What's the Difference Between Organic, Biodynamic and Natural Wine?

If you've started exploring alternatives to conventional wine, you've probably come across these three terms — often used interchangeably, but meaning quite different things. Here's a straightforward guide to what each one actually means, and why it matters.

Organic Wine

Organic wine starts in the vineyard. To be certified organic, a producer must farm without synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or chemical fertilisers. Instead, they rely on natural alternatives — compost, cover crops, and beneficial insects — to maintain healthy vines and soil.

In the UK and EU, organic certification is a legal standard, verified by an independent body and reviewed annually. You'll see logos from certifiers such as Ecocert, AB (Agriculture Biologique), or the Soil Association on the label. If a wine claims to be organic without a certification logo, it's worth asking why.

What about the winemaking itself? Certified organic wine also limits the use of additives in the cellar, including sulphites (the preservatives added to most conventional wine). EU-certified organic wine is permitted lower maximum sulphite levels than conventional wine, though sulphites are not eliminated entirely.

Organic farming is better for the soil, better for local biodiversity, and generally produces grapes with more natural character. It's the foundation on which biodynamic and natural wine both build.

Biodynamic Wine

Biodynamic farming takes organic principles further and adds a philosophical dimension. Developed in the 1920s by Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner, biodynamics treats the vineyard as a self-contained living system — one that is connected to lunar and cosmic rhythms as well as the health of the soil.

In practice, biodynamic producers use a set of specific preparations (plant and mineral-based sprays applied in tiny quantities) to stimulate soil life and strengthen the vines. They also follow the biodynamic calendar, which classifies days as fruit, flower, root, or leaf days — the idea being that wine tastes better on fruit and flower days, when the plant's energy is focused upwards.

Biodynamic certification is managed by Demeter, the main international certifying body. Demeter-certified wines must meet strict requirements both in the vineyard and the cellar, including very low permitted sulphite levels.

You don't have to believe in lunar cycles to appreciate biodynamic wine. Many of the world's most acclaimed producers — in Burgundy, Alsace, the Loire, and beyond — farm biodynamically because they observe that it produces more expressive, terroir-driven wines.

Natural Wine

Natural wine is the most loosely defined of the three terms and the most contested. There is no legal definition and no official certification — which means anyone can label their wine 'natural' without independent verification.

In broad terms, natural wine refers to wine made with minimal intervention from start to finish. In the vineyard this typically means organic or biodynamic farming (though not always certified). In the cellar it means native yeasts rather than commercial ones, no fining or filtration, and little or no added sulphites.

The result can be extraordinary — wines of remarkable freshness, individuality, and life. It can also be unpredictable; without sulphites as a stabiliser, natural wines can be more fragile, more variable between bottles, and sometimes faulty.

So Which Is Best?

They're not in competition. Many of the wines we stock at Absolute Organic Wine are certified organic, some are biodynamic, and a few fall into the natural camp — often all three overlap in the same bottle.

What they share is a commitment to farming and making wine with less chemical intervention, more respect for the land, and more attention to where the wine actually comes from. If you're choosing between them, certified organic is the safest starting point — the standards are clear, independently verified, and consistently applied.

A note on vegan wine

One thing these three categories don't automatically guarantee is that a wine is vegan. Traditional winemaking uses animal-derived fining agents — egg whites, fish bladders (isinglass), and gelatine are all common. Organic, biodynamic, and natural wines can still use these, unless the producer has specifically committed to plant-based alternatives.

Every wine we sell at Absolute Organic Wine is verified vegan. We only stock producers who clarify their wines using plant-based methods — or who don't fine at all.

Browse our full range of certified organic and vegan wines, delivered across the UK and Ireland.