03/26/07 Organic Grape Farming

Welcome to Vine to Wine this is your host Linda Moran. Today we are answering a question from a friend of mine who asked me what with all of the emphasis upon being good stewards of the earth aren't there more organically grown grapes? The question of being a good steward to the land in the form of organic vinifera grape farming is an interesting one. However, while talking to my friend I realized that if it did not literally read organically grown on the label, the assumption was that the grapes were not grown with awareness or any form of stewardship. This could not be further from the truth. Many wine grape growers do in fact employ methods of sustainable agriculture and even organic farming. After all, Terroir, a term which emphasizes the importance of the land and the unique qualities of the place where the grapes are grown is very important to many wine producers. There is also growing concern about decreasing soil fertility among some of the large corporate wine growers in places like Australia, New Zealand, California and Washington. Many grape growers are looking for and being asked to explore more "sustainable" means of production. I think you would be surprised to know just how much of the grapes in your wine have been grown with a strong sense of perpetuity and the future of the land and the vineyards. Remember to send your wine questions to Linda at vine to wine dot net and thank you for joining me on today's Vine to Wine.