It is still a niche market that is difficult to quantify, but the craze for natural wine is becoming clearer in Switzerland. The Swiss nature wine festival in Biel, which is in its second edition, confirms this by collaborating with institutions.
Use of inputs and sulphites by wine category [Source: Association Suisse du Vin Nature]“There is absolutely no authorized input and on certain techniques such as filtration, oxygenation, it is also prohibited, so it is really pure grapes”, boasts Frank Siffert, president of the Association Vin Nature Switzerland (AVNS), also a member of the BioVaud committee and organizer of the Swiss nature wine festival in Biel, on Tuesday at the microphone of the RTS.
The association was born in 2021 to provide in particular a clear charter for natural wine, because more and more wines were self-proclaimed “natural”, so “it seemed urgent to us to create a framework allowing the consumer to find his way around” , explains Frank Siffert.
The association has established specifications “considering that a natural wine must be an organic wine (federal organic, Bud or Demeter), vivified without inputs, without filtration and without added sulphites”. One of the big differences with organic wines, for example, is the use of sulphites to stabilize the wine.
sulphurous reputation
There is still a long way to go for natural wine to acquire its letters of nobility, because without chemistry, faults can appear on certain wines. And even without flaws, the tasting can be confusing depending on the winemaking methods used. This prompted the AVNS to collaborate with the Haute Ecole de Changins and the Federal Office for Agriculture in particular, in order to develop a specific tasting sheet for these wines, which might be used in competitions and which is already of interest to the Association of natural wines in France.
If the production of natural wine represents a marginal share of wine production, only 2% of winemakers in Switzerland producing natural wine, it seems that the trend has given way to the niche market. This is evidenced by the increase in specialized festivals as well as restaurants and shops offering only these wines on their menu.
Pascale Deneulin, professor of sensory analysis and consumer science at the University of Viticulture and Oenology in Changins, says that “it will be a sector in its own right which will position itself alongside more traditional wines”. A potentially profitable sector, because on average, you have to pay 20% more compared to a so-called traditional wine.
Elisa Casciaro