Although the number of examples in our country is not yet large, we observe that the interest in natural wine and natural wine varieties is increasing. In fact, with the strength we received from this increase, we included a new section titled Natural Wines in the latest update of the WAYANA Wine Menu. Thus, we wanted to ensure that our curious wine-loving guests could quickly see the natural wines scattered throughout the pages. From now on, natural wine lovers will have the opportunity to meet glass by glass with natural wines produced in Turkey at our WAYANA Wine Bar in Kadıköy, Istanbul.
Under what circumstances does wine, a fermented beverage, deserve to bear a special title such as Natural Wine? Or more simply, what is Natural Wine?
First, let's say that there is no basic regulation regarding Natural Wine. For example, when we say Organic Wine, the properties that this wine must have and the rules that must be followed during its production are described. It is possible to write Organic Wine on the label if the production is made in accordance with these conditions and the process is documented. But there is no such process and documentation obligation for Natural Wine yet.
If you wish, let's first take a brief look at the history of wine and remember the historical journey of wine as if watching a fast movie, and then review the production principles of natural wine. We know from fossils that the history of the wild vine and its fruit, the grape, dates back 66 million years. The HOMO species, of which we are a part, has a history of approximately 3 million years. In other words, our species evolved in an environment where vines and grapes already existed. We call the period of millions of years from the time when the first hominids appeared to the transition to a stable life the Paleolithic Period. During this period, our main characteristics are that we are hunters and gatherers, as we obtain our nutrition by hunting and gathering food. There is no doubt that one of our natural foods during the hunter-gatherer period was wild grapes. But we do not know when our ancestors were first introduced to wine, which was naturally fermented from wild grapes and turned into an alcoholic beverage.
Approximately 12 thousand years ago, our ancestors found a fixed life more attractive and preferred to live in the villages and cities they built themselves. We call this new time period the Neolithic Period. While they were previously content with fruits that grew spontaneously on trees in nature and plants whose seeds they used, in the new period they started to grow these plants under their own control. By comparing different types, they began to choose the more efficient ones and increase their efficiency by maintaining them. In parallel with this change, we see that grains and vines became domesticated and have continued to exist until today, taking part in our food chain in their domesticated form suitable for agriculture.
Vines that have existed in nature for millions of years have also had their share of this change and have evolved into the vines that we grow and make wine from today. We see that experts in this field can distinguish wild and domesticated grapes by looking at their seed shape characteristics. Grapes can be consumed fresh or processed and stored for later consumption. Raisins, which lose their water by drying in the sun, become a durable food throughout the seasons. Molasses is obtained by chemically changing with heat. It becomes wine that is enriched with alcohol through fermentation.
Archaeologists' research has revealed the wine remains of our settled ancestors, concrete examples of which date back at least eight thousand years. Today, it is not possible to understand which grape these wine residues are made from, with the equipment we have. But who knows, maybe in the coming days we will have the tools to reveal this detail and find our answers.
The following blog will be more focused on historical wine production techniques which in many ways very similar to Natural Wine production.
