Wine is going green. Like many of us trying to shrink our "carbon footprints" by using less electricity, recycling, or driving hybrid cars, the wine industry is becoming increasingly earth-friendly.
At the Fair Lakes Whole Foods Market in Fairfax, Va., customers gravitate to the "Earth Friendly" wine section, with 36 selections from around the world. At My Organic Market in Rockville, Md., the words "sustainable," "organic," and "biodynamic" appear next to the prices of earth-friendly wines. Chevy Chase Wine & Spirits in D.C. lists "green" wineries on its Web site. Biodynamic wines are singled out at Cork & Fork in Gainesville, Va., and the store’s new outpost in Maryland’s Bethesda Row. Organic and biodynamic wines at Franklin’s Restaurant, Brewery and General Store in Hyattsville, Md., come with promotional placards as big as the ones bearing Robert Parker’s seal of approval.
For wine, this is a dramatic change. Remember when "organic food" conjured images of bug-ridden lettuce and wormy apples at hippie co-ops? "Organic wine" used to mean oxidized juice trod by unwashed feet, destined to spoil in bottle before the cork was even pulled. The more chemicals dumped on the vineyard, it seemed, the better and more reliable the wine.
Now that organic foods are in demand and widely available, consumers are also responding to wineries that take care of their land. And vine-hugging wineries are learning that "green" buzzwords on a label help sell the product.
But just what are these trends? Are they real, or are they Madison Avenue marketing ploys? More importantly, can you taste the difference?
"Sustainable" viticulture has no legal definition, so it essentially means anything the winegrower wants it to mean. Sustainable is similar to organic, in that it reduces use of chemicals, except that vintners need not undergo an expensive certification process and they retain the ability to use chemical sprays if their crops are threatened by disease or pests.
"Organic" means the winery’s vineyard practices have been formally certified, most likely by a state agency. To be certified, the vineyard must be farmed organically – with no artificial pesticides, herbicides or fertilizers – for three years. Still, the word "organic" on a wine label is confusing: The USDA has decreed that an organic wine must be made without the addition of sulfites, a natural and essential preservative. That’s why you often see a wine "made with organically grown grapes" – this means the vineyard is farmed organically, even if the winery practices don’t meet some cockamamie government restriction.
"Biodynamic" farming goes beyond organics. Developed in the 1920s by the Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner, biodynamics takes a holistic approach that focuses on biodiversity. The vineyard is at once a closed eco-system and yet part of a greater cosmos. Winery and vineyard wastes are used to produce compost and natural fertilizers to feed the vines. An international organization called Demeter certifies biodynamic farms, including wineries, but like sustainable viticulture there is no government-decreed definition of "biodynamic."
Derided by skeptics as a religion or "voodoo agriculture" more than a farming system, biodynamics can sound downright kooky. It mandates burying cow horns filled with dung throughout the vineyard on the autumnal equinox, or pruning vines according to the phase of the moon, for example. Yet its adherents include some luminaries of the wine world, such as France’s Domaine Leroy, Coulée de Serrant, and Zind Humbrecht; Alvaro Palacios in Spain; and Germany’s Peter-Jakob Kühn. Steiner’s disciples in California include Benziger, Grgich Hills, Quintessa, Quivira, Robert Sinskey and Bonny Doon.
"The one thing that distinguishes biodynamics from other forms of agriculture is that it rejuvenates the land," says Mike Benziger, of Benziger Family Winery in Sonoma. "Each year we take a crop from the land, but we’re giving back fertility and vitality."
Benziger has championed biodynamics for more than a decade, using the method exclusively on the 260 acres his winery farms. He also works with 40 growers who farm an additional 1,100 acres, all of which now use one of the green methods.
Earth-friendly wines are also attractive to some restaurants that feature organic ingredients. At the new Redwood Restaurant and Bar in Bethesda Row, sommelier Brian Cook features "sustainable" wines, a rubric he uses to cover all three green viticulture methods.
"It’s something I believe in, and it’s an easy bridge to the food menu," Cook says. "We’re sourcing sustainable and organic ingredients as much as possible. So if a producer practices sustainable viticulture, I’ll be more inclined to pick up his wines."
Okay, so taking care of the earth is a good thing, we can agree on that. Is there a reason to seek out sustainable, organic or biodynamic wines other than we don’t like dumping chemicals into the ground?
In other words, can we TASTE it? Or is all this "green" talk a cynical appeal to our new eco-sensibilities?
"I can’t tell you in good conscience that biodynamic wines are better than other wines, but I can tell you they are different," Benziger says. That’s because they reflect a vineyard’s individual characteristics – its terroir – more clearly without the interference of artificial chemicals, he explains. In part that’s due to the use of natural yeasts that grow in the vineyard; commercial yeasts often are designed to emphasize characteristics of the grape variety or a specific style, no matter where the grapes are grown.
"With biodynamics, the grapes are able to express the characteristics of place," Benziger says. "With chemicals, all you get are the varietal flavors of the grape." In other words, a least common denominator.
There is no scientific evidence that biodynamic farming is superior to organic or even sustainable viticulture. And there is certainly no guarantee against bad winemaking, even with the b-word on the label. Yet if "wine is made in the vineyard," then it makes sense to take care of the vineyard, and to seek out wines grown by sustainable, organic or biodynamic methods. Made well, these wines often taste fresher, more vibrant and alive than most. As wine lovers, we want wines to convey a "sense of place," whether it be lush fruit balanced with ample acidity because of cool nights and ocean breezes, or the stony austerity of wines grown in poor soil on steep mountain slopes. We should applaud vintners who coax these expressions from their vineyards through their farming practices.
The nuances of these wines may not be readily apparent at first sip. Are these flavors a matter of faith, discernible only to true believers? I think not. If responsible farming can make a better tomato, it can make a better wine. Winemakers are learning to listen to how grapes express themselves in the vineyard, rather than controlling that expression through chemicals. We need to listen to how these new wines express themselves in the glass.
Benziger 2004 Tribute, Sonoma Mountain, $75 (certified biodynamic).
An explosive wine, strong, gritty and earthy, one that definitely speaks of the soil. The flavors are hard to pin down – currant, mocha, then stone, earth and spice. I wish I were as alive as this wine.
(A slightly condensed version of this article appeared in the November 2008 issue of Washingtonian magazine.)
Quivira 2006 Grenache, Dry Creek Valley, Wine Creek Ranch, $26 (certified biodynamic).
Austere and well-structured, this delicious wine resembles a Côtes-du-Rhône Village, such as a Vacqueyras or a Rasteau, only with a bit of California fruit and flair. Quivira also produces a
2007 Sauvignon Blanc, Fig Tree Vineyard, $18, that is supple with tropical fruit and hints of Asian spices.
Domaine Carabinièrs, Côtes-du-Rhône 2005, $10 (made with organically grown grapes).
"Mountain fruit," like the satisfaction you taste after a long vertical hike.
Lolonis Lady Bug Red, Cuvee VII, Redwood Valley, $13 (organically grown grapes).
A multi-year red blend based on Zinfandel and named for the lady bugs used as natural pest control in the vineyard, this is a great value for an everyday red, perfect for casual fare.
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