Hanging out at a neighbourhood wine shop in Amsterdam last weekend, I overheard this interaction…

Customer: ‘Hi, I’m buying a bottle as a birthday present for a friend.’

Assistant: ‘Okay, what style are you looking for? Red? White?’

Customer: ‘I was thinking maybe something orange. I know she likes natural wine. She’s into everything organic – that sort of thing.’

The young customer happily admitted that he knew nothing about wine.

But he was more than familiar with the term ‘orange’, and he – or his friend – automatically conflated it with all things natural and organic.

It was a great demonstration of how orange wine has permeated popular culture, in a similar fashion to kombucha, flat whites and sour beers – all specialities that have become familiar, if not necessarily well understood.

Notes and scores for 15 orange wine recommendations listed below

Orange wines are now sold by supermarkets and major wine retailers. Wine-savvy restaurants list them in their own separate category.

They have a significant niche following and, particularly for a younger generation of drinkers, orange is now simply part of the canon.

Nonetheless, orange wine’s rise from obscurity hasn’t been straightforward.

Two key issues, both aptly distilled into that customer exchange, still prove challenging.

One is incessant bickering about the name. The other is that confusion between orange and natural. Are they joined at the hip? Are they the same thing?

Troublesome terminology

Let’s tackle the nomenclature first. Why can’t the wine world agree on a single term?

Pedants insist that we should call them ‘skin contact wines’; presumably that includes reds as well.

Some assert that ‘orange wine’ makes no sense because the wines aren’t always orange in colour; I wonder if they’ve ever set eyes on a white wine that was high-gloss white.

The history buffs earnestly maintain that we must call these wines ‘amber’, out of respect for the popular Georgian name and the technique’s ancient roots in the Caucasus.

I have no particular axe to grind, but ‘orange wine’ has undoubtedly won the popularity contest. And justly so – it’s a short, memorable phrase that slots well into the paradigm of white, red and rosé.

The Oxford Companion to Wine adopts it, as do countless restaurants and winemakers worldwide. Why confuse people with unnecessary jargon?

A related issue is the winemakers who, Groucho Marx-like, don’t want to be part of any club that celebrates them.

In far northeast Italy, Paolo Vodopivec, one of Friuli’s iconic orange wine pioneers, got quite sniffy with me a few years back when we discussed terminology.

He felt that the orange tag aligned him with growers making rustic or faulty natural wines, when his own style is elegant and precise. He added: ‘For me, skin contact is not the end result. It’s just an instrument to allow me to express the grape.’

Not necessarily natural

That brings us to point two. Why is ‘orange’ so inextricably linked with ‘natural’?

Having hitched a ride along with natural wine to global hipsterdom, orange wine is the movement’s poster child.

As a category, it represents the biggest point of difference from the mainstream wine world, where such deeply hued and textured white wines barely exist. But just because it’s orange doesn’t mean it has to be natural.

The term ‘orange wine’ describes a technique, not a style or a creed. That technique – skin-fermenting white grapes (see box, below) – can be deployed to create a multitude of different profiles, from cidery swamp juice to elegant fine wine.

In this respect it’s no different to skin-fermenting red grapes, a technique that’s also used for both mass-produced supermarket lines and quirky, low-intervention styles. While orange wine is a technique, natural wine represents an overarching philosophy of minimal intervention.

Connecting dots

Again there are links. For the winemaker who wants to work without packaged yeasts, sulphites or controlled temperatures, skins are damn useful.

They contain tannins, and thus phenols, that work as antioxidants, and they harbour yeasts native to the environment of the vineyard they grew in. Spontaneous fermentation is simply quicker and more reliable with skin contact.

Tom Lubbe, winemaker-owner of Matassa in Roussillon, explains that he started skin-fermenting his Muscat in 2008 for just these reasons.

Some winemakers feel that white varieties show better origin and varietal characters if the entire grape, including skins, is used.

Among them is Gernot Heinrich of Weingut Heinrich (pictured, above), who uses skin fermentation to allow his white grapes to better express the limestone and chalk soils of the Leithaberg hills in Burgenland, Austria.

Should that surprise you, consider this: if the region’s Blaufränkisch planted on the same soils can express itself better as a red wine (skin-fermented) than as a rosé, why should it be different for the whites?

Heinrich’s first orange vintage was 2011, just over a decade after a group of iconoclastic growers on the Italy-Slovenia border reignited interest in the technique.

Joško Gravner, the late Stanko Radikon, Dario Prinčič and many of their neighbours in Friuli’s Collio region are now world famous.

What is orange wine?

Orange wine is made from white grapes that were fermented with their skins – in essence, it’s a white wine made like a red.

The length of skin contact isn’t the decisive factor, but rather the inclusion of the skins during some or all of the fermentation process, allowing a deeper colour and more intense flavours and aromas to be extracted from the skins during fermentation.

Note that macération pelliculaire, otherwise known as pre-fermentation cold soak, is a different technique that doesn’t generally result in the same flavour, aroma or colour profile.

Meditation wines

A lot has changed in the last two decades.

Gravner was originally inspired by the 8,000-year-old Georgian tradition of fermenting skins, stems, seeds and juice together in qvevris (huge clay pots that are buried underground). His wines, and those of his acolytes, pay homage to this style.

With many weeks or months of skin contact, they have a deep amber/gold colour and serious structure. Flavours tend towards the more savoury, herbal or autumnal. Italians might speak of ‘meditation wines’.

This more substantial style of orange defined the category during the first decade of the 21st century.

Many of the wines from Goriška Brda, the part of Collio on the Slovenian side of the border, occupied a similar stylistic realm. But as the fashion for skin-fermenting white grapes has spread across Europe and beyond, the stylistic range has widened.

Heinrich and his Burgenland colleagues have popularised a more fruit-focused style. Look to Claus Preisinger (pictured, above) or Gerhard Pittnauer for more examples.

Typically based around blends that include aromatic varieties such as Muscat, these wines seduce you with soft tannins and juicy acidity. Skin time is typically short, perhaps a week or two.

This precisely executed, fruity style has spread across central Europe to countries such as Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Zsolt Sütő of Strekov 1075 and Milan Nestarec are two names to know.

Even in the orange heartland of Slovenia, there has been a move away from heavier, more structured wines, as noted by Valentin Bufolin, one of the country’s top sommeliers, now working in wine distribution.

He feels that Slovenian winemakers have upped their game, too: ‘We’ve seen a shift from this archaic type of production to a more modern, cleaner style.’

Serving and enjoying orange wines

For all but the lightest orange wines, serve slightly warmer than your average white. Start between 12°C and 14°C but let your personal taste be the ultimate guide.

Warmer temperatures and a larger glass are recommended for fuller-bodied, tannic styles, such as Georgian ambers or examples from Friuli or western Slovenia. As with heavier red wines, they often benefit from aeration or decanting.

The combination of freshness from white grapes and the structure from the skins makes orange wines extremely versatile on the dinner table. Aromatic oranges are a match made in heaven for intensely flavoured, spicy dishes from Thai or Szechuan cuisines.

Rich or fatty foods such as a meaty lasagne or spare ribs also pair well with tangy, acidic orange wines, the tannins helping to cleanse the palate between each mouthful. And the herbal, earthy or spicy flavours found in many oranges combine perfectly with umami-rich ingredients, such as soy or field mushrooms.

Spectrum of styles

In countries with a more embedded tradition – think Georgia, Slovenia, Italy – the stylistic range is now vast, from rustic and wild to classical and polished.

Ancestral-method styles (bottling wine before it fully completes its fermentation) have emerged from the woodwork in many Italian regions – look to Emilia Romagna or Veneto for a plethora of lightly macerated bubbles.

Winemakers in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the US eagerly took to skin-fermenting their whites, harnessing the textural advantage to offset riper fruit profiles.

