Natural Wine, honestly made.
Native-yeast fermented. Family-farmed fruit from PEC + Niagara. 100% vegan. Pragmatic — because a wine that doesn't taste good is a wasted bottle, and we won't ship one.
What natural wine means at Traynor
There is no legal definition of "natural wine." But there is a shared understanding among producers who make it. Here's ours, in six principles.
Native yeast fermentation
We let the wild yeast already living on our grapes do the fermenting. No cultivated commercial yeast strains. Each vintage tastes like the vintage it was.
Family-farmed fruit
Every grape we press comes from a family farm in Prince Edward County or Niagara. We've worked with most of our growers for years — trusted, generational relationships, not spot-market sourcing.
Minimal, organic-certified additives
Our goal is to add as little as possible. When we do have to intervene (rarely — mostly to correct acidity in a difficult vintage), any additive we use is certified organic. No corrections for flavour, colour, or tannin.
Low or zero sulfites
Our pet-nats are made with zero added sulfur. Everything else gets a small dose only at bottling for stability — well below conventional wine levels.
100% vegan
No animal-derived fining agents anywhere in our process. No isinglass (fish bladder), no gelatin, no casein (milk), no egg whites. Every bottle.
The wine has to taste good
Our natural wine philosophy is pragmatic: do as little as possible so the fruit can express itself — but the wine has to be good. We won't let perfect be the enemy of the good, and we won't ship a bottle we wouldn't drink ourselves.
The natural wine process
What actually happens between the vine and the bottle. Minimal by design, but honest about the exceptions.
Where our fruit comes from
Family farms across PEC and Niagara
Every grape we press comes from a family farm. Some of our fruit is grown in Prince Edward County, some in Niagara. What our growers all share is that they're family-run, multi-generational operations that we've worked with for years.
Not every one of our growers is certified organic — and this is a deliberate choice. Certified-organic grapes come with a significant premium, and if we insisted on buying only certified fruit, our wines would land at a price point that puts them out of reach for the customers we most want to reach. We want our wines to be everyday wines. Approachable, affordable, honest.
So we work with growers we trust, based on relationships built over years — some farm to organic standards, some don't. All of them care about their vineyards.
Why we're not certified organic
The honest answer
The certification question has two sides — the farming and the winemaking. On the farming side, we're a small family vineyard, but we also buy fruit from other family growers (see above). Not all of them hold organic certification, and demanding that they would either drive our prices up or force us to walk away from growers we trust and have worked with for years.
On the winemaking side, certification is a paperwork exercise. It certifies what you don't do — but says nothing about the choices you make when a difficult vintage forces your hand. We'd rather be honest about our practices than sell a sticker.
When we do have to intervene — usually to correct acidity in a challenging vintage — any additive we use is certified organic. But we're not going to lose a wine to ideology. Our job is to make wines that taste good and that our customers can drink every day.
How we compare
A rough map of where different wine categories sit on the intervention spectrum. Not every producer in each category behaves identically — this is a directional comparison.
| Practice | Conventional | Organic | Biodynamic | Natural (Traynor) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native yeast | ❌ Cultivated yeast | ❌ Cultivated allowed | ❌ Cultivated allowed | ✅ Native only |
| Additives (colour, acid, tannin) | ✅ Permitted | ❌ Restricted (organic-approved) | ❌ Most restricted | ✅ Rare, organic-certified only |
| Herbicides / pesticides | ✅ Synthetic OK | ❌ Only organic-approved | ❌ Prohibited | ❌ None on our fruit |
| Vegan by default | ❌ No | ❌ No | ❌ No | ✅ Always |
| Sulfite level (typical) | 80–150 mg/L | 80–100 mg/L | 70–90 mg/L | 0 (pet-nats) to ~40 mg/L |
| Certifying body | N/A (marketed as-is) | OFA, Ecocert, CCOF | Demeter | None (no legal definition) |
| Traynor? | No | No (we'll explain below) | No | Yes |
A caveat: many natural wine producers are also certified organic or biodynamic (Southbrook, for example). The categories overlap. What's unusual about our position is choosing to skip certification while going further than the minimum standard.
Our wines
Every wine we make follows the same six principles — including our still table wines. Pet-nats, piquettes, and orange wines wear it more visibly, but our still whites and reds — like Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc — are made exactly the same way.
How to drink natural wine
Serve it a touch cooler than you think.
