64
ORGANIC DRINKS
wash down oysters; and the Wanderer Sparkling Red is
the perfect drink for roast turkey (all are $20 a bottle).
The lovely, savoury 2018 Sparkling Blanc de Blanc
($18) from Raw Vine Estate in South Australia is another
excellent option: not only is it preservative-free, it’s also a
novel blend of chardonnay and vermentino grapes.Pétillant naturel: Pét-nats
If you want to be really on-trend this festive season, pour
your guests a glass of cloudy, foaming pét-nat: pétillant
naturel or “naturally sparkling” wines finish fermenting
in the bottle (which is why they’re cloudy) and the best
are vibrant and exciting. Because they’re almost all
made by smaller, boutique producers, they’re seldom
cheap – but they’re lots of fun.
The Delinquente winery in South Australia’s
Riverland produces good, lively pét-nats such as the
perfumed white 2019 Tuff Nut ($25) made from the
rare Italian white grape, bianco d’alessano; biodynamic
winery Ngeringa in the Adelaide Hills makes a fine
pale-pink pét-nat, 2019 Uncultured ($30); and in
WA’s Margaret River region, another leading
biodynamic producer, Cullen Wines, makes a bold,
rich pink pét-nat, 2018 Rose Moon ($50).White wines
White wine during the summer festive season is a must.
What are you going to drink on the fifth day over 35°C?
“Room temperature” shiraz? I don’t think so. Or with the
prawns on Christmas Day? Cabernet? Definitely not. So,
stock up and chill down with organic whites – preferably
made from aromatic grape varieties so they burst from
the glass when drunk in the sun.
Tamburlaine Organic Wines in the Hunter Valley
has enjoyed trophy-winning wine show success recently
with its 2019 On the Grapevine Riesling ($18); the
2018 Organic Viognier ($22) from South Australianwinemaking stalwart, Yalumba, is typically rich and
flavoursome; and if you want to splash out on one of
the most outstanding white wines in Australia – that
also happens to be certified organic – go for the
mouthwatering 2019 Grosset Polish Hill Riesling
($61) from the Clare Valley.Pink wines
Australians have developed a huge thirst for pale, dry
rosé over the last few years, and local organic and
biodynamic vignerons have been more than happy to
accommodate. I always have at least one bottle of rosé
in the fridge over the summer holidays: it’s a wine style
that goes well with pretty much anything, from sunset
conversations in the backyard to big beautiful salads.
One of the first South Australian winemakers to
develop an affordable organic brand was Angove, and
their 2019 Rosé ($15) is as crisp and fresh as ever; one of
the latest vineyards to gain organic certification is RosilyA word on words
What do ‘natural’, preservative-free, and
vegan-friendly mean?For me, one of the most exciting and disruptive
trends in the drinks world over the last decade
has been the increasing popularity of natural
wines – wines made with minimal intervention and
little-to-no additions: wild fermented, unfiltered,
sometimes cloudy, often funky.
A lot of people assume that natural wines are
made from organically-grown grapes. Many are –
but not all. The term “natural” is neither officially
defined nor regulated, so there’s nothing stopping
winemakers using conventionally-grown grapes and
calling their wine natural just because they didn’t
add anything in the winery.
It’s a similar issue with “preservative-free” and
“vegan-friendly”. Some consumers associate these
terms with organic, but they’re not interchangeable:
yes, quite a few organic and biodynamic winemakers
do bottle their wine with no added preservatives
and avoid using animal-derived processing aids
such as egg whites (a traditional clarifying agent),
but there are also plenty of wines out there made
from conventionally-grown grapes that are free of
preservatives or animal products – just as there are
plenty of organic wines clarified with egg-whites
and bottled with some preservatives.
So, here’s the thing: if it’s important to you
that what you drink is organically grown – like
the food you eat – look for wines and beers, ciders
and spirits from producers who are certified
organic or biodynamic.PHOTO: ISTOCK