Organic Wines

[Rebel Rose]

Organic Wine as Clear as Mud

Despite two decades of research, I am very little clearer on what exactly constitutes an 'organic' wine.

Is there anything as outrageous as Gallo, Blossom Hill, or Jacob’s Creek, the ubiquitous, cloying branded drinks masquerading as “wines” that I love to hate? Well, yes: a keen competitor is the organic wine movement, and with National Organic Week upon us, we will all be subjected to piles of green hogwash between now and the end of it. Organic wine continues to be one of Times readers’ most frequently raised interests, with many understandably muddled by what does and does not make a wine “organic”. 

[Rebel Rose]

Defining ‘organic’ after a product has left the ground and begins going through a process can be a very subjective thing. If a winery is marketing itself as organic, should it make every effort to fulfill consumer expectations?

I find this topic interesting because I am always intrigued by customer perceptions vs. the realities of winemaking.

There have been arguments presented on other organic practices threads elsewhere, and probably here too, that the choices of site, rootstock, vine clone, trellis type, pruning practices, and amount of irrigation are intrinsically forms of flavor manipulation by the winemaker. However, I suggest we assume that if it’s in the ground, and being farmed responsibly and organically, that we are starting with an organic product.

So if it were up to us to define organic wine—which is an interesting exercise because apparently it is—how far do we drill down? Down to components actually stirred into the wine? Or down to components that come in contact with the wine and are hopefully removed later?

Yeasts

Some people object to the use of 'commercial' yeasts in organic wine. I think you should decide for yourselves on this issue, certainly.

Commercial yeasts are not mutated, cybernetic or artificial. All yeasts propagate wildly (so to speak). Commercial yeasts are harvested in the field and then propagated in isolation to protect the purity of the strain--in much the same way that heirloom tomatoes and other heirloom plants are propagated.

When choosing from a commercial yeast selection, winemakers can select Bordeaux yeasts, Brunello yeasts, Riesling yeasts, etc. Each yeast brings out different characteristics in the wine. 'Wild' yeasts are comprised of a multitude of floating yeasts with different characteristics; some are fast, light fermentors, others are long-distance runners.

Yeasts float around, escape, and propagate on their own, as anyone who has cleaned a refrigerator can attest. If a 'wild yeast' producer is on a wine road heavily populated with other wineries, the 'wild' yeasts are primarily escapees from the other wine farms.

I'd also like to point out that producers of organic breads do not wait for native yeasts to hop in their dough. (Not sure I'd want to see the result if they did!) Ditto for organic yogurts--they use pure lactobacillus cultures.

I am merely pointing out that commercial yeasts are just cleanly propagated strains, without the chaos and bacteria that are part of wild yeast populations. Did you know that Brettanomyces bacteria exist in all vineyards? A heavy Brett population in high pH wines (which seem to be the latest trend) will very likely bloom later in the bottle.

SO2

Some organic wine producers use SO2 and some eschew the practice. For several years we produced 25 cases a year of old vine zinfandel for a private client, sans SO2. It was wonderful wine if kept very cool and drunk young. A very fun project, and one that led us into a deeper relationship with the old vine zin grower. However, these wines will quickly develop off characteristics, and lose pigment. With a little residual sugar in the wine, you'll have stink bomb in your cellar. These wines will develop secondary fermentations—they open with an alarming pop and literally spew little clouds of funky haze.

Copper sulfate

Among many things that can be, and traditionally are, added to wine, I am very sensitive to copper. It is used to brighten wines that for some reason have become oxidized. An organic producer would presumably stir the wine with a copper rod or splash the wine over a copper screen. Large, commercial producers simply add liquid copper sulfate—an eerie blue liquid. Copper levels in wine are highly regulated worldwide, but it’s interesting to note that a metabolic copper imbalance will induce headaches, palpitations and even hallucinations. Hah, and we thought it was just the alcohol!

Filtering and fining

These are natural substances that contact the wine—sometimes briefly, sometimes for a period of several days. Should all organic wines be unfiltered and unfined? It’s certainly possible to make such wines, but without additions of SO2 we are increasing the probability of truly nasty wine. If they are used, where should they come from? Should only substances raised on the vineyard be used?

Modern use of ceramic crossflow filters and micron filter pads for bottling lines have reduced dependence on old-fashioned pad filters, which use diatomaceous earth for coating the pads. But DE filters are still popular because they are affordable and easy to use. DE is ground microscopic shells. We occasionally use our DE filter—only on high pigment, high Brix wines. I also sprinkle DE on my dog’s food (expels worms) and on my garden (snails and earwigs). But I am not going to wade into the Pacific Ocean and harvest it. I can never get the wave timing down. So we buy it in 40# bags.

