Living green is no longer a trend espoused by a tree-hugging earth-protecting
fringe. It’s now entered the realm of sound science and has also clearly
entered the public psyche as an important step to conserve the world in
which we live. While politicians continue the debate over whether the danger
posed to our environment by mankind is real or imagined, more sensible citizens
are taking action on their own. And winemakers have not been sitting on
the sidelines.
Organic wines, long misunderstood and largely overlooked, have
established a foothold in the industry and are making real inroads
toward popularity. The trend is not new, but the embrace of the industry
and the public is. With each new organic harvest, winemakers’ ability to
turn grapes grown with environmentally sound practices into an accessible
and drinkable product reaches ever-higher planes.
Just as with defining “green”
living, among the biggest hurdles still faced by organic winemakers
is public awareness. What is organic wine? What does it mean to
grow organic grapes? Why is growing organic important? A primer:
Growing
grapes and bottling wine are two different things and that separation
remains when it comes to defining organic. There are many steps
involved in putting organic wine in a bottle and therefore many variations
in the term “organic.” Indeed one of the continuing discussions in the organic
debates is who gets to call a wine organic and why.
It starts in
the vineyard. Any grape grown using chemical fertilizers, pesticides,
herbicides or the like is immediately nixed from the discussion.
A biodynamic vineyard—one in which naturally healthy soils, insects
and other plants that help, not hurt, the vines, etc.— is the essential
starting point for organic wines. Once grapes get out of the ground
without chemical help, they should also be processed organically, meaning
without artificial manipulation or flavor additives. Additionally, organic
winemakers are increasingly using wild yeast for fermentation. Next is the
organic sticky wicket—the addition, or lack thereof, of sulfites. Hotly
debated in the organic winemaking community, the addition of sulfites is
viewed by some as a cardinal sin, by others as not so big a deal. After
all, sulfite-free wine does not exist, it is a natural byproduct
of the fermentation process. But organic sticklers maintain that the addition
of sulfites artificially to the winemaking process renders it out of the
organic bounds. In the US, wines labeled organic cannot contain sulfites
(instead they are labeled “made from organic grapes”). Not so with European
organics.
Which brings us
to the most troublesome matter of who gets to call a wine organic
and why. The role of certification, which every organic winemaker
covets, is a work in progress. Standards are continually being adjusted
and (though contrary to the term “standards”) different countries—even
different states—maintain differing standards. For this reason, many winemakers
chose to sidestep the whole certification thing in spite of their
organic practices. Often, it’s a decision based on marketability.
The market for certified organic wine is still in its infancy, though wineries
using organic methods and bottling an organic product are far greater
in number. Ultimately it’s about good farming and a good product. Perhaps
the biggest trend in organic winemaking is one of the greater
good. Sustainable farming is at once good for the environment
and good for the consumer. More winemakers are working in a sustainable
way, whether or not they seek “organic” on their labels.
The
2003 Code of Sustainable Winegrowing Practices,” created in part
by the California Association of Winegrape
Growers, has helped create healthy vineyards throughout Wine
Country, establishing best practices on everything from pest
and water management to wine quality to environmental stewardship.
Vineyards leading the charge in this area include Robert Sinskey,
Bonterra, Frey Vineyards, Frog’s Leap, and ZD Wines—all wineries
that would rather tell you about their great wine than about their
organic wine.
Manic
for Organic