[vc_row full_screen_section_height=”no”][vc_column][vc_column_text]After having faced the world of organic wines (here is the link to the previous post) we could not avoid addressing the other great phenomenon of the moment, that is, natural wines.
A manifesto term, the expression “natural wine” appeared for the first time in 2008. The adjective “natural” – always at the centre of controversy that points out its irregularity given that wine is a product always mediated by man – aims more at a declaration of intent, at a connotative rather than denotative value.
“Natural” should in fact be read here as the desire to create an immediate product and that it is so, free from superstructures, to use Marx's words, #nofilter wanting to use social media terminology.
And social media itself seems to offer some keys to understanding this trend: the hashtag #naturalwine it is, in fact, the most used on Twitter to cover not only this specific category but also organic and biodynamic wines.
Eric Asimov, a historic signature of the New York Times, notes in this regard the increasingly frequent association of natural wines with the term “lively”, to indicate how this typology seems to break down certain mental barriers that for years have preserved the image of wine as a status symbol, as a rigid product, which required an adequate label and service for its enjoyment.
With the result that for a long time certain categories have kept well away from wine, instead moving towards cocktails and spirits.
It is therefore no coincidence that natural wines are very popular among themselves, among young people but also among "alternative" segments of the population, and that the categories for evaluating them - just think of those proposed by Alice Fairing e Simon Woolf – are equally outside the usual paths.
The criteria proposed by Feiring – who last year attended the competition for natural wines at Vinitaly, Wine Without Walls (here is the link in reference to the event) – they are in fact subjective values such as:
iemotional impact, pleasantness, transparency, balance, sense of place e vitality.
Equally unusual compared to the usual voices of judgment are those proposed by Simon Woolf: balance, palatability, character, purity but also challenge-adventure.
In the meantime, the discussion continues to frame these wines, which seem to break free from the rigid and pre-established schemes of classical oenology.
Hugh Johnson, among the major wine writers, in a recent article on Decanter proposes to call them alternative wines (here: http://www.decanter.com/wine-news/opinion/guest-blog/do-we-need-a-natural-wine-alternative-354172/) but for now his proposal does not seem to have been welcomed with enthusiasm by either producers or consumers.
But what is the size of the natural wine phenomenon?
It is difficult to quantify, especially due to the lack of legislation on the matter which, to date, allows for a certain vagueness in the use of this definition and therefore makes its traceability difficult.
The need for a codification is leading to the first results: on the one hand France is equipping itself with a regulation, on the other Italy or rather the Association of natural winemakers VinNatur which was the first in the world – for once Italy is ahead of its time and is proving to be far-sighted and receptive – to have already adopted a set of rules last November and wanted the certifications, which are mandatory every year for all members, to be carried out by external bodies.
At the value level, even if the specific data remain unclear, some estimates can nevertheless be found: Meininger.de notes that in the UK the annual market for natural wines is worth around 8 million Euros, while for Germany the data available for the specialist distributor Vinaturel speak of an annual turnover of 5 million Euros and a growth rate of +40-50%.
In terms of territorial distribution, a general trend can be noted, common to both the UK and the US as well as Europe, which shows a greater prevalence of natural wines in the highest density urban agglomerations and which would explain the favour towards wines that intend to open up avenues towards more “natural” experiences in urban contexts.
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