Sediment actually is a naturally occurring product of wine. Not all wine produces sediment and you are less likely to see it in wine that is young or overly fined/filtered. Most of the mass-produced wine will not have sediment. As part of the winemaking process, the producer will clarify the wine to make it more marketable to the public.

However, most aged wine, whether or not it is fined/filtered, will still produce sediment. This is because the tannins, colour pigments, proteins, and/or yeast particles settle as the wine is left to rest. Interesting fact, this is why wine bottles are shaped the way they are because historically the 'shoulders' were used to 'catch' the sediment so it didn't end up in your glass!

Sediment is not harmful, but we agree we don't like the look of it stuck to your glass. So if you are enjoying a bottle of wine that is aged, or not fined/filtered (or minimal filtering), you should let it rest standing up for at least a day prior to serving. This will allow the particles to rest at the bottom of the bottle, and won't go into your glass. It is also suggested to decant wines that show sediment.

You will find that with the growing popularity of 'natural wine' and wine that has fewer chemicals and processes, there are more producers who are choosing minimal fining and filtering, or little to none. So we predict that you will see more sediment if you are purchasing boutique wines!
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