Sustainable Wines for Summer!
Sustainable Alcohol? Yes, Sustainable Alcohol. There should be standards around how we produce our wines and fine liquors. Sustainable wine includes the environmental protection and preservation of vineyard lands by choosing to grow grapes organically, processed organically, pesticide free, and making sure water waste is low. There are many more things that can go into a sustainable wine production such as the processing of the wine. The packaging of the wine. How are the bottles made? How are the labels printed? Did you get the wine shipped to you? Did you drive an extra 10 minutes to find that perfect bottle? Is it accessible? Does the price reflect its quality? And.... WHAT are you going to do with that cork?
Cheers to Sustainability and being conscious about our decisions even when we are a little tipsy!
Here are a few things to think about when deciding if a winery is operating sustainably:
1) Insect Prevention: Preventing insects from destroying grapes can be important, but can be done by using other prey versus chemicals
2) Water use: Investing in technology that reduces wasted water and recycling water on property can reduce water resource input. Other methods may include rain water harvesting to reduce the need of importing fresh water for crops.
3) Soil Health: The vineyard should allow the soil to recover before drawing out more and more nutrients. Minimal use of added synthetic nutrients and preserve the natural state of the vineyard.
Here are a few ways to shop as an informed sustainable consumer:
1) Look for sustainable wine certifications on the bottle (California Sustainable Wine Growing)
2) Shop via a wine platform such as Winc. These platforms may feature a tab which lists all bottles that are produced sustainably.
3) Research at home before shopping.
4) Buy organic wine, this may have a shorter shelf life, but can be an indicator that the winery was using processes in the grape growing and processing to reduce environmental consequences.
5) Ask a professional!
6) Do not be shocked if you have to spend an extra dollar or two on your weekly wine Wednesday bottle....that is not to say that there isn't great affordable sustainable wines.
Are you a wine lover?
Reds:
Tortoise Creek Pinot Noir 2018
Ancient Peaks Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon 2017
Willamette Valley Vineyards Whole Cluster Pinot Noir 2018
Whites:
Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc
Frog's Leap Sauvignon Blanc
Hahn Monterey Chardonnay 2018
Roses:
... not a huge Rose lover... So I will have to get back to you on this one....
Until I pop open my next wine bottle, cheers to a sustainable glass