November 05, 2024 - 5 comments
I don’t want eggs in my wine!
Why does my natural wine say it’s unfined?
You’ve probably seen the words ‘unfiltered and unfined’ on your natural wine. We’ve already covered filtering in a previous post, but what does unfined mean? And what’s the difference between fining and filtering?
Fining is a process that involves adding substances to wine to clarify it by removing particles that could affect its appearance or taste. Common fining agents include egg whites, casein (a milk protein), and bentonite clay.
These agents are added to the wine to bond with unwanted compounds like proteins, tannins, leftover bits of grape skins, stems, and yeast. Once bound together, they settle at the bottom for easy removal, leaving the wine clearer and smoother.
Both filtration and clarification techniques are used to make wine clearer and more stable. Filtration is a purely physical process that mechanically removes particles by passing the wine through a filter, without altering its chemical composition. In contrast, clarification combines physical and chemical processes to remove suspended particles.
Natural winemakers often choose to leave their wine unfined and unfiltered. Why? Fining can strip the wine of more than just cloudiness—it can also remove flavor compounds that contribute to a wine’s complexity and character. For natural winemakers and their fans, they champion wine that remains as close as possible to its raw, unmanipulated form.
So, when you see “unfined” on a label, it’s a signal that the winemaker has opted for a less interventionist approach. You might notice a bit of cloudiness in the bottle, but it also means you’re getting a wine that reflects its true origins, with all its quirks and complexities intact—no eggs required.
