It’s Not Easy Being Green
No, this is not an homage to Kermit the Frog. It’s just that there are a lot of “green” words being thrown around in the wine world right now and it can be pretty confusing to wine drinkers that care about the planet. The Wine Witch is going to try and sort this out.
There are three main concepts - Sustainable, Organic, and Biodynamic. Within Organic and Biodynamic, the winery can be either non-certified or certified. My head is already spinning and I have done the research for this blog.
Let’s start with Sustainable. This is a self-proclaimed designation. There are no governing bodies of sustainability. It is a reference to the farming methods used in the vineyard. The goal of sustainable agriculture is to keep the long term health of the land in mind - to not deplete the soil of its ability to grow crops. Crops are rotated or the soil is allowed to rest and replenish itself after several plantings While one of the goals is to reduce chemicals, they still may be used to some degree in sustainable farming.
Organic is a word that has been in the vocabulary for a long time. There are many criteria in order to be considered Organic. Among them are not using any petroleum based fertilizers or herbicides. In order to be Certified Organic, the growing conditions must be inspected by a certifier approved by the government. All methods used must meet the USDA organic standards.
The new kid on the block is Biodynamic. Biodynamic winemakers treat the vineyard as a self-sustaining ecosystem. Think Organic on steroids. Examples of Biodynamic techniques are using ladybugs to kill other harmful insects or compost from the vineyard to fertilize the soil. Like Organic, Biodynamic vintners can be certified. Demeter is the international biodynamic regulating organization. Biodynamic vintners believe these techniques produce wines with clearer flavors and terroir (tastes like where it came from).
Unfortunately, most wineries who practice these techniques do not do a good job of noting it on the label. You really need to do some research. Also, as you can imagine these techniques are more costly so finding “green” wines under $15 can be a challenge. Going forward the Wine Witch will do her best to find value price, planet friendly wines and let you know about them.
Cheers!
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Tags: Demeter
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