Orange

09 September 2026

Orange

Orange wine is one of the most fascinating and ancient expressions of winemaking. Despite its name, it is not made from oranges but from white grapes vinified using a technique more commonly associated with red wines. Unlike traditional white winemaking, where the juice is separated from the skins shortly after pressing, orange wines are fermented in contact with the grape skins for days, weeks, or even months.

This process, known as skin maceration, extracts color, aromas, tannins, and phenolic compounds from the grape skins, giving the wine its distinctive amber or copper-orange hue. The result is a wine with greater structure, depth, and complexity than most conventional white wines.

The origins of this method date back thousands of years to Georgia, widely regarded as one of the birthplaces of viticulture. There, white grapes were traditionally fermented and aged in large clay vessels called qvevri, buried underground to ensure natural temperature control. This ancient practice has survived to the present day and has inspired a new generation of winemakers around the world.

The production process begins with carefully selected grapes, often sourced from organically or biodynamically farmed vineyards. After harvesting, the grapes are crushed and the juice is left to ferment together with the skins. During fermentation, yeasts convert sugar into alcohol while the prolonged skin contact enriches the wine with texture, flavor, and complexity. Once maceration is complete, the wine is separated from the solids and allowed to mature in stainless steel tanks, wooden barrels, or clay amphorae, depending on the producer's stylistic vision.