Archaic macerated winemaking methods in Armenia, Portugal, Chile and Bolivia have also stuck their heads above the parapet, realising they can now hold them up proudly.

Added to this are ever more major mainstream wineries that have decided to dip their toes into the category, such as Gérard Bertrand in the south of France and Cramele Recaș in Romania.

Some stick to the minimal intervention ethic, others don’t. This can be irksome for the pioneers, especially when these wines appear at budget prices on supermarket shelves.

But imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and if a cheap, mass-market orange wine encourages even the tiniest proportion of drinkers to explore the category, then it’s surely a positive.

A new nebula

Wherever your preferences lie, the diversity on planet orange is now as broad as that in its neighbouring galaxies of white, red and rosé.

But orange has the advantage when it comes to the eternal ‘white or red’ dilemma, as Doug Wregg, marketing director and buyer at UK importer Les Caves de Pyrene, explains: ‘I’m either in a mood where I want tension and acidity, or I want texture and layers. Orange wine is a great intermediate. It gives me everything I want from a red wine, when I don’t actually want to drink a red wine.’

The wines I’ve recommended here are designed to showcase as much of that diversity as possible.

You don’t need to be a card-carrying natural wine fan to enjoy all of them. The modern-day spectrum of orange wine has something for everyone, whatever you decide to call it.

Planet orange: Woolf ’s pick of 15 wines to try, across all styles

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Orange, blouge & beyond…

Leader: Amy Wislocki, Magazine Editor

For the second month running I’m going to quote UK importer Doug Wregg, this time on orange wine – see our cover story. ‘It gives me everything I want from a red wine, when I don’t actually want to drink a red wine.’

Unfamiliar as a style to most of us a decade ago, orange wine has moved into the mainstream, with most retailers offering at least one example. (I’m a fan of Bonny Doon’s Le Cigare Orange, from Tesco, and Maturana’s Naranjo Torontel from Corney & Barrow – both under £20.)

I have to confess, though, that I’d never heard of ‘blouge’. Maybe I don’t hang out in edgy wine bars often enough. Are these wines, a blend of red and white grapes (blanc and rouge, get it?), set to be the next big thing? Probably not, but you have to applaud the creativity of winemakers who are willing to tear up the rule book, responding to shifts in consumer demand, and to challenges posed by climate change. With styles evolving in even the wine world’s most traditional corners, we’re here to make sure you’re bang up to date.

See what’s inside Decanter magazine November 2025

In focus

• All about orange Keen to explore this booming category? Simon J Woolf tells you all you need to know to get started
• 10 grapes to discover Caroline Gilby MW introduces a selection of 10 exciting grape varieties, white and red, from Central and Eastern Europe
• Crémant top buys Anne Krebiehl MW recommends 20 great examples of this value Champagne alternative
• Willamette Valley 2023 Clive Pursehouse on a great year for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with 40 picks
• One to watch: The Landing Emma Jenkins MW puts this exciting winery in New Zealand’s north on our radar
• Authenticity, AI & blockchain Elaine Maguire O’Connor reports on the latest technological advances in fight against wine fraud
• Henri Giraud Tom Hewson on a singular Champagne house that is celebrating its 400th anniversary
• My other passion: Daniel Estrin Clive Pursehouse goes mountain biking with the Oregon winemaker

Spirits

• Distilled Spirits news
• Discover soju Millie Milliken on the Korean spirit finding fans overseas

Food & travel

• The Thanksgiving challenge Charlie Fu has some fun pairing wine with turkey and the myriad trimmings
• Travel: Beaujolais Natasha Hughes MW urges wine lovers to visit this dynamic and beautiful region

Learning

• Books etc Reviewer Sophie Thorpe on two books written by sommeliers
• Wine wisdom Expert advice, and ‘The ethical drinker’

Buying guide

• Editors’ picks Decanter staff share highlights from their recent tastings
• Panel tasting: Northern Rhône 2015 An impressive nine Outstanding wines and 26 Highly recommended from the 46 wines tasted
• Panel tasting: Maremma Toscana A lower hit rate in this tasting of white, rosé and reds from the coastal area
• Expert’s choice: Bonarda Patricio Tapia picks 18 delicious examples
• Weekday wines Decanter’s in-house tasting team brings you 25 top picks, ready to drink and priced at £30 or less
• Weekend wines Priced £30-£60, seven standout buys to impress
• DWWA 2025 High-scoring Chilean reds, including two Best in Shows

Collecting & investing

• Marketwatch Auction news and new releases, plus Champagne in focus

Regulars

• Writing this month Meet four of the authors from this month’s Decanter
• Uncorked News, inspiration & more
• Andrew Jefford’s column
• Hugh Johnson’s column
• Guest column Jason Millar on terroir
• The Last Drop Celebrity gin, chocolate and wine, and more…

Don’t miss the ultimate wine experience – book your tickets now for the Decanter Fine Wine Encounter London 2025

Welcome to our 2025 Spain guide

Ines Salpico, Decanter Regional Editor for Spain

It’s been an eye-opening, fascinating year, for reasons both good and bad, a turbulent period, not least across southern Europe’s vineyards, where, after years plagued by drought, wildfires caused heartbreaking destruction.

On the other hand, in the face of such severe challenges, there are signs of strengthened passion and creativity, especially among winemakers in what are, perhaps, unexpected Spanish regions. It’s often what happens on the margins and in interstitial spaces – where there are fewer obstacles to be avoided and paradigms can be reconfigured – that shapes the course of history.

Less burdened with expectations and rules, these are places where creativity and talent thrive, allowing for the creation of forward momentum.

This year’s Spain guide focuses precisely on what’s happening in those fertile pockets of freedom that are fuelling a revision of the Spanish wine canon in exciting, promising ways.

Ferran Centelles’ guest column sets the tone by questioning the orthodoxy of the laws that determine DO-stamped winemaking. It has a perfect companion in Beth Willard’s report on wines without DO. We also explore the resurgence of the Levante in the southeast, the new blood of Ribeira Sacra in the northwest and the revival of Málaga in the far south.

But perhaps my favourite feature is a collection of heartfelt reminiscences from nine expert contributors who aren’t Spanish themselves, describing the wine and/or moment that made them fall in love with Spain’s wine and culture. It captures the meaning of this fascinating industry by showing how vividly it connects with memory and emotion. That connection is even stronger when in Spain – a country where emotions are intense and deep. The pages make the case for innovation, creativity, respect for tradition, sense of identity and industrious rebelliousness. All of which could be considered a much-needed reminder of what truly makes a life well lived.

Inside Decanter’s Spain supplement 2025:

• Writing on Spain Meet four expert authors bringing their views and experience to this year’s Spain guide
• Wine news highlights The latest goings-on, launches, people and publications in Spain’s wine world
• Guest column: Time for change Spain should elevate more of its DOs to DOCa, says Ferran Centelles
• How I fell in love with Spanish wine Personal memories from nine senior wine trade figures and writers: their Spanish ‘madeleine moment’
• The new Levante There are so many wine regions, grapes and stories to be discovered in Spain’s southeast, as DWWA Co-Chair Beth Willard writes
• Drought in Spain A serious issue, but Fintan Kerr reveals how producers are innovating to face the challenge
• Ribeira Sacra It’s tough working the steep slopes here, but the rewards can be great, as Noah Chichester discovers
• Unlikely companions Offbeat food and wine pairings, with Decanter’s Ines Salpico and Jonathan Eichholz MS
• Wines beyond the DO Quality wines and individual styles made outside the DO-regulated system. By Beth Willard
• Panel tasting: Red international varieties in Spain Fruit-forward styles, with 25 Highly recommended
• Travel: In pursuit of balance Noah Chichester reveals why enoturismo can help Spain ease its overtourism issue
• Travel: Costa del Sol Local insight from Shawn Hennessey, who shares her pick of destinations for wine lovers, in the popular tourist destination
• Málaga: the rediscovery Sarah Jane Evans MW urges readers to discover the modern wines of Málaga
• Go-to Spain Decanter staff reveal some of their favourite Spanish wines for everyday drinking, priced up to £25

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The decision was finalised during the Collio consortium’s latest assembly, held in December just before the holiday season.

