Where should you start when discovering natural wine?
Natural wine can be intimidating. No Michelin guide to rate them, cryptic labels, unknown winemaker names, wines that do things "differently." Yet, once you know where to start, natural wine is one of the most accessible, sincere, and fun worlds of wine to explore. Here is a path to get started without getting lost.
Step 1: Understand what you are looking for before choosing a wine
The first question to ask yourself is not "which natural wine should I choose?" but "do I prefer light or bold wines, whites or reds, fruity or mineral?" Natural wine is not a single style: it ranges from light and fruity Gamay to structured and spicy Syrah, from mineral Chenin Blanc to complex orange wine. Your starting point depends on your current tastes, not on a doctrine.
If you don't yet know what you like, start with the wines you already know — then look for their natural version equivalent. Do you like Beaujolais Villages? Look for a natural Gamay. Do you like Muscadet? A natural Chenin Blanc from the Loire will be your playground.
Step 2: Start with expressive and tolerant grape varieties
Some grape varieties are more "forgiving" than others for a first encounter with natural wine — because they are naturally fruity, don't have overly marked characteristics, and are unlikely to present very derivative or complex profiles:
To start with red: Gamay
The Gamay is the best entry point into natural red wine. Light, fruity (cherry, raspberry), low in tannins, easy to drink chilled — it's the wine you open for no particular occasion. In the natural version, its aromas are even more expressive and direct. Serve between 14 and 16°C (57-61°F). Explore Beaujolais Villages, or Gamays from Touraine or Auvergne.
To start with white: Chenin Blanc
The Chenin Blanc from the Loire is the most versatile natural white: mineral, lively, with a fresh acidity that makes it very easy to pair. It drinks well on its own, it pairs with almost everything. In its dry version, it is particularly well-suited to the BIB (bag-in-box) format — it keeps well over time and improves glass after glass.
For a first foray into orange wine
If you are curious about orange wines, look for a Pinot Gris or a Grenache Blanc with short maceration (3 to 7 days). The golden color, the aromas of peach and tea — and the light tannins — provide an idea of this style without going to the extreme. Our selection of orange wines in BIB allows you to discover these cuvées in a practical format.
Step 3: Choose the right region
Certain regions concentrate more established natural winemakers and produce wines in varied styles. Three ideal regions to start with:
Beaujolais
This is where the modern natural wine movement was born, in the 1980s, with winemakers like Marcel Lapierre and Jules Chauvet. Beaujolais is today one of the most accomplished natural regions in France — with estates at all price levels and styles ranging from the easiest to the most complex. Our selection of Beaujolais in BIB is an excellent start.
The Loire Valley
The Loire is the great region for natural whites: Chenin Blanc from Anjou and Touraine, natural Muscadet, natural Sauvignon from Sancerre. It is also a region where natural wine has been practiced for a long time and where estates often have true mastery. Discover our selection of Loire in BIB.
The Languedoc
For red wine lovers, the Languedoc is a fantastic area for exploration. Grenache, Carignan, Cinsault — grape varieties that express themselves beautifully in a natural version, on schist and limestone soils. Prices are often more accessible than in Burgundy or Bordeaux. Our selection of Languedoc in BIB offers a good overview.
Step 4: Rely on reliable guides rather than labels
In natural wine, the label is a poor guide. A beautiful drawing says nothing about the quality of the wine. The mention "sulfite-free" doesn't either. What matters is the reputation of the estate and trust in the person recommending it to you. Some useful markers:
- The Bettane+Desseauve Guide to Natural Wine and the RAW Wine guide list natural estates with ratings and descriptions.
- Natural wine fairs (RAW Wine, La Dive Bouteille, Raisin, Les Anonymes) are excellent places to taste and meet winemakers.
- Specialized wine merchants: a good natural wine merchant is your best ally. They know their winemakers, can guide you according to your tastes, and save you from bad surprises.
- Our selection at LET IT BiB: we only reference estates that we have tasted and followed. Our selection of natural wines in BIB is therefore a reliable shortcut.
Step 5: Understand what you are tasting — and learn from every glass
Discovering natural wine is also learning to look, smell, and taste differently. Some habits to adopt:
Look at the color: clear or cloudy? Intense or pale? The color provides information on the grape variety, the style of winemaking, and the age of the wine. To go further, our article how do you recognize a light red wine without tasting it? gives you the keys.
Smell before tasting: the nose of a natural wine can be very different from a conventional wine. Take the time to identify the aromas — and read our article why do wine aromas evolve in the glass to understand how they transform.
Taste over two or three consecutive days: with a BIB, you can drink the same wine over several weeks. Try to note if the wine changes — opens up, evolves, develops. Natural wines are often more "alive" over time than a highly stabilized conventional wine.
Choose the right pairing: a natural wine often expresses itself better at the table than on its own. Our guide which BIB for which dish? helps you find the best combinations.
Step 6: Don't be afraid of not liking it
This is perhaps the most important advice. You are not obligated to like all natural wines — and not liking a natural wine does not mean it is defective, nor that you are not "open-minded enough." Taste is personal. Some natural profiles (very animal, very oxidized, very ionic) do not please everyone, and that is perfectly legitimate. Exploring natural wine, like any exploration, involves trying things that won't work out — and that is what makes the discoveries truly tasty.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have to spend a lot to discover natural wine?
No. Natural wine covers as wide a price range as conventional wine. In BIB, the price-quality ratio is particularly interesting: the equivalent of a bottle at €8-10 can prove to be of remarkable quality. To understand how the price per glass in a BIB is calculated, our article how much does a glass of wine in a box cost? will give you the benchmarks.
Can you start with a BIB rather than a bottle?
Absolutely, and it is often even a better format for discovery: you can drink by the glass over several weeks, compare with other wines, and see how the wine evolves over time. The airtight pouch protects the wine from oxidation between glasses. All practical questions about the BIB are in The BIB in questions.
Is natural wine always sulfur-free?
No, and that is a common misunderstanding. Many natural wines contain a little added sulfur — generally between 10 and 40 mg/L, compared to 150-200 mg/L in conventional wines. "Low sulfur" and "sulfur-free" are two different practices found in the world of natural wine. To understand everything about this subject, our guide what is natural wine? takes stock.