Natural wines are alive — they benefit from being a bit cooler than conventional wines. Whites at 8–10°C, rosés at 8–10°C, reds at 14–16°C. If your fridge is cold, take reds out 30 minutes before pouring.
Don't decant.
Conventional wines are often decanted to expose them to oxygen. Natural wines have often had less filtration and less sulfite, so they don't need help opening up. Pour and drink.
Sediment is a feature.
Because our wines are unfiltered, you may see a bit of sediment at the bottom of the bottle. It's dead yeast and grape solids — completely harmless, and a sign that the wine hasn't been processed within an inch of its life. Pour gently and stop before the last splash if you'd rather skip it.
Drink young.
Most of our wines are built for drinking within 1–3 years of the vintage on the label. They're fresh, bright, and expressive — not built for a decade in the cellar. Buy what you like now, drink it in the next year or two.
Refrigerate after opening — especially the pet-nats.
Because natural wines have less added sulfite (and our pet-nats have zero), they're more sensitive to oxygen after opening. Recork and refrigerate — most of our wines are good for 3–5 days that way. Pet-nats will slowly lose their fizz over that window, but they'll still be delicious.
Frequently asked
What is natural wine?
Natural wine is made with minimal intervention: native (wild) yeast fermentation, minimal additives, farming without synthetic pesticides, and low or no added sulfites. There is no legal definition — but the practices are consistent across producers who identify as natural winemakers. All Traynor wines follow this approach — including our still table wines like Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc.
Is Traynor Family Vineyard certified organic?
No — and this is a deliberate choice. We source our fruit from family farms across PEC and Niagara, and not all of these growers hold organic certification. Requiring certification would drive our prices up significantly, and that premium would land on our customers. We'd rather have affordable everyday wines from trusted generational family farms than expensive wines with a sticker. When we do add anything to the wine (rarely — mostly acidity correction in difficult vintages), any additive we use is certified organic.
Where do your grapes come from?
Every grape we press comes from a family farm — some in Prince Edward County, some in Niagara. We've worked with most of our growers for years. Trusted, generational relationships built on quality and honesty, not on paperwork.
Do you use any additives?
Our goal is to add as little as possible. Native yeast does the fermenting, and the wine ages in neutral vessels. Occasionally — mostly in difficult vintages when the fruit is out of balance — we may make a small acidity correction to keep a wine drinkable. Any additive we use is certified organic. We won't let ideology ruin a wine. We call this pragmatic natural winemaking: do as little as possible, but make sure the wine tastes good.
How much sulfite is in your wines?
Our pet-nats (Green Meanie, Hot Rocket, Chill Thrill, Bang Bang, and others) are made with zero added sulfur. Our still wines get a small dose only at bottling for stability — well below the levels in conventional Ontario wine. Total sulfites in our wines typically range from 0 to 40 mg/L, compared to 80–150 mg/L in most conventional bottles.
Are your still table wines (Sauv Blanc, Cab Franc, etc.) also natural wine?
Yes. Our still table wines are made with exactly the same philosophy and process as our pet-nats and orange wines. Native yeast, minimal intervention, family-farmed fruit, 100% vegan, low sulfite. The style is different — dry and still instead of sparkling — but the winemaking is the same.
Are all Traynor wines vegan?
Yes. Every wine we make is 100% vegan. We use no animal-derived fining agents — no isinglass, no gelatin, no casein, no egg whites. Our wines are also gluten-free.
What is a pet-nat?
Pet-nat (pétillant naturel) is a style of naturally sparkling wine where the fermenting juice is bottled before the first fermentation is complete, so the CO₂ produced by the yeast is trapped in the bottle. No added yeast, no added sugar, no dosage. Just grape juice, native yeast, and a sealed bottle. We make several pet-nats — Green Meanie, Hot Rocket, Chill Thrill, Bang Bang, and others — all with zero added sulfur.
Where can I buy Ontario natural wine?
The best way is direct from the winery. Visit us at 1774 Danforth Road, Hillier, or order online for delivery across Ontario. Select Traynor wines are also available at LCBO stores — see our LCBO list. Other Ontario natural wine producers worth exploring: Pearl Morissette, Trail Estate, Southbrook Vineyards.
Come try it
The best way to understand natural wine is to taste it side-by-side with something conventional. We'll pour you both. Cellar tasting room open by season — check current hours in the header.
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