While this is not the first instance of such a move – Spain’s Terra Alta DO in Catalunya, for example, adopted a similar resolution three years ago – Collio’s decision arguably holds far greater global significance. Collio is widely recognised as the birthplace of the modern orange wine revolution thanks to pioneering producers like Gravner and Radikon.

According to the consortium’s director, Lavinia Zamaro, discussions about integrating wines made from white grapes whose juice is fermented in contact with the skins into Collio’s disciplinare had already been taking place within the council over several terms. However, it had not been possible to fully develop the project due to other priorities.

‘The definitive push came in 2022,’ she explained. ‘First, thanks to the newly elected board of directors, which made it a cornerstone of its programme to resolve this issue and reach a conclusion. Second, because of pressures from our certification body, Valoritalia, which had been urging us to provide clearer definitions for our macerated wines to facilitate their official inclusion in our production guidelines.’

Upon its appointment, the current board of directors prompted the creation of a technical committee, comprising both member and non-member companies of the consortium involved in the production of skin-contact wines, to collect contributions, feedback and insights into the practice. After two years of work, the committee’s efforts culminated in the final vote last December, which resulted in the approval of the category’s integration into the production specifications.

The technical details of the new category are still being finalised, yet some key aspects have already been agreed upon. The maximum level of volatile acidity, for instance, will be the same as for red wines, set at 20 milliequivalents per litre. Meanwhile, the minimum maceration time of Collio’s orange wines will be seven days.

One of the most innovative aspects of the denomination’s new category is the introduction of a precise codification of the wines by colour using the Pantone scale. This approach will enable Valoritalia, the body responsible for certifying the wines, to evaluate them in a transparent, non-interpretative manner.

‘This is a completely new wine category, not only for Collio, but for most denominations too. The use of the Pantone scale will allow for a completely impartial evaluation of the wines,’ Zamaro explained.

Crucially for enthusiasts, the exact Pantone tonality of a wine will also be indicated on its label – similar to how the level of sweetness is currently displayed on wines from Alsace. This will help drinkers understand what to expect from a bottle they are unfamiliar with, enabling them to make more informed choices when selecting a wine.

As for the exact wording on the label, this will likely be Vino da Uve Macerate, meaning ‘wine from macerated grapes’, or alternatively Vino Ottenuto con Macerazione, meaning ‘wine obtained by maceration’, while there are no plans to adopt the more internationally recognised term, ‘orange’.

The motion was approved with a firm majority of 72%, yet it did face some objections. ‘The main concern we encountered is that, in recent decades, Collio has focused on a very “pure” style of white winemaking – if you’ll allow the term – characterised by fresh wines with good salinity,’ said Zamaro.

‘For some producers, there is concern that introducing such a markedly different wine category could create confusion among drinkers.’

Despite the criticism, the majority ultimately supported the motion due to the central role Collio has played in the modern rediscovery of skin-contact wines and in their growing popularity worldwide.

‘Since these wines are not yet included in our guidelines, we actually have no production or sales data, but their appeal is undeniably high: there is significant international interest for our macerated wines and for orange wines in general,’ Zamaro said.

‘We know that Collio is the [modern] birthplace of the skin-contact practice, and when visitors come here, they often ask about it. For this reason, it seemed appropriate to give due recognition to something that is such an integral part of our region’s history.’

With the motion approved by the consortium, it now must undergo further bureaucratic steps before it is officially implemented, including approval by the Italian Ministry and the European Commission. The consortium expects this process to take about a year, meaning that the Collio’s first Vini da Uve Macerate could be available to wine enthusiasts as early as from the next vintage.

Related articles

• Friuli’s skin-contact whites plus six top bottles to seek out
• The rise of English and Welsh orange wine
• Great orange wines for autumn: 12 to try

Venice and the Veneto have been part of my life since childhood. I was 11 the first time I visited Venice. I know the province of Verona well – it’s where the radicchio my father exported was grown. Food connected me to the Veneto as a child, and it still does now, as I teach at a cookery school in the Dolomite foothills of Treviso three times a year. To be able to visit so often, and to cook with the region’s magical ingredients, is a privilege and pleasure. The cooking of the seven provinces of Veneto is as diverse as the landscapes of the region – from the snowy peaks of the Pre-Alps to the coastal marshes and lagoons. The recipes and essays in my book offer a glimpse of this captivating region.

Pumpkin & walnut gnocchi

I first encountered this splendid dish in the cooler months of October and November in the Veneto. It truly celebrates the beautiful pumpkins and squash that are proudly displayed in Venice’s Rialto market. Be sure to cut the pumpkin with a very sharp knife.

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 2kg pumpkin or squash (make sure it’s firm)
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 100g walnuts, plus extra to garnish if preferred
• 2 large eggs
• 1⁄2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
• 50g Italian ‘00’ flour, plus extra for dusting
• 50g potato flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 100g unsalted butter
• 3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
• generous handful of fresh sage leaves
• 200g Pecorino cheese, finely grated
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4.

2. Cut the pumpkin or squash in half horizontally and remove the seeds. Place each half on a baking sheet, then drizzle with oil and salt. Bake in the preheated oven for about 1 hour until tender, depending on size. Set aside to cool.

3. Meanwhile, roast the walnuts for 10 minutes on a baking sheet in the oven, then finely chop.

4. Scoop the flesh from the pumpkin into bowl. Squeeze the flesh through a clean tea towel to remove any excess liquid. This ensures that the pumpkin has a strong, more intense flavour.

5. Place the squeezed pumpkin flesh on a clean work surface and mix in the walnuts, eggs, nutmeg, both of the flours and baking powder, and some salt and pepper. Mix well until fully combined. Divide the dough into walnut-sized portions and roll into 5cm-long pieces. Place them on a floured tray.

6. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil then drop in about 20 gnocchi. Lower the heat and cook gently for about 2-3 minutes, allowing the gnocchi to bob to the surface of the water and then counting for 30 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and keep warm. Repeat the process with the remaining gnocchi.

7. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a frying pan. Add the garlic and cook gently until starting to soften. Add the sage leaves and cook until lightly golden, then remove the pan from the heat.

8. When all of the gnocchi are cooked, spoon the butter and sage over them. Serve the gnocchi sprinkled with Pecorino cheese and a few more walnuts.

Ursula Ferrigno is an acclaimed food writer and chef. She trained at the Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts and has taught at leading cookery schools in both the UK and Italy, including Leiths School of Food and Wine. She is consultant chef to Caffè Nero, has made many appearances on BBC TV and has written more than 25 cookery books.

Cucina del Veneto: Delicious recipes from Venice & Northeast Italy by Ursula Ferrigno was published by Rylands Peters & Small in July 2024 (£22)

The wines to drink with pumpkin & walnut gnocchi

By Fiona Beckett

If you were going to devise a dish specifically to go with orange wine, this would be it. Pumpkins and walnuts are natural bedfellows for orange wines – from a perspective of colour as well as taste. The combination would really evoke autumn. However, given that the dish is inspired by a visit to the Rialto market in Venice, you might want to opt for an Italian white – I’d go for a Soave with a bit of bottle age, myself. Given the lavish quantities of butter and cheese, you could also try a rich Chardonnay or a white Côtes du Rhône or Languedoc white. Red wine would be perfectly fine, too, though for me a Valpolicella may be too light, or, in the case of the ripasso style, too sweet. A Lagrein or Teroldego from northeast Italy would be more interesting, or even a Chianti – always a good pairing for cheese. Or a typical Grenache Syrah-Mourvèdre blend from the southern Rhône, though a medium-bodied rather than an overly alcoholic one, given that this could be a starter.

