‘Natural Wine’
The natural wine movement has been gaining traction for many years and we’re in the thick of it here in Australia. The term ‘natural wine’ has been thrown around quite a bit now leading to a bit of confusion as to its exact meaning; you could say the definition has become a little hazy, just like the wine itself oftentimes!
So, what is Natural wine and why are we all about it here at Opal St kilda?
To begin with, the wine may have come from organic or biodynamic fruit from unirrigated vineyards and from there the wine would have minimal chemical or mechanical intervention; no added yeast, acid, tannin, enzymes, rarely new oak and only a little bit of sulphur at bottling, if at all – small amounts of sulphites (0–40 mg/L) are acceptable, although most people use even less (0–20 mg/L).
This may sound like a whole lot of wine-speak to the average wine-o, so what do you look for? You can start by visiting us at Opal and having a chat with our wine-savvy staff.
In store
White
Le Timbre Late Night Tales Riesling ‘19
Whitlands, VIC
With only 20 dozen bottles of this delicious wild fermented riesling made you’d be mad not to get your hands on one if you can, and we’re lucky to have just a few here at Opal. They won’t last long!
The grapes were de-stemmed and macerated on skins overnight, pressed and aged in barrel on full solids for 10 months.
Think mangoes and flowers, a little nutty with a dry, biscuity finish.
The team at Le Timbre make their wines in a small shed in Keilor, Melbourne. All the wines are made with minimal intervention and wild fermented, unfiltered and unfined.
Red
Site Wine Table Pinot Noir ‘19
Mornington Peninsula, VIC
This bright cherry number hails from the coastal winery region in Victoria, the Mornington Peninsula. The grapes were hand-picked, and the wine was produced through natural fermentation—fun, juicy, smashable pinot noir.
The boys from Site Wine have been busy brewing beer under the label Hop Nation Brewing Co until recently going back to their roots to make small lot, premium wine.
Pet Nat
The OG of sparkling wine. The ancient method of making petillant naturale wine predates its luxurious cousin, champagne. The process of making a pet nat dictates that the primary ferment is completed in the bottle. A pet nat lives an interesting life before consumption, but we’ll get into that in our next post! Until then, trust us, you want to drink these.
La Violetta Zibbo Nat ‘19
Great Southern, WA
The Zibbo is made from the wild Zibibbo grape (part of the Muscat family). It’s super aromatic, so expect an explosion of flowers, juicy lychee and citrus on the nose and followed through on the palate along with heaps of exotic spice. This wild number is like no other!
Fin Wines I’m All Ears (Pet Nat) ‘19
Tabilk, VIC
Made from glera grapes grown in Tabilk in the Goulburn Valley in the pet nat style (bottled at the tail end of fermentation, capturing natural fizz).
Think lemons, honey, and brioche with a touch of cashew.
These are just a few of our favourites. Come and see us in-store at 188 Carlisle Street, St Kilda and browse our extensive range of quality Aussie wines. And it’s not just wines either; there’s beers, bottled cocktails, cheese, charcuterie and more!
Cheers!