YOUR ARTISANAL WINES RESOURCE

WINE TERMS

What Are We Talking About?

Welcome to our first Artisanal Wines Resource! When you stop in for a glass of wine or swing by to pick something up on your way home, we do our best to help you find wines you will enjoy. When we describe wines to you, we use a lot of wine terminology and we thought it would be helpful to define some of them. The following four terms are some of the most common.

1. BIODYNAMIC WINE

Biodynamic is a legally protected term that is regulated by Biodynamic Federation - Demeter International. It is a holistic approach that views a farm as a single organism and the intention is to create a healthy, balanced whole. In practical terms, it means synthetic chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides, are not allowed. Farmers are encouraged to use natural materials from their farm to deal with issues such as soil health and pests. A minimum of 10% of acreage must be left wild or dedicated to biodiversity. 

Farmers also consult the astronomical calendar when planning activities such as planting, pruning, harvesting, and implementing the mandatory use of preparations made from plant, mineral, and animal substances. When the biodynamic certified grapes finally make it to the vinification process, there are an additional 14 standards that must be met for the wine to be certified biodynamic. If you would like to geek out a little more on this topic, click here for an in-depth read on biodynamic wines in our Blog.

2. ORGANIC WINE

Organic wine is defined as wine made from grapes grown in accordance with the principles of organic farming, which excludes the use of artificial chemical fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides. The sometimes confusing issue with the term organic in the wine world is that each country has its own set of regulations when it comes to applying the term. 

While everyone adheres to the main principles, some regulations on other additives start to vary from country to country. Take for instance the use of sulfite; Canadian organic wine regulations allow 100 ppm of total sulfites in dry wines. The EU organic regulations allow 100 ppm for dry red and 150 ppm for dry white and rose. Organic wine in the US does not permit the addition of sulfite so any sulfite in the wine is a natural result of the winemaking process.

3. NATURAL WINE

Natural wine is defined as wine made with minimal technological or chemical intervention, both in growing the grapes and in the winemaking process, often emphasizing organic or biodynamic farming practices. However, there is no legally defined term with a specific set of rules and currently no certification to be claimed on a wine label. At its bare minimum the definition of natural wine is "nothing added, nothing removed."

 With respect to the vineyard, it should be organically or biodynamically farmed and the grapes should be harvested and sorted by hand. In the vinification process, natural yeasts are used for fermentation, and nothing is added to the wine such as acid, sugar, artificial oak flavours and oak character from barrels. The wines do not go through a fining process which would normally be done with substances such as egg whites or bentonite clay deposits, and no heavy manipulation is allowed such as reverse osmosis. Wines are not filtered and very small or no amounts of sulfites are added when bottling the wine.

4. SUSTAINABLE WINE

Sustainably made wine is defined as wine produced through practices that are environmentally responsible, socially equitable, and economically viable, aiming to preserve Earth's resources and minimize environmental impact. There is no global standard when it comes to the term ‘sustainable’ in the wine world. Most countries have at least one third-party association for voluntary sustainable certification. Sustainable wine certification programs monitor the processes of production as well as consider a producer's economic and cultural sustainability. 

For most certifications, producers are encouraged to minimize the use of synthetic chemicals, but if the vintage demands it, the use of synthetic chemicals must be documented. Each certification process has its own varied standards, especially in regards to social and economic requirements. Sustainable certification is considered by some to be more realistic and economically viable than organic or biodynamic farming.