Wines selected by our Decanter experts

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Your wine choices, as your wardrobe’s, are subject to seasonal review. It’s a matter of weather and it’s a matter of mood. So what does the arrival of autumn (and the faint hope of an Indian summer) call for? Versatile wines with character and food-pairing appeal.

Pale rosés give way to their fuller-bodied counterparts, chillable reds make space in the fridge for rich whites and bolder reds sneak in. Cocktail recipes get zesty and spicy, perfect for longer autumn evenings.

Fittingly-coloured orange wines are also perfect autumnal wines. At once refreshing and generous, for these moody days when sun and rain might be out within the same hour. And as the season’s produce starts to fill market stalls these amber-hued wines will give you perfect and versatile food pairing options.

Scroll down for tasting notes and scores of 12 orange wines to try this autumn

How is orange wine made?

An orange wine is made from white grapes fermented in contact with the skins – hence why they are also called skin-contact wines.

The light hue of most commercially available white wine is a result of the separation of the juice from the skins immediately or shortly after the grapes arrive at the cellar, by pressing the bunches. Fermentation happens without the skins thus preventing the extraction of colour, tannins and other polyphenolic compounds.

The length of maceration (the period when skins are left in contact with the juice before, during and after fermentation) determines the colour intensity of an orange wine. Fermentation temperature as well as the vessel used for fermentation and/or ageing also have a role to play.

As mentioned above, maceration extracts tannins and flavours compounds in addition to colour, which is why orange wines tend to have a distinct textural character (often described as grippy), some weight on the palate and, therefore, great food pairing appeal.

It’s sometimes said that orange wines are ‘white wines produced like a red’. However, historically, fermentation on the skins was the rule for all grapes, red and white, namely because these were often grown and fermented together. The concept of single-varietal wine and mono-varietal planting is very recent in the history of wine.

Even when varieties started being planted and vinified separately, wines were rarely light and clear in the glass. Light-hued white wines are a modern invention, only made possible by modern winemaking techniques such as cold settling, sterile filtration, temperature control and routine use of sulphites. Wines used to have a slight hue due to a degree of oxidation if not skin contact.

Millennial revival

As the industrialisation of wine production took hold, orange wines – perceived as less sophisticated, symbols of a less technologically advanced era – lost territory to modern ‘cleaner’ styles. They survived in regions where the wine sector struggled to establish itself as an industry, such as the Balkans, and at the hands of mavericks such as Josko Gravner and Stanko Radikon.

Orange wines were rediscovered at the beginning of the 21st century as part of a backlash against the standardisation of industrially-produced wine and the resulting loss of diversity of grape varieties, styles and traditions.

Orange wine was adopted by the ‘natural wine movement’ as its flagship style and propelled to the international stage as a beacon of resistance to commercially-made wines. Skin-contact became shorthand for low intervention as both producers and consumers increased their awareness of the sustainability implications of mass production.

Countries, like Georgia and Slovenia, where the style had remained firmly in production throughout the 20th century, found a new, enthusiastic audience and encouraged new producers. The vibrant natural wine community in Austria and Italy passionately embraced orange wines, with producers like Gut Oggau, COS, Claus Preisinger and Elisabetta Foradori releasing some of the defining wines of the dawn of the new millennium.

Winemakers in Portugal, Spain and Chile started researching their own regions’ historical iterations of orange wine – especially those produced in clay vessels – while adventurous ‘new world’ winemakers also embraced the style. Even producers in England and Wales are exploring the expressive potential of fermenting white grapes on their skins.

The result was a fresh understanding of the history of many wine regions, of the expressive potential of white varieties, and of how wine styles need to be seen in a spectrum rather than classified as ‘black (or red) or white’.

It’s important not to confuse orange wine and natural wine: the latter is a style while the former is a technique. It follows that not all orange wine is necessarily natural, and vice versa – i.e. skin-contact wine is not necessarily ‘funky’ or low intervention.

While texture and complexity are attributes of all (good) amber-hued wines, they can also be extremely refined. You will find a range of expressions, and both adventurous and classical wine lovers will surely find an orange wine they love. This style is not as divisive as one might think.

Tannins, flavour, texture – perfect food wines

Aromatic complexity, structure and textural character are what make orange wines special. At the crossroads of a red and white wine, they playfully stimulate and challenge the senses. Imagine the freshness and taught acidity of a white wine entwined with the tannic grip and suppleness of a red. What could possibly be better to pair with food?

Many orange wines are perfect companions for cheese platters, smoked fish, root vegetable-based dishes and roasted meat. They usually have a herbal, savoury edge that brings a meal’s flavours to life, supported by gentle tannins and firm acidity.

Best enjoyed only slightly chilled, skin-contact wines have a fresh vibrancy but also a sense of textural warmth, perfect to ease yourself into autumn’s mood. Nothing better than a picnic with a amber-hued bottle alongside the season’s harvest bounty – grapes, pear and Mediterranean citrus – before the winter’s loom sets in.

Great orange wines for autumn – 12 to try:

The wines below have been tasted and rated by Decanter’s editorial team and contributors.

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Inspiration: wines to drink with a vegetarian Christmas dinner

Nut roast: Orange wine | Southern Rhône reds | Xinomavro (Naoussa)

Roasted vegetables platter: Chianti Classico | Douro reds

Mezze: Pinot Noir | Mencía (Galicia) | Pétillant naturel

Cheese board: California Chardonnay | Aged Riesling | White Rioja

Scroll down for wine recommendations

For most, Christmas dinner revolves around the idea of a standout meat dish at the centre of the table. Yet this is no longer the rule for everyone; many of us have now switched to vegetarian or vegan diets and it’s hard to hold a celebration without having to accommodate different, meat-free preferences.

Rather than a hindrance, this should be seen as a great opportunity to bring new flavours to the festive table and think of wine pairing possibilities that go beyond the ‘which wine shall I have with turkey’ dilemma.

Best wines to drink with nut roast

The go-to replacement dish for that rebellious vegetarian/vegan friend or relative was, for a long time, the infamous nut roast.

Infamous because many vegetarians will tell you there are a number of more exciting, less obvious and easier-to-cook alternatives (more on that below).

Having said that, a good nut roast is indeed delicious and usually ends up being eaten by everyone! Its crunch and smokiness can actually be compared to that of lamb, namely when spices and herbs are also a central part of the recipe.

The comparable smokiness of an orange wine will be a great fit, as will the herbal profile of a Vacqueyras from the southern Rhône or the trademark tapenade aromas of a Naoussa Xinomavro.

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Choosing wines for vegetarian Christmas: the beauty of simplicity

The truth is that the best vegetarian dishes, while bound to delight even the most avid meat-eater, are simple and based on only a handful of ingredients.

If you’re not vegetarian yourself, pleasing the vegetarian guest is all about integrating the veggie dishes as part of the whole meal, so that everyone can enjoy them – and their accompanying wines, of course.

A nice selection of delicious roasted vegetables, brought to life by the smokiness of the grill, the complexity of spices and the depth of a good olive oil, is a great dish in itself with a dollop of labneh or sprinkled with feta. It also makes a great side for a turkey or meat roast.

And those roasted veggies will handle – and ask for – a structured red, with firm tannins and good concentration, as much as the reddest of meats.

So don’t be afraid to pour the same wine that you’ve selected for the turkey, lamb or ham. A dry Douro red, a Chianti Classico or a Hungarian Kekfrankos will likely do the trick.

Wines for vegetarian mezze

A mezze spread, with delightful dips, a colourful selection of olives, spiced nuts, marinated aubergines and marinated beetroots, is also something you should consider.

