Last summer I returned to my rural Massachusetts hometown on a mission: to make my own natural wine, with “nothing added, nothing taken away.” For months I’d watched friends embrace ambitious new hobbies to keep busy during the pandemic (DIY home improvement, shibori tie-dye, and who could forget all that sourdough). I figured if people have been making wine using only grapes since the beginning of time, why couldn’t I give it a go in my Jersey City apartment?
My mom reminded me that Black Rabbit Farm, around the corner from our house, operates a sprawling minimal-intervention, noncertified organic vineyard on its 10-acre lot. After a quick email exchange, I found out that for $50 , they could sell me a bushel of Marquette (a hybrid red grape that descends from Pinot Noir). Before heading back to Jersey City, I drove down the road and found a large black crate waiting for me, piled high with beautiful bunches. I’d only felt excited a handful of times during the pandemic, but this moment topped my list. Some people got puppies, some got pregnant, and I got grapes.
Though I had plenty of experience drinking natty wine, I hardly knew a thing about creating any from scratch. I watched an introductory YouTube video by No-Till Growers about making natural wine at home and scoured r/naturalwine on Reddit. I learned that after picking and macerating the grapes, fermentation could begin so long as I had two elements: yeasts (which grow wild on the grape skins) and sugar…
