What is Natural Wine?
Natural wine is a term used to describe wine made with minimal intervention in the vineyard and the winery. This means that natural wines are produced using organic or biodynamic farming practices, and the winemaking process avoids the use of artificial additives, sulfites, and heavy filtration. The goal is to let the wine express its true character, influenced by the terroir and the vintage.
Key Characteristics of Natural Wine:
Organic or Biodynamic Farming: Grapes are grown without synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers.
Native Yeasts: Fermentation is carried out using naturally occurring yeasts found on the grape skins and in the winery environment.
No Additives: No added sugars, acids, enzymes, or commercial yeasts.
Minimal Sulfites: Very little or no sulfur dioxide is added to the wine.
Unfiltered and Unfined: The wine is often bottled without filtering or fining, preserving its natural flavors and textures.
Natural wine goes beyond organic
It's not just about avoiding chemicals; it's about embracing a philosophy of winemaking that emphasizes sustainability, authenticity, and the pure expression of the vineyard. The lack of filtration in natural wines means that they often retain more of their natural flavors and nutrients, offering a richer and more complex tasting experience.
Highlighting Natural Wine Makers in Puglia
Puglia, known for its fertile lands and rich agricultural traditions, is home to many exceptional natural wine producers. Here’s a guide to some of the most notable natural wine makers and wine bars in the region, offering you a taste of Puglia’s authentic viticulture.
Natural Wine Makers in Puglia
Location: Irpinia, Puglia
Specialty: Cantina Giardino is dedicated to producing natural wines that honor the traditions and terroir of the Irpinia region in Campania, close to Puglia. The winery focuses on preserving old vines and traditional winemaking techniques to create wines with depth and character.
Highlights:
Old Vines: Utilizes old, low-yielding vines to produce wines with exceptional depth and complexity.
Traditional Techniques: Emphasizes traditional winemaking methods, including extended maceration and aging in amphorae and old oak barrels.
Minimal Intervention: Adopts a minimal intervention approach, allowing the natural expression of the grapes and terroir to shine.
Biodiversity: Supports biodiversity in the vineyard by avoiding chemical treatments and promoting a healthy ecosystem.
Unique Varietals: Focuses on indigenous varietals, offering a unique taste of the region’s heritage.
Location: Gargano, Puglia
Specialty: Valentina Passalacqua is renowned for her dedication to biodynamic and natural winemaking. Her approach is deeply rooted in respect for nature and the unique terroir of the Gargano region in Puglia. Valentina's wines are produced without chemical additives, using only native yeasts, and are unfiltered and unfined, resulting in wines that truly express the land from which they come.
Highlight:
Biodynamic Practices: Emphasizing a holistic approach to viticulture, aligning farming practices with natural rhythms and lunar cycles.
Minimal Intervention: Wines are crafted with minimal intervention, preserving the natural flavors and integrity of the grapes.
Terroir Expression: The unique calcareous soils of the Gargano region impart distinctive mineral qualities to the wines.
Sustainability: Commitment to sustainable agriculture, promoting biodiversity and soil health.
Variety: Offers a diverse range of wines, including unique varietals native to Puglia.
3. L'Archetipo
Location: Castellaneta, Puglia
Specialty: L’Archetipo is committed to synergistic agriculture, a step beyond organic and biodynamic farming. This approach integrates principles from permaculture, natural farming, and traditional farming to create a balanced and self-sustaining ecosystem in the vineyard.
Highlights:
Synergistic Agriculture: Combines the best practices from various sustainable farming methods to create a self-sustaining ecosystem.
Minimal Intervention: Focuses on natural processes and minimal human intervention to maintain soil health and vineyard vitality.
Biodiversity: Promotes a diverse ecosystem within the vineyard, supporting plant and animal life and enhancing the health of the vines.
Natural Winemaking: Uses natural fermentation with native yeasts and minimal sulfites, ensuring the purity and authenticity of the wines.
Innovation and Tradition: Blends innovative farming techniques with traditional practices to produce unique and high-quality wines.
Location: Bari, Puglia
Specialty: Natural winemaking practices, focusing on local grape varieties.
Highlight: Pure and expressive wines that reflect the unique terroir of Puglia.
Travelers, winemakers, adventurers, dreamers, chaotic, passionate, innovators, thirsty. They are seven friends united by the love of wine and the desire to make people feel good.
How their story begins
La Cattiva is the historical name of the farm.
It all begins by chance, as always happens with the most beautiful stories. Marianna is a friend who lives in Puglia. She has an abandoned farm, the family owns vineyards but they don't produce wine. She snaps the plan.