It makes a great aperitif selection but also allows guests, vegetarian or not, to nibble throughout the meal.

Pair it with a refined Pinot Noir or a Mencía from Galicia; their fresh minerality will allow you to appreciate the diversity and subtlety of flavours.

Another great option alongside mezze – especially at the start of a meal – would be a refreshing and delicious pétillant naturel wine, also known as pét-nat. The structure, broad palate and restrained effervescence of a pét-nat will deliver such a great balancing act.

Cheese, real or fake, but never with red wine

Well now, there’s no Christmas without a proper cheese selection is there?

Although cheese and wine pairing is usually, and outrageously, associated with red wine, it is best to look elsewhere in many cases.

The tannins bind with the fats in the cheese and prevent the full appreciation of all those complex and delicious flavour compounds that the best cheeses have.

Look to structured, medium-to-high acid white wines and this complexity really comes to life. Try a robust California Chardonnay, an aged Mosel Riesling or a white Rioja and you’ll be a little closer to heaven.

Orange wines will again be a good option, because the intensity and high acidity will enhance the umami characters in the cheese. But, once again, you should avoid skin-contact wines with too much tannin.

For vegans, the choice of non-dairy ‘cheese’ is increasingly appealing and diverse.

These are usually made with fermented seeds and nuts, helping them to develop texture and flavours that are, well, very cheesy.

The same wines that pair well with cheese will therefore also be great companions to their vegan counterparts. But it’s worth pointing out that, when considering vegan diets and guests, you will need to make sure that the wine itself is vegan-friendly!

The golden rule: always have good fizz within reach

It’s worth stating the obvious here: always have a good bottle of sparkling wine close by. Not only is it the trademark celebratory drink and the best crowd-pleaser, but it is also the ultimate food pairing wine.

Think past the world of oysters and canapés, because the right fizz can be perfect with a variety of dishes, from roast chicken to pasta with leeks or even cheese.

So it’s worth investing in some good bubbles, which would work equally well as an aperitif or alongside some of the main meal’s dishes. Sparkling wines are often an ideal option when vegetarian dishes take centre stage.

Try an English sparkling rosé with a plate of creamy pasta or a sparkling Vouvray with a nut roast.

And if you’ve never tried a cheese platter with a late-disgorged Champagne, full of toasty aromas and pastry-like flavours, you’d be mad not to have a go.

Ten wines for your vegetarian Christmas meal:

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In the last board meeting of 2021 for the regulatory council of DO Terra Alta, in Catalunya, Spain, a long list of changes was approved.

The most prominent was the making of a very strict certification system for wines that are 100% Garnatxa Blanca given that it’s their flagship grape variety. But perhaps the most interesting item is a bit further down the list that allows certification for a type of wines that in Catalan are called “vins brisats”.

The name refers to white wines that are produced in contact with the “brisa” or, the skins, stems, and seeds of the grapes. This is a method of wine production that has gained a good deal of visibility and popularity in recent years and is more commonly known internationally as “amber/orange wine”.

Via wine bars and especially restaurants the style has been more seen due to its gastronomic pairing abilities and weightier heft. Despite appearing to be a modern trend, it’s actually been produced historically in countless regions such as Georgia, Armenia, parts of Slovenia, and others. Terra Alta has produced this style of wine for as long as anyone can remember, but in general, the wines are lighter bodied than what many others produce.

As Núria Altés, co-owner of the winery, Herència Altés, told Decanter, ‘Locals in the region have historically drunk wine made in this style. People had in fact been more accustomed to it instead of the current style. It was a good deal simpler to produce as you put everything into the tank to ferment together.’

But the brisat style fell out of fashion in most regions of the world as it was often rightly viewed as more rustic and tannic. Given that the inclusion of the skins allowed for a good many faults to be hidden, it was also not always the best wine of any given cellar.

With only half a dozen wines produced in this style in Terra Alta, there is however the question as to why they chose now to include it in their official bylaws given that it seems to be a very small part of their overall production.

DO President, Joan Arrufí told Decanter, ‘We have many more wines soon to be released on the market as many winemakers have come back to these wines, but this time using modern winemaking techniques, allowing for traditional ‘brisats’ yet with more finesse and compatibility to current tastes. We wanted to include it in this revision of the plec (bylaws) in order to reflect this history in our region as well as its evolution, and also because it’s quite clear to us that the wine drinking public has a growing interest in these wines.’

Once the new version of their bylaws is fully approved (set for mid-2022), any wine that can show traceability for the regulations will be allowed certification no matter the vintage. The same will be true for the 100% Garnatxa Blanca wines. And as they hold 1/3 of all the vineyards of this variety in the world, it also forms the standard base for the “brisat” wines.

What more, it is believed this will make DO Terra Alta the first DO in all of Spain to have a legal certification for this style of wine. Arrufí and others within the DO can’t say for certain, but they believe they might be the first of any regulatory appellation in all of Europe to do this as well.

While reaction to the greater orange wine segment can at times be polemic due to the vastly varying strengths of the resulting wines, the fact that a DO is showing the willingness to introduce a legal certification speaks to their belief that it’s a market segment with potential growth.

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Five years is a long time in wine. When I first wrote at length about orange wines in Decanter, in 2015, many wine pundits still viewed the style with suspicion – if not downright derision. It felt slightly bleeding edge, even if these wines had been appearing on our shelves for more than a decade.

Now, in 2020, the fourth wine colour has elbowed its way into the hearts and minds of exponentially more adventurous drinkers around the globe, with orange wines produced and enjoyed on every continent. And justly so – with four possible combinations of red or white grapes with or without skins, why ignore 25% of wine’s possibilities?

Some are still perplexed by the style – or, more particularly, the name. If you accept the lexicon of red, white and rosé, then why not orange too? In actuality, all four terms describe the winemaking technique (grape colour, plus skins or not) rather than colour or style, per se.

It follows that not all orange wines are dark-amber coloured, tannic and cidery, just as not all red wines are mega-purple hued, grippy and oaky. Each of these four categories of wine offers up a multitude of taste, aroma and weight profiles.

Let’s tie down that definition: orange wines aren’t made from oranges any more than rosé wines are made from roses. The term, first coined in 2004, concisely describes wines made from white grapes that have been fermented with their skins, unlike mainstream white wines, where skins will be discarded beforehand (even if a pre-fermentation cold soak is part of the equation). These are white wines made like red wines, the perfect food-friendly marriage of a white grape’s acidity and freshness with the texture and structure more often experienced in reds.

A style with history

The concept is timeless. Georgia boasts archaeological finds indicating that wine has been fermented in amphorae (qvevris) made of clay for at least 6,000 years – and amber wines (made from white grapes) have always formed the cultural backbone of this important wine nation. Historical records and winemaking books from Austria and Slovenia show that skin-fermenting white grapes was common in many parts of the old Austro-Hungarian empire.

As New Zealand winemaker Theo Coles (The Hermit Ram) notes, ‘these are basically pre-technology wines’. The modern-day concept of a light-coloured, fresh-tasting white wine requires a press, a destemmer and most probably a temperature-controlled stainless steel tank and a filtration system. Orange wines have simpler needs: just perfect grapes and a vessel (be it clay, wood, steel or plastic) for fermentation.

Such simplicity in wine is a virtue that has come into much sharper focus with the increased interest in minimal-intervention or natural wines. The modern revival of orange wine overlaps with and has been underpinned by the natural wine community – it shouldn’t be forgotten, though, that the term ‘natural wine’ represents an overarching philosophy, whereas ‘orange wine’ describes a specific production technique.

The genius of modern-day Collio pioneers Joško Gravner and the late Stanko Radikon was breathing new life into an older style of winemaking that the world had largely forgotten by the 1950s. Their daring presentation of vino bianco macerato (macerated white wine) as fine wine rather than rustic vina da tavola acted as a catalyst.