Fining substances are stirred into the wine and allowed to settle to the bottom of the barrel—they attract and bind proteinaceous haze and other particles, carrying them down to the bottom and sealing them in a fine layer before the wine is racked off the lees. Fining agents include bentonite, which is liquefied clay. We do not use it in the winery, but I drink it several times a week—it’s an ancient detoxifier. I do not eat it directly from our soils, however, I buy the Sonne’s Organic Foods clay, all cleaned up and filtered, and available in an old-fashioned brown 1 quart jar. Another fining agent is ‘isinglass,’ a pretty name for a god-awful smelling powder made of dried sturgeon’s bladder. Again, we do not use it but I understand many chefs and pastry artists do—combined with water it forms a gelatinous muck that can be dried to a durable layer as fine as a young woman’s skin. Charcoal was once used as a fining agent, although it became unpopular because it stripped color and flavor from the wine—in our home we keep activated charcoal capsules on hand for stomach upsets. I highly recommend it, as it works quickly and efficiently for any kind of gastrointestinal distress. A must for travel. Occasionally we use egg whites for fining, although I don’t think we have actually fined a wine for several years. Generally one/quarter white per barrel is used. I buy most of our eggs. Does that make them a commercial product?

Cleansing agents

And finally, how is hygiene handled at an ‘organic’ winery? Does it matter what agents come in contact with the barrels and tanks, the hoses, clamps, beakers, bungs, and stirrers? Does it matter where those agents come from or how they are produced? Even with the advent of modern ozenators, citric acid and metabisulfite are still all purpose cleansers of choice at most wineries, but I have also seen iodine used to sterilize tanks. Although we use our ozenator for almost everything, we still keep a 60# bag of citric acid handy for those moments when we need to soak something—a gasket with heavy pigment residue, or a bucket full of clamps, hose gaskets and tools that we want to keep sterile during harvest chaos. I also use it in our dishwasher—the glasses come out sparkling clean, and it dilutes waxy lipstick. It’s also great for soaking burned pots and cleaning greenhouse pots.

Labor

This is one of my personal fits, so please excuse me if I rant a little. There are wineries out there that receive a lot of press for ‘organic’ or ‘biodynamic’ practices. What is not publicized is that they hire large teams of itinerant, underpaid, and unappreciated workers to turn their compost piles, hoe around every vine, and perform the other backbreaking and tedious physical work required in such an enterprise. And yet some firms, which claim only to be ‘sustainable’, are small family-owned business—yes, like us, and like our neighbors—where the family members actually acquire blisters in the vineyard and the kids mow the cover crop. (What better way to keep them entertained and teach them driving skills?) We choose to use Roundup, a systemic herbicide, under the vineyard rows each spring because there is simply no way we can keep up with hoeing all summer and have a meaningful life. (Sorry, end rant.)

In closing I will ask—when you are looking for an organic product, what are you looking for? Something with no mechanical intervention at all? Something with no added substances, but hang the hygiene and labor? Do you want the definition of organic to be simple or thorough? Are you looking for something that is produced with care, commitment, and a sense of responsibility to man and earth at every level? I would like to hear your opinions.

[Daddy-A]

Similar questions are being asked here in British Columbia.

The Dirt on Organic Wines

"It's not just a BC phenomenon - you see it all over. But trends start here in BC. Look at the success of Capers, Choices; Safeway keeps expanding its organic section," Hopgood said, referring to retails stores with significant organic food offerings.

But with that said, Hopgood points out that there are only 23 organic wine listings out of the LDB's roughly 2,500 available wines, plus a few organic beers, sakes and spirits.

A.

[JohnL]

Organic Wine as Clear as Mud

Despite two decades of research, I am very little clearer on what exactly constitutes an 'organic' wine.

Is there anything as outrageous as Gallo, Blossom Hill, or Jacob’s Creek, the ubiquitous, cloying branded drinks masquerading as “wines” that I love to hate? Well, yes: a keen competitor is the organic wine movement, and with National Organic Week upon us, we will all be subjected to piles of green hogwash between now and the end of it. Organic wine continues to be one of Times readers’ most frequently raised interests, with many understandably muddled by what does and does not make a wine “organic”. 

