Biodynamic vs Organic vs Natural: What's the Difference?

These terms get thrown around interchangeably, but they mean very different things.

Organic wine means the grapes are farmed without synthetic pesticides or fertilizers. In the EU, it also limits sulfite additions. But organic wine can still use commercial yeasts, enzymes, and other additives in the cellar. It's about the farming, not the winemaking.

Biodynamic wine follows Rudolf Steiner's agricultural philosophy from the 1920s. Think organic farming plus lunar planting calendars, herbal preparations, and treating the vineyard as a self-sustaining ecosystem. Demeter certification is the gold standard. Biodynamic wines tend to have a purity and energy that's hard to describe but easy to taste.

Natural wine is the most radical: organic or biodynamic farming, native yeast fermentation, no additives, minimal or zero sulfites. There's no official certification (yet), so it relies on trust between producer and drinker. It's a philosophy more than a label.

The overlap is significant. Most natural wines are biodynamic or organic. But not all organic wines are natural — a big organic brand can still use 50+ additives in the cellar.

Our take: start with what tastes good to you, then work backwards to understand why.

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