It’s given a whole generation of younger Slovene and Italian winemakers the confidence to make similar stylistic decisions – and to take risks, knowing that there’s now a receptive audience for their output.

What’s old is new

While the technique of skin-fermenting white grapes has its deepest cultural roots in Georgia and central Europe (Slovenia, Croatia, northern Italy), many other countries and regions are now rediscovering their own similar traditions. In Portugal’s hot Alentejo region, making wine in large amphorae called talhas has a history that dates back to the Romans, yet its practice took place behind closed doors until very recently. As with Georgia, skin-fermented white grapes and thus amber or orange-tinged wines have always been to the fore – Alentejo’s reputation as a red wine region is a recent development.

Talha wines are traditionally consumed straight from the clay, with the cellars transforming into ad-hoc social spaces during the winter. However, since the creation of a talha wine DO in 2010, bottled examples also exist. Amphorae of all shapes and sizes are common in Spain too, and increasing numbers of artisan winemakers have equipped (or re-equipped) their cellars with tinajas in recent years. Staying in the Spanish-speaking world, Chile has an old tradition of producing roughly destemmed, barrel-fermented wines called pipeño, now being revitalised by producers such as Roberto Henríquez in Bío Bío. Both red (chiefly País) and white (Moscatel) varieties are skin-fermented.

Winemakers in New World countries are enthusiastically taking to the style – and often repurposing skin-fermentation in new or innovative ways. In Stellenbosch, Mick and Jeanine Craven use it as part of the blend, rather than going for a no-holds-barred ‘orange’ style. Deirdre Heekin, based in cold-climate Vermont, uses skin contact to add vital depth to her hybrid grape varieties. And in Central Otago, Japanese winemaker Yoshiaki Sato skin-ferments to create silky smooth, Burgundian-style cuvées where fruit and aromatics don’t overwhelm the other elements. The possibilities are endless.

Orange wine as a genre can now claim a number of seminal producers. Notable examples include Gravner, Radikon and Dario Prinčič in Oslavia; Mlečnik, Movia and Cotar in western Slovenia; and Vodopivec and Skerk in the Italian Carso.

For the recommendations here, though, I’m sharing recent discoveries, lesser-known producers and exciting new projects. The wines I’ve selected run a very broad gamut, whether your taste extends to lighter or heavier, aromatic or savoury, structured or supple. Uncork them with an open mind, don’t chill too much (12°C-14°C is about right) and if possible, combine with sustenance. Have fun, and let’s talk again in another five years?

Simon Woolf’s top 30 orange wines

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In the last decade orange wine has gone through quite a transformation in terms of its understanding and reputation.

Go back a few years and those who knew about this ‘third’ colour of wine viewed it as niche, presided over by obscure barrel-fiddlers in the hills of northern Italy, eastern Europe and beyond.

Now it’s everywhere; supped and championed in trendy city centre ‘tap rooms’ where modish insiders drink it by-the-glass from Enomatics and discuss skin contact.

Okay, so these are the extremes, but it’s fair to say that orange wine is now a style that’s increasingly common among wine drinkers and can be found on restaurant wine lists, gastro pub blackboards and the shelves of discerning indie merchants. You can even find it in Asda.

But what makes it orange? Writing for Decanter in 2015, orange wine expert and author of Amber Revolution: How the World Learned to Love Orange Wine Simon Woolf defines it as ‘effectively… a white wine made as if it were a red.’

He adds: ‘The term is increasingly used for white wines where the grapes were left in contact with their skins for days, weeks or even months. The result differs not only in colour, but is also markedly more intense on the nose and palate, sometimes with significant tannins.’

The term itself, unlike the style of wine it describes, is relatively new. ‘It was coined in 2004 by David Harvey of UK wine importer Raeburn Fine Wines while working in Frank Cornelissen’s cellar in Sicily’s Etna region,’ says Woolf.

‘The name may not be ideal, but this style needs its own category,’ says natural wine pioneer Saša Radikon from The Radikon winery in Oslavia Friuli Colli. ‘If customers order a white wine and it turns out to be this surprising dark colour, they might not be so happy.’

The joy of orange wines – or amber wines, a term some prefer – is that they can combine the weight, texture and complexity of red wines with the freshness and verve of whites.

Woolf is quick to point out that the colour comes from the skin of the grapes and not from oxidation, which is a common misconception.

‘Although the winemaking style is often oxidative (open-top oak or plastic fermenters are popular), producers typically seal vessels after fermentation to ensure the wines stay fresh,’ he says.

Orange crush

In 2020 orange wine is made in most wine-producing countries around the world, from Swartland in South Africa to – yes, even this one from Orange in Australia – but its in the traditional ‘orange heartlands’ of Georgia, Slovenia and Italy where some of the most highly-prised examples can be found.

‘The technique can be tricky to pull off without considerable winemaking skill and experience. Very few producers in the New World have been brave enough to try,’ says Woolf.

Top orange wines to try:

Wines below have been tasted by Decanter experts

Note: This article has been updated after originally including a Vin Jeaune, which is not an orange wine. 

See also: How to serve orange wines – ask Decanter 

The wine world has lost a talented winemaker and one of its bravest, most original minds, following the death of Stanislao 'Stanko' Radikon in the early hours of 11 September, writes Simon Woolf.

In brief:

• Stanko Radikon, a giant of the natural and orange wine scene, has died from cancer aged 62

• He produced 36 vintages of Radikon wines from the family home in Friuli Collio in Italy

• Known for total overhaul of family estate’s production methods – especially extended use of skin contact

Full obituary

Stanko Radikon, considered one of the giants of the natural and orange wine scene, lost his long battle with cancer at the age of 62.

The Radikon family is based in the village of Oslavia, Friuli Collio in Italy, but its origins are Slovene.

Stanko Radikon was a humble yet restlessly intelligent and innovative man.

He produced 36 vintages of the now cult Radikon wines. During those 36 years, the winemaking style changed radically, pre-empting much of what would later become natural wine and orange wine trends.

Stanko’s major innovation was to realise that the region’s indigenous Ribolla Gialla grape required different handling to fully express its potential.

In 1995, he returned to his grandfather’s methods of vinification, using 7 days of skin maceration to extract more flavour and colour.

After much experimentation, the wines are now made with three months of skin contact, plus extended barrel and bottle ageing before release.

Switching the estate’s entire white wine production to this rediscovered method was initially unpopular. It took many years before customers and critics accepted the new style.

Together with Edi Kante, Radikon also developed the 500ml and one-litre bottles still in use at Radikon today.

The bottles use a special slimline cork, giving them the same proportions as a magnum, with the idea to mimic the larger format’s ageing potential.

Stanko realised that extended skin contact made the wines more robust and he could add less SO2. By 2003, he was confident enough to cease adding SO2.

Radikon’s wines, together with neighbour and erstwhile colleague Joško Gravner, achieved a remarkable consistency and character with their slightly wild, deep, autumnal flavours and beguiling complexity.

Stanko is survived by his wife Suzana, two daughters and son Saša.

Saša Radikon, himself now a father, has been heavily involved with production for the last decade, and Stanko’s legacy is assured in his firm pair of hands.

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From the archive

Lunch, recently, in Cormòns, one of the key villages in Italy's Collio; the discussion swung round to orange wines. Cue the key question, beautifully posed.

On the taste of orange wines…

Nicola Manferrari of Borgo del Tiglio, each of whose pale whites is an essay in aromatic finesse and nuanced restraint, said that he was anti-orange – “because the subtleties of expression go missing, and the wines just taste of the method by which they were made.” Kristian Keber of Edi Keber disagreed, though he’s not an ‘orange wine’ producer himself; indeed his Collio Bianco, a pale and haunting blend of Ribolla Gialla, Malvasia and Friuliano, rivals the Borgo del Tiglio whites for suggestive nuance. “Red wines differ from each other in their finished state,” he pointed out, “thanks to the time they spend with their skins. Why should white wines be different?” Why indeed? The logic seems irrefutable. Yet Manferrari’s criticism is often voiced.