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Is there anything more outrageous than snarky wine writers who can't resist taking shots at wines they "hate" even though the comments have nothing to do with the topic at hand?

ok now that I have gotten that out of the way....

The first problem with "organic" is defining it--arsenic and potassium cyanide are "organic."

(so is sulphur dioxide and crude oil).

Secondly, the use of "organic" often has nothing to do with producing a good end product--it is some sort of altruistic /religious thing both for the producer and the consumer.

It also is used as a marketing gimmick to garner higher prices or to leverage a product against non organic competition.

That said--there is nothing really wrong with wanting to be a good citizen. Just that the "organic" movement is not just about being a good citizen and good farming practices toward the goal of producing better quality products. It is a "movement" whose lofty goals are often dubious and go well beyond good food or wine. it deserves the same scrutiny as any "movement."

In the end--to me--it is more important what is in the glass.

The wines of leroy and Zind Humbrecht are certainly amazing--I do not know if their quality is enhanced or a direct result of the "organic" farming and vinification techniques or not.

I have had good "organic" chickens and bad one's--at the moment I actually prefer basic non "organic" supermarket chickens having tired of rubbery flavorless "organic" free range samples.

So where do we come to agreement on what exactly is "organic."?

and

How do we sort out all the non quality related issues--the marketing hype the near religious zealotry?

I simply don't--I just buy the products that offer good flavor--that I like to eat and drink.

[Craig Camp]

There is no such thing as organic produce unless that produce is grown in a totally isolated environment. Just because you farm organically does not mean that your production is truly organic.

For example, last vintage we lost 4 acres of organically farmed pinot gris to 2,4-D contamination from some unknown neighbor. 2,4-D in the right conditions has been shown to travel twenty miles from the application site: so much for organic grapes. By the way you can tell when your vineyard is hit as all the leaves start to wither and die. No leaves - no photosynthesis - no grapes. The chemicals being applied to your neighbors fields are also being applied to yours.

The one thing that the "organic" label means to me is that the farmer is more committed to their land and willing to do extra work to produce high quality fruit. Making the commitment to organic or L.I.V.E agriculture shows that the grower is dedicated to quality. I believe most grape growers taking this route do it because they believe it is the road to making better wine, not just because of a commitment to the environment.

[jsolomon]

I hate to draw an analogy like this, but every time someone brings up "organic" pedantism rears up nearly as large as in the United Nations who decide that every time someone says "genocide" a whole new round of debates of what genocide actually is starts.

Every time someone talks about "organic blat" we get more responses about organic than blat.

That tells me that being organic is generally more about hype than actuality. Now, me being a trained chemist, I will have to take umbrage at JohnL calling arsenic (an element that is not carbon) organic. Potassium cyanide has three elements in it: carbon, potassium, and nitrogen. The presence of carbon makes it organic--in a truly pedantic sense.

So, what do I expect? Well, I like the use of things that are poisonous to me at low levels minimized. So, sulfur dioxide and copper sulfate are two things I don't generally like to see. However, when I brew wine, I do add the sodium metabisulfite to kill the yeast--so I'm hypocritical. Copper sulfate, though? Nah. I eat way too many green things to need more copper in my diet. Much more and my blood will turn into Mr. Spock's.

For filtration? Actually, I prefer none. I know many people think that an appropriate wine should be crystal clear and boldly sparkling. But, I like to be reminded that some little yeasty-beasties gave their all to make my fine drink. So, if there's a little yeast haze in there, or some sludge in the bottom, so be it. Having a reminder that my food had a long trip from field to table is no sin.

Isinglass is an interesting subject. To my knowledge, it is simply gelatin--i.e. collagen that has been hydrolyzed with heat and water. I do not know what the difference in structures between beef gelatin (jello) and fish swim bladder gelatin is. And, even though I have spent a considerable amount of time studying protein chemistry, I find it hard to find the effort to care. Use what works.

For cleansing agents, I have a hard time coming down to a small group. Clean rinsers are always a benefit, so we're talking citric cleansers, peroxides, and the like. Hot water is always a benefit. But, there are a number of products out there and this is an area of active research, so I will allow the market to drive this sector, too.

But, here's my question: last Saturday, I was at a bar where an educated lady in charge of millions of dollars of accounts with a major bank was arguing with me because she didn't believe that yeast was used in the making of wine.

So, don't we still have some foundation-building education yet to do?

[MaxH]

I hate to draw an analogy like this, but every time someone brings up "organic" pedantism rears up . . .

