever-growing popularity of organic wine are of great importance to the general wine industry and those who support it.

Let’s explore three crucial ways in which organic wine serves as a net positive for producers, suppliers, and buyers in the vino marketplace:

No Artificial Modification

Thanks to a union of science and innovative winemaking, the organic vino industry yields delicious bottles of wine without artificial modification.

This process starts in the vineyard, where organic winemakers avoid using harmful herbicides and pesticides, artificial growth promoters, and synthetic fertilizers.

Instead, organic winemakers rely on compost, compost teas, green manure, and cover crops as fertilizer substitutes to yield high-quality organic grapes.

As they convert their grapes into wine, organic winemakers also ensure their bottles contain no genetically modified organisms (GMOs), synthetic additives (dyes that alter the color), or excessive amounts of sulfites (compounds that make the wine last longer).

They also avoid the use of added sugars, naturally reducing your organic bottle’s calorie count.

Eco-Friendly

Unlike many markets that claim they are “environmentally conscious” but lack the evidence to prove it, the organic wine industry actively supports sustainable growing and production methods.

Reputable organic winemakers support sustainable organic farming and production methods to protect the environment and produce their most delicious wines.

Examples of techniques organic winemakers use to maximize their resources include cover cropping, green manuring, animal manuring, animal grazing, water conservation, use of renewable resources, and crop rotations.

These methods help keep their soil fertile at the lowest cost to its surrounding environment. When the soil is fertile, it is easier to manage weeds, insects, and harmful bacteria while also promoting biodiversity.

Wine Insiders Tip: For more information on the importance of environmentally-conscious winemaking, check out our Guide to Sustainable Wine.

Responsibly-Priced

It is a common, pricey misconception that excellent wine must be expensive. Ask any wine expert, and they’ll tell you there is a plethora of fantastic vino at prices <$20.

Thankfully, this truth also extends to first-rate organic wine brands, which offer some of the cheapest high-quality bottles on the market.

Why is organic wine so inexpensive?

It comes down to the process of fermentation:

Organic wines ferment faster than standard bottles because winemakers do not need to age them in barrels. This time-saving cuts down on the cost of organic vino; it also makes for a fresher-tasting bottle, albeit one that does not age as well.

Discover the difference between natural and organic wine.

Wine Insiders: Your New Home for Organic Wine

Here at Wine Insiders, we dedicate ourselves to bringing you an affordable, world-class selection of delicious organic wines.

Made with 100% organic grapes, our diverse organic selection spans the world’s greatest wine regions. From crisp Italian whites to fruity Spanish reds and your favorite French vins, our range of eco-friendly organic vino brings the world of wine right to your doorstep.