Organic, biodynamic, natural, sustainable
Four words, four different claims. Which are law, which are private, and why we never blur them.
These four words get used as if they mean the same thing. They do not. Two are backed by law, two are not, and a wine can be one without being any of the others. Here they are, separated.
Organic. This one is law.
Organic is a legal certification with an audit behind it. It governs the farming, no synthetic pesticides or herbicides, and in the cellar it holds sulphur lower than conventional and restricts a list of additives. It is certified by a named body, Soil Association, Ecocert, CCPAE and others, and a real certificate exists. We never call a wine organic without one. Where a grower farms organically but has not certified, we say practising organic, not certified, which is a different and honest claim.
Biodynamic. Law, plus a philosophy.
Biodynamic farming is organic and then some. It follows the calendar and treats the vineyard as a single living system. The serious standard is Demeter, which is certified and audited, and holds sulphur lower still. Biodyvin is a second respected mark. As with organic, no certificate means we do not use the word.
Natural. Not law.
Natural has no legal definition. It points at low intervention winemaking, wild yeast, little or nothing added, minimal handling. The private charters are the only written standards, and most natural wine carries none of them. It is a real and worthwhile approach, but it is a description, not a certification, and we treat it that way.
Sustainable. A different axis entirely.
Sustainable is about the footprint of the whole operation, water, energy, packaging, and often the people. It is not the same as natural. South Africa's IPW scheme is a good example, an environmental standard that over 95 percent of the country's growers follow, sitting alongside WIETA, which certifies fair treatment of workers. A wine can be certified sustainable and not be natural at all. We keep the two claims in separate columns and never blur them.
The point of pulling them apart is simple. A bottle can be certified organic and vegan but conventional in the cellar, or natural in style with no certificate to its name. Only the specific facts tell you which, so those are the facts we publish.