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I enjoy well-made orange wines (meaning white wines made with sometimes extensive skin contact, though not necessarily in an amphora), not least because I love tannin and low acidity. Orange wines are obviously richly textured, and tend to be low in acidity because full seed ripeness prior to harvest is essential; they then go though malolactic, naturally enough, after alcoholic fermentation, and are often lengthily aged before bottling.

Their muted, autumnal fruit characters delight me; so, too, do their notes of nuts, of mushrooms, of hay and straw, of cheese paste, of wild flowers, of umami. These are profiles which can be both gastronomically compelling and aesthetically profound. (The rank, cidery qualities of coarsely made, ideologically virtuous but chronically oxidised orange wine, of course, are less inspiring; let’s hope producers and aficionados find the courage to distinguish the two.) Can you, though, trace varieties and origin in a set of well-made orange wines as you can in conventionally crafted whites? Honestly, I can’t. Genre still seems to take the lead.

That same afternoon, as it happened, I found myself sitting down to a tasting sheet bannered ‘Experience the orange jewel’. We’d driven over to Oslavia, near Gorizia: the far east of Collio. The jewel in question was a set of six Ribolla Gialla wines, made by six Orangistas with varying degrees of skin contact – one month in the case of the merely golden 2011 Fiegl and up to four months in the case of Radikon’s russet 2007. In between came the 2009 Primosic (just 20 days on skins, but more deeply orange than the Fiegl wine) and two months (2009 Il Carpino, 2008 La Castellada and the 2009 Dario Princic). I found the hazy Princic wine too rustic and artisanal for my taste, but the others were very good, especially the elegant La Castellada and the grand Primosic, with its resonant flavour cascade. Some were made with sulphur; some without; none was hurried into bottle.

The point here is that this is not avant-garde posturing or even radical experiment, but rather a return to deep local traditions and a logical response to a singular set of grape varieties. “My grandfather made wine like that,” said Saša Radikon. “For two reasons. He had to press by hand, and if he soaked the skins in the wines, they were softer and easier to press. He also knew that wines made in that way lived longest; the skins gave some preservation qualities.” The ancient, thick-skinned Ribolla; haunting, fugitive Malvasia; the vegetal, marrowy Friuliano (in fact Sauvignonasse, formerly Tocai Friulano, and never happier or more adult in style than here): these are all varieties which can leave drinkers puzzled and nonplussed by their neutrality when the juice is whipped off the skins and given classically cool, reductive white-wine fermentation. Even Gianfranco Gallo of Vie di Romans in nearby Isonzo, surely one of Italy’s most technically proficient and intelligent fine-wine makers, gives all his astonishingly dense, flavour-saturated white wines (as un-orange as you like) around 20 hours’ skin contact. With time on skins, you suddenly see their Hapsburg grandeur.

I have no answer to the key question; the truth may be that we need more experience both with making and with drinking long-macerated orange wines before we can read variety and origin in their sensorial profiles. What the work of the Oslavia Orangistas made me realize, though, is that the orange wine movement is not (or should not be) a rigorous dualism but rather a gentle and humane set of relativities; orange can be pale gold, too. The essential point is that you don’t part with the skins prematurely, before they have given up all their secrets. ‘Skin neglect’ may even, come to be seen as a grotesque oversight in late twentieth century white-wine making.

Andrew Jefford is on holiday. This article was first published on 24 March, 2014.

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Should orange wine be chilled or served a little warmer?

How to serve orange wine

Rod Bridge, Preston, Lancashire, asks: I usually serve white wines chilled, sparkling wines a little cooler, and red wines at room temperature. But what about orange wines?

Simon Woolf, for Decanter, replies: I often compare orange wines structurally to light northern Italian reds such as Valpolicella or Bardolino. On a summer’s day they can be delicious lightly chilled, but for a mature example you should enjoy them a little warmer. It’s partly down to wine style and your own personal preference.

• In search of lighter reds – ask Decanter

For a heavier, more tannic orange wine, such as one made by Radikon or Gravner, serve it close to room temperature to bring out all the flavour and complexity. Taste it at 12°C-14°C, and then warm it up a bit more if it doesn’t seem expressive. Lighter orange wines made with only a few days skin contact can be drunk cooler – 10°C-12°C perhaps.

• Orange wines explained

• Read more notes and queries every month in Decanter magazine. Subscribe to the latest issue here

• Got a question for Decanter’s experts? Email us: editor@decanter.com

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Orange wine is the most characterful, thrilling and food-friendly styles on our shelves today, with their deep hues, intense aromas and complex flavours. So say the converts.

The counter charge is robust: orange is the emperor’s new clothes, beloved only of trendy sommeliers and hipsters who forgive their oxidised, faulty nature. The wines are unpalatable curiosities that no right-thinking wine consumer would ever choose to drink for pleasure.

What exactly is an orange wine?

The term is increasingly used for white wines where the grapes were left in contact with their skins for days, weeks or even months. Effectively, this is white wine made as if it were a red. The result differs not only in colour, but is also markedly more intense on the nose and palate, sometimes with significant tannins.

The combination of freshness with tannin makes for superbly versatile food wines, as former sommelier and now writer/broadcaster Levi Dalton discovered while working at top New York Italian restaurant Convivio in 2009. He explains: ‘Orange wines were my get-out-of-jail-free card. We had a chef who would switch from fish to meat and back again on a tasting menu and orange wines paired effortlessly with every course.’

In December 2014, Decanter held it’s first blind tasting of 72 orange wines. Wines entered had to be made using traditional winemaking methods with a minimum of four days’ skin contact.

The type of fermentation vessel used, temperature control during fermentation, indigenous yeasts and total SO2 were also taken into account. The tasters were Simon Woolf, Decanter’s tastings director Christelle Guibert and Isabelle Legeron MW.

Top orange wines:

It’s the new colour on the wine spectrum – white wine made as if it were a red. Simon Woolf debunks the myths behind this centuries-old style of vinification...

Orange wines are the most characterful, thrilling and food-friendly styles on our shelves today, with their deep hues, intense aromas and complex flavours. So say the converts. The counter charge is robust: orange is the emperor’s new clothes, beloved only of trendy sommeliers and hipsters who forgive their oxidised, faulty nature. The wines are unpalatable curiosities that no right-thinking wine consumer would ever choose to drink for pleasure. Who’s right?

Before answering that question, what exactly is an orange wine? The term is increasingly used for white wines where the grapes were left in contact with their skins for days, weeks or even months. Effectively, this is white wine made as if it were a red. The result differs not only in colour, but is also markedly more intense on the nose and palate, sometimes with significant tannins.

• Orange wines: recommended producers

The term ‘orange wine’ was coined in 2004 by David Harvey of UK wine importer Raeburn Fine Wines, while working in Frank Cornelissen’s cellar in Sicily’s Etna region. Harvey explains: ‘I didn’t set out to invent a word, I just used it naturally and it stuck.’ Some prefer the moniker ‘amber wines’, while others even question the need for a specific term. Saša Radikon, winemaker at his family’s estate in Friuli Collio, confirms, ‘The name may not be ideal, but this style needs its own category. If customers order a white wine and it turns out to be this surprising dark colour, they might not be so happy.’ He pushes the definition further: ‘For me, a proper orange wine must be fermented with wild yeasts and without temperature control, otherwise you’re muting the very characteristics you want to extract from the skins.’