Now, me being a trained chemist, I will have to take umbrage at JohnL calling arsenic (an element that is not carbon) organic.  Potassium cyanide has three elements in it: carbon, potassium, and nitrogen.  The presence of carbon makes it organic--in a truly pedantic sense. . . .

Isinglass is an interesting subject.  To my knowledge, it is simply gelatin--i.e. collagen that has been hydrolyzed with heat and water.  I do not know what the difference in structures between beef gelatin (jello) and fish swim bladder gelatin is.  . . .

last Saturday, I was at a bar where an educated lady in charge of millions of dollars of accounts with a major bank was arguing with me because she didn't believe that yeast was used in the making of wine. / So, don't we still have some foundation-building education yet to do?

Not my business to speak for JohnL but as an observer, I took his comment on Arsenic in a common, rather than the chemists', sense of "organic," viz. naturally occurring. (I'm not a chemist but do have some formal training in it and if I recall, JohnL is a physician, therefore has some too.) He was making a broader point I think, a classic one: some nasty hazards to humanity are all-natural.

Isinglass's significance (as far as I can tell from running into it in many older writings on food these past 30 yrs) may reflect its venerability, not just its material properties.

I agree about the foundation-building education, this is an incessant problem, I could tell some stories too.

On to the original subject: Some of you may remember when Fetzer vineyards in Mendocino County, California, was owned by the Fetzer family. Part of the firm's claim to fame then, cited regularly in wine writing, was organic farming. It helped put Fetzer, the firm, on the map as well as promote the organic angle in California. When driving nearby I saw the extent of Fetzer plantings adjacent the highway then, which may possibly have exposed the plants to more than usual exhaust-borne pollutants -- no real health hazard to my knowledge, but illustrating, just as JohnL did, the further factors that enter even with organic farming.

[jsolomon]

On to the original subject:  Some of you may remember when Fetzer vineyards in Mendocino County, California, was owned by the Fetzer family.  Part of the firm's claim to fame then, cited regularly in wine writing, was organic farming.  It helped put Fetzer, the firm, on the map as well as promote the organic angle in California.  When driving nearby I saw the extent of Fetzer plantings adjacent the highway then, which may possibly have exposed the plants to more than usual exhaust-borne pollutants -- no real health hazard to my knowledge, but illustrating, just as JohnL did, the further factors that enter even with organic farming.

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I'm painfully aware of the further factors that enter into organic farming. I live in a predominantly agricultural state. My parents are farmers. The best man in my wedding has had me assist him in getting information on being certified organic. Many of my family friends are organic farmers.

I have much more exposure to this phenomenon than most. So, I think I have a better vantage point to say that it is generally more hype than anything else. With respect to nutrition, there is little difference between an economy grown cut of beef vs an organically grown cut of beef. So, why does one garner so much more price? Well, I can only see part of it as the cost of production. Much more of it comes from hype and marketing. Why else would companies like Whole Foods be able to spring up a whole economy on it?

But, it always seems to start a "more organic than thou" war which, as I put previously, reminds me of people with too much ego in what they do instead of why they do it.

[JohnL]

I hate to draw an analogy like this, but every time someone brings up "organic" pedantism rears up . . .

Now, me being a trained chemist, I will have to take umbrage at JohnL calling arsenic (an element that is not carbon) organic.  Potassium cyanide has three elements in it: carbon, potassium, and nitrogen.  The presence of carbon makes it organic--in a truly pedantic sense. . . .

Isinglass is an interesting subject.  To my knowledge, it is simply gelatin--i.e. collagen that has been hydrolyzed with heat and water.  I do not know what the difference in structures between beef gelatin (jello) and fish swim bladder gelatin is.  . . .

last Saturday, I was at a bar where an educated lady in charge of millions of dollars of accounts with a major bank was arguing with me because she didn't believe that yeast was used in the making of wine. / So, don't we still have some foundation-building education yet to do?

Not my business to speak for JohnL but as an observer, I took his comment on Arsenic in a common, rather than the chemists', sense of "organic," viz. naturally occurring. (I'm not a chemist but do have some formal training in it and if I recall, JohnL is a physician, therefore has some too.) He was making a broader point I think, a classic one: some nasty hazards to humanity are all-natural.

Isinglass's significance (as far as I can tell from running into it in many older writings on food these past 30 yrs) may reflect its venerability, not just its material properties.

I agree about the foundation-building education, this is an incessant problem, I could tell some stories too.