In 2018, a bit for fun but already with a lot of ambition, they take a few quintals of grapes and experiment with the winemaking model. They have fun and decide to continue. In 2019 they take courage, rent the vineyards and start giving a new life to the farm.
Today they have 7 hectares of wonderful vineyards in Sammichele di Bari, all cultivated strictly organically since they were planted in 2001. In the vineyard they work everything by hand, from managing the vines to harvesting. The only treatments they do are with copper and sulfur.
5. Morasinsi
Location: Noci, Puglia
Specialty: Organic and biodynamic farming, focusing on native grape varieties.
Highlight: Authentic flavors that truly represent the Puglia region.
At the foot of Alta Murgia, in Puglia, Morasinsi is designing a multifunctional farm following the principles of regenerative agriculture.
They are free farmers and winemakers
At the foot of the Alta Murgia, in a peculiar territory characterized by gentle hills, rocky ridges and a great variety of spontaneous tree and herbaceous species, theu live and cultivate the land following the principles of regenerative agriculture.
The earth speaks through their hands
They have two missions: one environmental and the other social.Their environmental mission is to protect biodiversity and improve the balance of the agricultural ecosystem, soil fertility and water quality, concretely contributing to the resilience of the effects of climate change.
Their social mission is to enhance agricultural work and stimulate a return to the countryside and real agriculture, demonstrating that creating productive ecosystems is a concrete way of improving the economy of the agricultural system and protecting the territory.
Location: Gioia del Colle, Puglia
Specialty: Minimal intervention wines with a focus on local varieties.
Highlight: Bold and flavorful wines that are a true expression of the terroir.
Since 2004, the date of birth of the company, they have been working the wines and the vineyards themselves in a "natural" way. Although the company is certified organic by a protection body, they exclude any fertilization treatment and use of organic fertilizers. They favor grassing by maintaining the land-fauna system in synergy, respecting natural selection. They also follow this principle in the cellar. The vinifications take place spontaneously using indigenous yeasts. The wine remains in contact with the skins as much as possible, from 14-18 days for the one processed in steel up to 150 days for the one in amphora.
They let "nature" work in order to obtain a true, authentic wine belonging to that vintage with all its qualities and differences, but still a natural product. The company was born from a project aimed at promoting the culture of wine and the redevelopment of this vine which, in the countryside of Gioia del Colle, expresses itself with particular elegance thanks to the altitude and the strong variations in temperature between day and night, as well as for the good ventilation and the peculiarity of the karst terrain of the Murgia.
The cellars are located in the old stables of the farmhouse which, built entirely of stone, are ideal for storing and aging wine.
The Wines
When we talk about Primitivo we almost always think of the denomination of origin Primitivo di Mandura, systematically forgetting what is, instead, a reality, historically, even more linked to the Apulian vine and its production, that of Gioia del Colle. Geographically, Gioia del Colle is a small cluster of houses surrounding the beautiful castle that Frederick II of Swabia had built in 1230. The cultivation of vines and the production of wine in the territory of Gioia del Colle were already active between the 8th and 3rd century BC (Peucezia), as evidenced by the numerous discoveries of containers intended to contain wine in the archaeological area of Monte Sannace, the largest known Peucetic settlement, a few kilometres from Gioia del Colle (some finds can be admired in the archaeological museum located inside of the castle).
Location: Gioia del Colle, Puglia
Specialty: Organic wines with a focus on sustainability.
Highlight: Elegant and balanced wines that highlight the best of Puglia’s viticulture.
The farm D’Onghia is in the territory of Mottola. Strategic point for trade between the Ionian and the Adriatic side, between the Salento and the high Murgia, Mottola is land of ravines and rupestrian villages, surrounded by the typical Mediterranean vegetation, a few kilometers from the Gulf of Taranto.
The Story
Enthusiasm and experience. It all started as a joke, almost a bet between me and my father. On the one hand there’s me, Vito, a young winemaker in love with my vineyard, my land and the desire to produce a wine as artisanal as possible, like the one my grandfather made me taste as a child.
On the other hand, there’s my father, Peppino, a winemaker with years of experience behind him. Thanks to his advice and suggestions today we can drink a handcrafted wine, naturally good.
Philosophy
For me, to produce a natural and handcrafted wine means this: to produce a wine that is expression of the territory in which it develops, treating the earth and the vineyard with the utmost respect, following the grape in the various stages of its transformation from a raw material to a drink bottled and ready to be consumed, with its own story to savor and enjoy.
Vini PETRACAVALLO are made from grapes grown in vineyards with traditional methods, not treated with pesticides, with spontaneous fermentation without adding yeast to other grapes, with a low quantity of sulfur dioxide and without enzymes or additives.
