Photo courtesy of Nonfiction Natural Wines
The husband and wife team of Allie and Brad Kruse, of Nonfiction Natural Wines (800 E. Potter Ave.), first met while working in the restaurant industry. They developed a love of wine and frequently drove to Chicago to seek out unique wine for themselves. They had considered opening a wine shop and the plan came to fruition while attending Third Coast Soif, an annual wine tasting event in Chicago. There, they met Justin and Anna Spaller of Chromatic Wine, a family-owned wine distribution company. Connecting with a distributor that could source the natural wines they were seeking allowed them to open Nonfiction Natural Wines, filling a niche in their Bay View neighborhood and beyond.
“We want to make buying wine accessible, fun and approachable for everyone,” says Allie of the store’s laid-back ambiance. “We don’t want anyone to feel intimidated when they walk in. There are no right or wrong questions to ask.”
As consumers grow more aware of additives in their food, they’re also natural beverages with no synthetic chemicals and preservatives. Wine makers are not required to list ingredients on the labels, and some brands found on grocery store shelves can contain a host of unnatural preservatives.
Allie notes the terms “natural” or “organic” wine can be broad. “There’s no legal definition, which makes it kind of tricky because people don’t know that to look for. What we focus on is organic, or at least wineries practicing organic,” she says. “We want to make sure they’re doing good farming practices, such as biodynamic, no fining no filtration, limited sulfur use and native yeasts.” Brad notes that sometimes tiny amounts of sulfur have to be added to wines to make them stable for shipping.
Wines From Around the World
Nonfiction Natural Wines carries product crafted by smaller wineries from around the globe. The French wall features labels such as Les Quarterons 2017 Sancerre or Gaspard’s sauvignon blanc. Sonoma Mountain Winery’s Fugazitron is an off-dry rose that unrefined, unfiltered and low in sulfites.
The shop also carries a selection of orange wines, also known as skin contact wines. They’re not made form oranges nor taste like the citrus fruit, but instead pick up their orange and pink hues from the grape skins. “It’s just white wine that’s made more like a red,” Brad explains. The grape skins remain in contact with the juice instead of the wineries pressing off the skins right away. “They let it sit on there longer to give more tannin structure and concentrated flavors.” The extra tannin also acts like a natural preservative and give the wine a lighter, fresh flavor. Brad says more wine bars and restaurants are pouring skin contact wine and people are becoming curious.
They stock wines that are approachable, such as a biodynamically produced Montepulciano, a red wine grape variety grown widely in central Italy, as well as funkier raw wines like Alba vinos ambiz. Naturally fermented versions of favorite varietals such as Riesling are available. “We get customers who know exactly what they’re looking for, as well as some who are just beginning to explore with world of natural wines and want to try the funkiest ones we have,” Allie says.
There’s a central European collection with wines from Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia and Georgia. They get new selections in weekly and try to keep part of the inventory constant. When warm weather arrives and it’s time to pack up the cooler, Nonfiction Natural Wines carries Jenny & Francois Selection’s From the Tank boxed wine, and “love cans”—canned wine from Broc Cellars, in Berkley, Cali. The cans of wine are $9, and bottles of wine start at $14 and up. Many are around $20 and under. They also carry Anodyne Coffee and Muse Brews kombucha.
During the Pandemic
For the time being, Nonfiction Natural Wines is open from noon to 7 p.m. and offers curbside pickup.
They have also partnered with neighboring local business such as Ursa, a home goods store, to let customers pick up online orders from Ursa at their place. They are also helping to support their service industry friends by collecting tips each week for a local bar or restaurant. Last week, they collected for Voyager wine bar. This week they're collecting for Goodkind.
For more information, visit nonfictionwine.com or facebook.com/nonfictionwine.
