A growing number of winemakers are cutting back on sulfites in wine. Here's five wines with no added sulfur dioxide in the cellar, chosen by Simon Woolf.

 Sulfur dioxide – or ‘sulphur’ dioxide – is added to wines to prevent oxidisation and keep out harmful bacteria – but there’s a growing movement towards low sulfite wines, with some winemakers refusing to add any sulfur in the cellar.

As Simon Woolf explains in his Decanter feature, sulfites in wine: friend or foe, some sulfur dioxide will be present naturally in the winemaking process.

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Una terra magica quella del Collio goriziano e il culto quasi religioso per essa fanno del contadino-vignaiolo Damijan Podversic più un seguace di San Francesco (“Laudato si’, mi’ Signore, per sora nostra matre terra”) che del suo maestro dichiarato Josko Gravner.

Siamo nella parte orientale del Friuli, in quella porzione di terra del Collio goriziano, dove la vite sembra vi abbia dimorato da sempre. Vini bianchi (ma non solo), dal colore dell’oro, dai profumi intensi: «Nei miei vini sentirete frutti di tutti i generi, dalla pesca agli agrumi alle erbe fresche, comunque sempre frutti maturi. Non troverete mai sentori erbacei, perché l’uva che vinifichiamo è stramatura. E’ l’acidità che dà la freschezza in bocca, e, se questa è naturale ed equilibrata, non avremo la sensazione di amaro e slegato» sottolinea il vignaiolo Damijan.

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The Ritz is now serving orange wine by the glass following a major update of its 800-reference Livre du Vin, the hotel’s head sommelier Giovanni Ferlito has announced.

The iconic London hotel, which this year celebrates its 110th anniversary, has added 150 new wines to its illustrious list. These include five orange wines, two of which are available by the glass. The wines are a 2007 Iago Bitarishvili Chinuri from Georgia, and three wines from Friuli: a 2008 Radikon Jakot, a 2010 Dario Princic Ribolla Gialla and a 2011 Zidarich Vitovska. Both the Chinuri and the Ribolla Gialla will be available by the glass.

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What better way to experience local culture than to drink it?! Beer and wine festivals are definitely one of my favorite ways for experiencing a new place and the Europe is chock full of them. Ready to prost with the Germans and sante with the Parisians? From what I found, the best time to experience Europe’s best beer and wine festivals in the late summer/early fall.

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