On to the original subject: Some of you may remember when Fetzer vineyards in Mendocino County, California, was owned by the Fetzer family. Part of the firm's claim to fame then, cited regularly in wine writing, was organic farming. It helped put Fetzer, the firm, on the map as well as promote the organic angle in California. When driving nearby I saw the extent of Fetzer plantings adjacent the highway then, which may possibly have exposed the plants to more than usual exhaust-borne pollutants -- no real health hazard to my knowledge, but illustrating, just as JohnL did, the further factors that enter even with organic farming.

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Thanks Max--

I knew this would cause a bit of confusion-which I realized after I had shut down the computer and left for the country.

You are correct--I used the examples in a broad context--not "organic" but rather "naturally occurring."

I am not a doctor though--for the record.

[JohnL]

There is no such thing as organic produce unless that produce is grown in a totally isolated environment. Just because you farm organically does not mean that your production is truly organic.

For example, last vintage we lost 4 acres of organically farmed pinot gris to 2,4-D contamination from some unknown neighbor. 2,4-D in the right conditions has been shown to travel twenty miles from the application site: so much for organic grapes. By the way you can tell when your vineyard is hit as all the leaves start to wither and die. No leaves - no photosynthesis - no grapes. The chemicals being applied to your neighbors fields are also being applied to yours.

The one thing that the "organic" label means to me is that the farmer is more committed to their land and willing to do extra work to produce high quality fruit. Making the commitment to organic or L.I.V.E agriculture shows that the grower is dedicated to quality. I believe most grape growers taking this route do it because they believe it is the road to making better wine, not just because of a commitment to the environment.

←

Could you elaborate just a bit on that contamination example you offer?

also--

you are on to something in that there should be a distinction between "artisinal" and "organic."

I do agree about the motivation, though in the end--there is no guarantee that the final product is, in fact, better qualitatively.

[Craig Camp]

There is no such thing as organic produce unless that produce is grown in a totally isolated environment. Just because you farm organically does not mean that your production is truly organic.

For example, last vintage we lost 4 acres of organically farmed pinot gris to 2,4-D contamination from some unknown neighbor. 2,4-D in the right conditions has been shown to travel twenty miles from the application site: so much for organic grapes. By the way you can tell when your vineyard is hit as all the leaves start to wither and die. No leaves - no photosynthesis - no grapes. The chemicals being applied to your neighbors fields are also being applied to yours.

The one thing that the "organic" label means to me is that the farmer is more committed to their land and willing to do extra work to produce high quality fruit. Making the commitment to organic or L.I.V.E agriculture shows that the grower is dedicated to quality. I believe most grape growers taking this route do it because they believe it is the road to making better wine, not just because of a commitment to the environment.

←

Could you elaborate just a bit on that contamination example you offer?

also--

you are on to something in that there should be a distinction between "artisinal" and "organic."

I do agree about the motivation, though in the end--there is no guarantee that the final product is, in fact, better qualitatively.

←

There is not much to elaborate on. You're doing a regular vineyard walk-though and you look around you and all the leaves are curling up and dying. When you see it, it is very clear what the problem is, but almost impossible to prove whom is responsible.

True there is no guarantee on quality from an organic label, but when it comes to wine, few producers who practice organic agriculture put an "organic" label on their wines. While many organic wine growers farm this way partially because of the environment, I believe most do it as they believe they will make better wines. I think the same is true for bio-dynamic farmers.

[JohnL]

There is no such thing as organic produce unless that produce is grown in a totally isolated environment. Just because you farm organically does not mean that your production is truly organic.

For example, last vintage we lost 4 acres of organically farmed pinot gris to 2,4-D contamination from some unknown neighbor. 2,4-D in the right conditions has been shown to travel twenty miles from the application site: so much for organic grapes. By the way you can tell when your vineyard is hit as all the leaves start to wither and die. No leaves - no photosynthesis - no grapes. The chemicals being applied to your neighbors fields are also being applied to yours.

The one thing that the "organic" label means to me is that the farmer is more committed to their land and willing to do extra work to produce high quality fruit. Making the commitment to organic or L.I.V.E agriculture shows that the grower is dedicated to quality. I believe most grape growers taking this route do it because they believe it is the road to making better wine, not just because of a commitment to the environment.

←

Could you elaborate just a bit on that contamination example you offer?

also--

you are on to something in that there should be a distinction between "artisinal" and "organic."

I do agree about the motivation, though in the end--there is no guarantee that the final product is, in fact, better qualitatively.

