Unfined & Unfiltered

These days you see a lot more of the terms unfined and unfiltered on wine labels. These terms have become more widely used in the wine industry as some experts argue that wines that have been fined or filtered lose a certain amount of their character and complexity. Yet fining and filtering have long been used to make wine, removing bacteria, yeast and sediment from the wine before its bottled and many truly great wines are made using fining and filtering practices. So why the new trend toward unfined and unfiltered? Does it really make a better wine, leaving more flavor, aroma and character?

If you are not familiar with unfined or unfiltered wines, you may be a bit surprised when you pour a glass of one of these wines, especially a chardonnay. The wine in your glass will look a little cloudy. Don’t fear, there is nothing wrong with your wine. The hazy appearance comes from the yeast and sediment that remain in the bottle.

Some of my favorite unfined and unfiltered wines come from Newton Vineyards in Napa Valley. Newton winemakers have a long history of making wines without using fining or filtering. The result is beautifully elegant wines with a rich mouthfeel. I especially like the Newton Chardonnay. Would I like this wine any less if it was fined and filtered? That’s hard to say since the winemakers have selected to make their wines without these processes and the wines are an expression of the winemaker’s style.

I think unfiltering and unfining are additional ways that winemakers can differentiate their style from the thousands of wines available today. Great wines are made both ways and it’s fun to try them all.

Written by Linzi