Untouched by Light – world’s first sparkling wine made, sold and tasted in complete darkness

When it comes to wine, studies have shown that daylight or artificial lighting results in what is commonly known as light-struck aromas (goût de lumière). For this very reason, Radgonske Gorice wine cellar has decided to turn to the dark side and launch a new sparkling wine: Untouched by Light.

This sparkling wine is unique in many ways. But it all starts with the production process, where night vision goggles play a mayor role. They are used for harvest, bottle rotation and packing. This means that everything happens in complete darkness. Afterwards, wine is aged for two to three years in a cave in Gornja Radgona, meaning it is stored in a completely lightproof place. Once out of the cave, the wine is protected in a black lightproof bottle and packed in a vacuum-sealed bag blocking any additional light or air contact.

“Untouched by Light is a sparkling wine inspiration. Special harvesting by night, when it’s cold, using small crates; the grape processing method, but above all late maturation in complete darkness – all of that can be found embedded in the character of this wine. We can now taste both the wine and the fullness of its terroir. The last piece of the puzzle is the tradition of sparkling wine production in Radgonske Gorice winery, buttressed by profound knowledge and state-of-the-art technology,” said winery’s oenologist Klavdija Topolovec Špur.

While the winery is currently in search of local distributors across the globe, the limited 2000 samples of the 2016 Untouched by Light vintage are now available to order at untouchedbylight.com only.

Radgonske Gorice winery has a 168-year-long tradition of sparkling wine production. It was inaugurated by Alojz Klenošek when Archduke John of Austria expanded the wine production in the region. Afterwards, the ownership of wine cellars was ceded to the Swiss-French Bouvier Family. 

Back to news