←

There is not much to elaborate on. You're doing a regular vineyard walk-though and you look around you and all the leaves are curling up and dying. When you see it, it is very clear what the problem is, but almost impossible to prove whom is responsible.

True there is no guarantee on quality from an organic label, but when it comes to wine, few producers who practice organic agriculture put an "organic" label on their wines. While many organic wine growers farm this way partially because of the environment, I believe most do it as they believe they will make better wines. I think the same is true for bio-dynamic farmers.

←

Thanks

Actually I was hoping you would explain what "2-4D contamination" is exactly.

Your post is interesting and I am not up on the technical problem you noted.

[jsolomon]

2,4-D is a herbicide used as a general use herbicide. It kills broadleaf weeds (dicotyledonous plants) but leaves plants related to the grasses, like maize, wheat, and rice because they are monocotyledonous. 2,4-D mimics a growth factor used by dicots and not used in monocots.

Grapes are dicots.

The method in which it travels is simply by evaporating and being taken up by the plants. If you look at the wikipedia entry I linked to at the top, and look at the wikipedia entry for benzene, you will see they both share a hexagonal structure. In chemistry, this type of carbon formation is known as an aromatic ring. The effect this has is it lowers the heat of vaporization for these molecules, so they evaporate much easier--hence aromatic, forming an aroma.

So, a farmer sprays 2,4-D on a field to rid himself of broadleaf weeds, but if the wind is blowing a significant amount of the 2,4-D can travel a long way simply due to its high vapor pressure. Then, since grapes transpire air just like all living plants, they can absorb the airborne 2,4-D and be injured by it.

The problem is, depending on the prevailing winds, the concentration applied, and aerodynamic factors of how the wind is blowing, 2,4-D causing injury to other plants can evolve from many miles off. This makes the burden of proof very high for the injured grape producer. It is simply very difficult to show where it came from.

[MaxH]

If you look at the wikipedia entry I linked to at the top, and look at the wikipedia entry for benzene, you will see they both share a hexagonal structure.  In chemistry, this type of carbon formation is known as an aromatic ring.

Benzene rings. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em.

--M

[jsolomon]

Benzene rings.  Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em.

--M

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Jeez oh Pete! They're even in essential amino acids!

[Craig Camp]

There is no such thing as organic produce unless that produce is grown in a totally isolated environment. Just because you farm organically does not mean that your production is truly organic.

For example, last vintage we lost 4 acres of organically farmed pinot gris to 2,4-D contamination from some unknown neighbor. 2,4-D in the right conditions has been shown to travel twenty miles from the application site: so much for organic grapes. By the way you can tell when your vineyard is hit as all the leaves start to wither and die. No leaves - no photosynthesis - no grapes. The chemicals being applied to your neighbors fields are also being applied to yours.

The one thing that the "organic" label means to me is that the farmer is more committed to their land and willing to do extra work to produce high quality fruit. Making the commitment to organic or L.I.V.E agriculture shows that the grower is dedicated to quality. I believe most grape growers taking this route do it because they believe it is the road to making better wine, not just because of a commitment to the environment.

←

Could you elaborate just a bit on that contamination example you offer?

also--

you are on to something in that there should be a distinction between "artisinal" and "organic."

I do agree about the motivation, though in the end--there is no guarantee that the final product is, in fact, better qualitatively.

←

There is not much to elaborate on. You're doing a regular vineyard walk-though and you look around you and all the leaves are curling up and dying. When you see it, it is very clear what the problem is, but almost impossible to prove whom is responsible.

True there is no guarantee on quality from an organic label, but when it comes to wine, few producers who practice organic agriculture put an "organic" label on their wines. While many organic wine growers farm this way partially because of the environment, I believe most do it as they believe they will make better wines. I think the same is true for bio-dynamic farmers.

←

Thanks

Actually I was hoping you would explain what "2-4D contamination" is exactly.

Your post is interesting and I am not up on the technical problem you noted.

←

Sorry, I misunderstood your question - jsolomon is exactly right. The problem here is not only is the Willamette Valley a great place for Pinot Noir, it is a great place for grass. There is a huge grass seed industry here and the conflicts with the grape industry are obvious from the above discussion.

The result is there is no such thing as truly organic Willamette Valley grapes. This does not mean there are not dedicated growers doing their best to minimize this impact by farming their own property organically. I know of no one who is farming their grapes organically whose goal is not to make better wine.

[Rebel Rose]

Craig, I see the Anne Amie blog hasn't had any winery reports in a month. Are you in the thick of crush? Can you tell us more about the vineyards you are currently harvesting?