The idea of natural wine is simple. As Marcel Lapierre, one of the movement’s pioneer winemakers, used to say, “Natural wine is 100% pure grape wine, from the vineyard to the cellar.”
The advent of technology has long since extended to winemaking. The addition of lab-cultivated yeast, flavor adjustments and Sulphur dioxide (SO2) are all common techniques used to stabilise wine and enhance its flavour. Natural wines, however, contain no such additives. This is wine without make-up; the love and pursuit of authenticity are at the very heart of natural winemaking.
The natural wine movement began with organic and biodynamic vineyard practices but took things one step further in the winery: SO2 is avoided, so as not to suppress the precious indigenous yeast found on the grape skin. The grapes are allowed to ferment spontaneously with this natural yeast, which differs from year to year and from vineyard to vineyard. Native yeast is harder to control but tells the story of the terroir with personality.
When making a natural wine, the role of the winemaker is to gently accompany the whole process but not to dominate it completely. Many conventional manipulations are shunned; natural winemaking avoids pumping, fining, and filtering. The aim of the natural winemaker is to present what nature has to offer, through the grape variety and through the terroir - and the result is fantastic!
These wines are wonderfully fresh and pure. They taste alive, and they are exactly that. They come from soils with active microbial life and are gently cared for until bottling. At GrandCru.com, you will discover such wines from Domaine de la Pousse d’Or and Philippe Pacalet from Burgundy, Marcel Lapierre and Jean Foillard from Beaujolais, and more besides!