In her slender new book, the wine writer Alice Feiring deconstructs natural wine, the trend that’s sweeping the wine world. Ms. Feiring, whose middle name should be “terroir,” starts by describing what natural wine is not: It lacks the fruit, power and oak of some high-end wines. Ms. Feiring takes the same approach to wine as she does to food, avoiding anything highly processed and additive-laden, and explains all the additives used in conventional wine production that natural winemakers avoid. But she also gets into weedy details; amateurs might prefer to ignore sections on stuff like reverse-osmosis and infusion, and concentrate instead on how wine gets its color, the use or presence of sulfur in wine, how to find natural wines and why you should care. And if you’re planning a trip to France or a few other countries and want to visit natural wineries, she includes some guidance.
“Natural Wine for the People: What It Is, Where to Find It, How to Love It” by Alice Feiring (Ten Speed Press, $18.99).
