Orange is the darling of the Natural set.
When it comes to Natural Wine, the orange or amber wines hold the most street credibility. Orange wine is the Hipster’s beard.
Indigenous yeasts during fermentation play a fundamental role in the Natural Wine process. Where traditional winemaking uses manufactured yeasts that allow for consistency in both fermentation times and the flavours imparted, indigenous yeasts offer no such security.
To further separate the Natural crowd from the pack, indigenous yeasts are found mostly on the skins of grapes. The usual white wine process separates the skins from fermentation. Not possible with indigenous yeasts, the skins are left on the juice. Inconsistent fermentation times see this skin contact for weeks or months resulting in wine from light yellow through to brown.
Throw in some random oxidization, the end product ranges from stunning to thought-provoking to undrinkable.
Here lies my issue with anything that is on-trend. The Natural Wine enthusiast frames wines not in good or bad, but in Natural and the rest. If it is Natural, it is good, all the rest are rubbish. Lines are drawn and perspective lost. Natural Wine lovers are the CrossFitters and vegans of the wine world. You are either with them or against them. They are right and you are wrong.
I will not join your cult.
Wines are either good or bad on a continuum. Natural or otherwise.
Wines were tasted from right to left.
1. 2019 Clot de L’Origine Le Trouble Fait, Languedoc-Roussillon – France.
66% Syrah
33% Muscat
Four weeks of fermentation is vats and five months is concrete on lees. Looking at the clarity of this wine I am thinking it might not have been fermented on skins. I am assuming the Syrah and Muscat were fermented sperate and the indigenous yeast was on the Muscat only?
Primarily floral notes on the nose. Jasmine, elderflower, and roses. The fruit is citrus but plays a support role to the floral aromatics, lemons, and limes. On the palate, the citrus comes forward and brings a mineral saline quality which is pleasant. An interesting wine by the glass, but a bottle would be a challenge as the floral notes are overwhelming at times. Thought-provoking while highly enjoyable.
2. 2018 Bodegas Bhilar Blanco, Rioja – Spain.
90% Viru
10% Granach Blanca
Skin fermentation for 10 days in concrete followed by six months in oak.
A wine of contradiction that confuses the senses. The primary fruit is grapefruit and bitter orange peel. There is a sense of minerality in the background. The palate continues the bitter orange and grapefruit theme but throws up cream and almond notes from malolactic fermentation. It baffled my palate, bitter citrus combined with a creamy texture. A wine enjoyed and disliked from nose to palate, yet I constantly came back for more. Challenging, enjoyable, disliked…. confused.
3. 2017 Domaine du Pech QV, Gascony – France.
100% Sauvignon Blanc
Thirty days on skins maceration and aged for a year in clay amphoras.
This was a difficult wine. The nose was toast, butter, and almonds. There was little fruit that you could discern under the oxidative characteristics. If the aroma hinted at oxidization, the palate delivered. I was inclined to declare the wine faulty, but there is enough structure and sweetness to make it palatable. I am inclined to declare this wine in the ‘it is cool to be different’ class. Either I don’t get it, or the wine is simply oxidised. A little too ‘natural’ for my palate.
4. 2012 Il Carpino Exordium, Collio – Italy.
100% Friulano
Skin contact for seven days, barrel fermented, and barrel-aged for 12 months. Moved into stainless tanks for a further 11 months, bottled and released after a year. This wine is the big brother of the Vigna Runc that started me down the natural path. Despite the colour, this wine offers more fruit than the Domaine du Pech. The almonds and toast were pushed into the background by bitter orange and an interesting saline quality. The palate delivered what the nose suggested, however subtle acidity provides structure. An interesting wine, but certainly not a wine I would chase down.
Part 1 of the Puro tasting can be found here –
Part 1
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