Fermented grape juice has been around for thousands of years. However, there’s been an ever-increasing demand for healthier options in food and beverage. The need for natural, organic, biodynamic, and vegan wines have become a necessity for some.
How can you tell the difference between natural and vegan varietals? Or are they the same thing?
Aren't All Grapes Vegan?
Vegan culture is a vital cornerstone of eco and animal-friendly food and beverage productions. However, unbeknownst to many consumers, vino (although predominantly made from grapes) is made using animal-derived products. Fining agents are implemented during the winemaking process where the juice is filtered through these substances.
These substances are usually used to remove protein, yeast, unwanted flavors, and coloring. This would indicate that not all grapes are vegan - unless specifically certified.
The fining agents used in vino production include blood and bone marrow, milk protein, chitin fiber from crustacean shells, egg albumen, fish oil, and gelatin from fish bladder membranes. Luckily, as we’ve had to revise our approach to winemaking, there are several animal-friendly fining agents that can be used as alternatives to make vegan vino. This includes bentonite clay, limestone, plant casein, silica gel, and vegetable plaques.
What Are Vegan Wines?
Every country has a set of rules, organic certifications, and regulations in place to allow for vegan guidelines and requirements to be followed. A certified organic vineyard will have to meet these requirements:
- No synthetic pesticides or fertilizers
- Avoidance of GMOs
- Vineyard land and soil free of chemicals and defined as organic for a number of years
- An audit trail or paper trail that indicates sales and production
- Use of fining agents that don’t use egg whites, milk, fish oil, blood, or bone marrow
Fining agents are also known as processing aids and they don’t act as an additive. However, they still might be absorbed into the drink, making it unsuitable for vegetarians and vegans.
What Are Natural Wines?
Natural varietals can be seen as more of an idea or a concept rather than a certified category with production requirements and standards. In its rawest form, naked vino is produced with unprocessed fermented grape juice only. What else does a natural wine need to be classified as such?
- The small presence of sulfites won’t disqualify a vino from the natural category - ten to 35 parts per million are deemed appropriate amounts of preservatives added during bottling
- Very little technology and chemical intervention are required
- ‘Living’ varietals aren’t forced in the growth or winemaking process, often leaving the vino cloudy and unrefined
- Natural vino is considered more wholesome and may contain naturally occurring microbiology
The slight differences between vegan and natural vino aren’t something you need to fawn over unless it’s of great importance to you. If you want to make space for cleaner living, then both options may be the course of action to take.
What To Look For
When you wish to source and purchase organic varietals, the label would be the obvious indicator of the types of grapes that were used. The second (and probably the most important) indicator would be to look for a seal of a certifying agency - the USDA for wines from the US, and the EU Leaf Organic logo for wines from the EU. Moreover, a vegan wine club can help guide you to choose the top organic and vegan varietals.
At times, you’ll be told that a vino may be eco-friendly, vegan, or natural. There are a number of brands out there that’ve taken it upon themselves to classify their bottles as organic. Although without a certified stamp of approval, you may have a bottle on your hands that’s everything but vegan.
The less artificial products and additives we consume, the better. At the best of times, you’ll come across a vineyard that’s grown its grapes in excellent climatic conditions with no help from fertilizers, pesticides, or GMOs.
There’s a common myth that the sulfite levels in conventional wines may be behind damaging effects like a hangover. In essence, though, they’re present in the fermentation process of all wines and are produced naturally.
Conclusion
Going green means you care about the planet as much as you care about yourself. Understanding the differences between natural and vegan winemaking will help you make sound decisions when purchasing your wines.