It is mostly a work philosophy of the winemaker who, according to the territory, the climate and the seasons, follows its wine thanks to the experience and the handcraft skills, with no additives or invasive processes.
Location: Manduria, Puglia
Specialty: Organic winemaking with a focus on preserving traditional methods.
Highlight: Rich and robust wines that reflect the heritage of the region.
Masseria Croce Piccola stands in an uncontaminated landscape context, among oak woods and arable land, just on the edge of the Pianelle, one of the most important regional nature reserves of the Itria Valley in Puglia. Located in Martina Franca, on a panoramic promontory 503 meters above sea level, Masseria Croce Piccola still preserves the typological characteristics of the monumental Trulli intact, with a large threshing floor dating back to the early 1600s and with high dry stone walls surrounding the family gardens. With its 17 hectares of lush nature, among oak groves, olive groves and strictly organic native vineyards, this farm is a true oasis of peace for those seeking authentic and profound contact with nature. It is here that Bepi Povia, designer, landscape architect and viticulturist, founded a new way of 'doing agriculture', recovering this farm and reintroducing the cultivation of ancient cultivars in danger of extinction, ancient varieties of soft wheat and durum wheat, legumes, native vegetables and vines which, due to a low yield per hectare, have been "forgotten" for a long time. The native vines and the generous land surrounding Masseria Croce Piccola give life to excellent wines with an authentic and Mediterranean flavor and highly prized cereals and types of wheat, such as Senatore Cappelli wheat.
The Organic Products
The widespread demand for 'healthy and natural' foods and the search for sustainable production solutions have stimulated new ways of thinking and acting.
In fact, Masseria Croce Piccola has founded a new way of 'doing agriculture', recovering and reintroducing the cultivation of ancient cultivars in danger of extinction.
They grow organically, ancient varieties of soft wheat and durum wheat, legumes, vegetables and native vines which, due to a low yield per hectare, had been "forgotten" by our fathers.
Masseria Croce Piccola, with its 17 hectares, produces, among other excellences, SOMARELLO, a rosé wine made from 100% Susumaniello grapes, considered by the "Corriere Cucina" among the twenty best rosé wines of summer 2016.
Natural Wine Bars & Restaurants in Puglia Mostly serving organic food as well
Location: Turi (BA)
Specialty: Splendid aperitifs, eating Apulian specialties, tastings. A cozy wine bar specializing in a vast selection of natural wines, paired with delicious organic food.
Highlights: Live music, jazz, natural wines and having fun.
Location: Lecce
Specialty: A cozy wine bar known for its diverse collection of natural wines and a menu featuring organic and local ingredients.
Highlight: Focus on small producers and unique wine experiences.
Location: Lecce
Specialty: L' Altro Vino Enoteca Naturale focuses on natural wines and offers a curated selection of organic, biodynamic, and low-intervention wines from Puglia and beyond.
Highlights: The wine bar is known for its relaxed atmosphere, knowledgeable staff, and frequent wine tasting events. It also features a menu of locally sourced, organic food that complements the wine offerings.
Location: Conversano BA
Specialty: Vita Pugliese is celebrated for its dedication to showcasing the best of Puglia's natural wines and local produce.
Highlights: The bar provides a cozy setting where guests can enjoy a variety of organic wines paired with traditional Puglian dishes. The emphasis is on sustainability, with a menu that changes seasonally to reflect the freshest local ingredients available.
5. MIRRor Wine
Location: Conversano BA
Specialty: MIRRor Wine offers a unique experience with its extensive collection of natural and organic wines.
Highlights: The bar stands out for its modern, chic ambiance and a menu that features a fusion of local and international cuisines, all made with organic ingredients.
Specialty: ACQUASANTA dispensa e vino offers an exceptional selection of natural wines, celebrating both local and international varieties.
Highlights: Known for its cozy, inviting atmosphere, the bar features a menu that emphasizes locally sourced, organic ingredients, perfectly complementing their natural wine offerings.
Conclusion
Natural wine represents a commitment to sustainability, authenticity, and the pure expression of terroir. In Puglia, this movement is thriving, with numerous wine makers dedicated to producing exceptional natural wines. By exploring these vineyards and wine bars, you can experience the rich flavors and vibrant culture of Puglia, all while supporting practices that are good for the earth and your health.
Whether you’re a seasoned wine connoisseur or a curious beginner, Puglia’s natural wine scene offers something for everyone. Enjoy the journey through Puglia’s natural vineyards and discover the true taste of this beautiful region.
Enjoy the flavors, support sustainable and regenerative practices, and experience the best of Puglia's winemaking heritage.
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