Prejudice and misinformation seem to surround the genre. Critics sometimes mistakenly assume that the amber, orange or brown colour signals oxidation – or that the skin-contact process inevitably spoils the wine. Neither is true. The colour comes from the skins, not from oxidation, and although the winemaking style is often oxidative (open-top oak or plastic fermenters are popular), producers typically seal vessels after fermentation to ensure the wines stay fresh.

Confusion with that other slippery category ‘natural wines’ is also rife. It’s true that many producers of orange wines are keen on minimal intervention and low sulphur, but this isn’t a prerequisite for the style, Radikon’s comments notwithstanding.

Long and rich history

The assertion that this is a fleeting fad or fashion is also misconceived. In Friuli and neighbouring Slovenian Brda, maceration of white grapes is as old as the Collio hills. There’s a very practical basis: macerated white wines generally have increased longevity, due to the antioxidants in the tannins which act as a preservative. In 1844, Matija Vertovec, a priest from the nearby Vipava valley, listed the benefits in his manual Vinoreja za Slovence (Winemaking for Slovenians). He recommends skin macerations ‘from 24 hours to 30 days’, noting ‘it improves the flavour and durability of the wine, and ensures it will ferment to dryness’. Nevertheless, this venerable method was largely forgotten as wineries industrialised in the 1970s – stainless steel tanks and cultured yeasts were the new religion and fresh, neutral water-white Pinot Grigio the holy grail.

Fast forward to the mid-1990s: Stanislao ‘Stanko’ Radikon (father of Saša) and Josko Gravner, two established producers from the village of Oslavia, were searching for a more ‘back-to-basics’ methodology. Radikon felt that his Ribolla Gialla, a thick skinned but not very aromatic white variety, had more to give. The revelation came in 1995 – lengthy skin contact, just like Stanko’s grandfather had used, was the way to unlock its power. Saša Radikon reflects on how much potential was lost through not using this technique: ‘For years, it’s as if we were just making rosé from the grapes of Château Pétrus.’

Gravner sought inspiration further afield; Georgian winemakers have been making wine in qvevris (conical-shaped clay amphorae, buried in the ground) for at least 5,000 years. Typically, qvevri whites spend six months on their skins, a long tradition largely unknown in the west while the Iron Curtain prevailed. Gravner visited in 2000, and was so inspired with this ‘womb for wine’ that he switched entirely to qvevris in 2001, despite the risks of securing them. Ambushes at gunpoint were a significant risk for anyone trying to get valuable goods out of the country.

Collio winemaker Nicola Manferrari, famous for Borgo del Tiglio’s pure, varietal wines, is less enamoured about the style’s rebirth. ‘Making wine like this is just a waste of Friuli’s terroir – it could be made anywhere,’ he says. ‘It obscures everything – terroir, variety. It’s a primitive method, a backlash.’ Manferrari represents one side of a polarised divide in the region.

Grape variety and terroir are important, as some varieties react better to skin maceration than others. It’s not an accident that the orange wine revival began in Oslavia; Ribolla Gialla, with its thick, flavoursome skins is perfectly suited to the microclimate in the surrounding hills. There is no reason why terroir should be obscured by using skin maceration for white grapes any more than it would for reds.

Producers worldwide have begun to experiment with the style, sometimes with good results, but there are still no real specialists outside Italy, Slovenia and Georgia. The technique can be tricky to pull off without considerable winemaking skill and experience. Very few producers in the New World have been brave enough to try.

Approachable and food-friendly

Are these wines a mere curiosity, joining esoterica like vin jaune or Marsala? Emma Dawson, a wine buyer for UK retailer Marks & Spencer, doesn’t think so, as she describes one of two examples sold by M&S, the Tbilvino Qveris, a Rkatsiteli from Kakheti in Georgia: ‘The style is very approachable. While there is the hallmark texture and light oxidative influence, it’s well balanced with a fresh, fruity core.’

Lighter styles with less skin contact, like Cosimo Maria Masini’s Daphne or Skerk’s Ograde, share this approachability. These wines have subtle phenolics, without the full-on tannins found in more extreme orange wines like Radikon, Gravner or Dario Princic’s Ribolla Giallas. Georgian qvevri wines also tend to be seriously structured. The best producers achieve balance and elegance, but with poor winemaking or unripe tannins the result can be a clumsy mess, akin to chewing cold tea leaves.

The combination of freshness with tannin makes for superbly versatile food wines, as former sommelier and now writer/broadcaster Levi Dalton discovered while working at top New York Italian restaurant Convivio in 2009. He explains: ‘Orange wines were my get-out-of-jail-free card. We had a chef who would switch from fish to meat and back again on a tasting menu and orange wines paired effortlessly with every course.’

Dalton also contends that ‘the more you treat these wines like Barolos, the happier you will be’. The comparison makes sense; the best examples are true fine wines, with depth, longevity and complexity. They demand time in both cellar and glass – Gravner and Radikon release their signature wines at seven years old. High pricing reflects low volumes and yields; producers must be obsessive about fruit quality, as any mould or other defects will be amplified by the skin contact.

Just like great Barolo, truly great orange wines, like the ones recommended here, have tension, lift and power. In a world full of blandness and uniformity, they are less the emperor’s new clothes, more the adventurer’s new playground.

Natural wine enthusiast Simon Woolf is an awarded writer who publishes www.themorningclaret.com

Written by Simon Woolf

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It’s the new colour on the wine spectrum – white wine made as if it were a red. Simon Woolf debunks the myths behind this centuries-old style of vinification...

Orange wines: recommended producers

Although winemakers in just about every corner of the globe are trying their hand with orange wines, almost no one outside Italy, Slovenia or Georgia really specialises in the style. Producers listed here are strong advocates who make most or all of their white wines with long skin maceration. All four Friulian producers are originally of Slovenian heritage.

Gravner, Friuli Collio, Italy

Josko Gravner’s wines are for many the ne plus ultra. From 2001, everything has been produced in Georgian qvevri, with five to six months of skin contact. The wines have extraordinary focus, density and ageing potential. Gravner built on a long-established reputation as one of Italy’s finest white wine producers when he changed direction in the 1990s. His mentoring of other producers has been critical to the re-emergence of the style.

Radikon, Friuli Collio, Italy

Together with Gravner, Stanko Radikon can be credited with kickstarting the skin-contact revival – the two worked together during the mid- to late 1990s. Radikon’s wines, now made by son Saša, have an impressive vitality and drive, ranging from the S Line, made with less skin contact and oriented towards a wider market, to the Oslavje blend and a savoury, dense Ribolla Gialla – both exceptional wines.

Vodopivec, Friuli Carso, Italy

Brothers Paolo and Valter focus purely on Vitovska, a Slovenian variety which responds well to long skin contact. Inspired by Gravner, the brothers also use Georgian qvevri for their Amphora cuvée. One of the more intense and intellectual orange wines, Vodopivec Vitovska is austere in youth, but ages for a decade or more to become marvellously complex and complete.

Lagvinari, Kakheti/Imereti/Kartli, Georgia

Winemaker Eko Glonti is producing some of the purest and most varietally defined qvevri wines in Georgia, working closely with farmers and nearabandoned vineyards in several key regions. The wines have a strong sense of place, while also being accessible and technically faultless – something one cannot always take for granted in this country.

Skerk, Friuli Carso, Italy

Sandi Skerk achieves such elegance and finesse in his wines that it almost ceases to matter how they’re made or categorised. Farming organically, and vinifying in a dramatic cellar carved out of the Carso rock, Skerk produces some of most accessible orange wines in Friuli.

Weingut Muster, Southern Styria, Austria

Sepp and Maria Muster have led the charge for a revival in low-intervention winemaking, biodynamic farming and skin-macerated wines in this beautiful corner of south-eastern Austria. The cuvées Erde and Gräfin are great examples of balance, refinement and complexity. The Schmecke das Leben (‘Taste Life’) group now includes five winemakers in the region who all work in a similar way.

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