Twenty years after Philippe Drouhin first began introducing organic practices to the vineyards making up the family company’s domaine (estate), Maison Joseph Drouhin (MJD), the highly regarded producer of Burgundy wines, has been awarded organic certification for all grapes grown within its vineyards beginning with the 2009 vintage. Announcement of the certification was made by Frédéric Drouhin, chief executive officer and president of Joseph Drouhin.
Although the Drouhin vineyards have been organic for years, official regulations require a three- year “conversion” period during which the rules of organic production are applied and verified in the vineyards. The certification process began in August 2006 with a lengthy application to Ecocert, one of several registered companies documenting organic production.
While 2009 is the official vintage year for organic certification, Philippe Drouhin, one of the four siblings running MJD and the one in charge of the company’s 73-hectare (182.5-acre) estate, including 38 hectares (just under 93 acres) of Chablis, now known as Chablis Drouhin Vaudon, began introducing organic practices back in 1990, shortly after joining the family firm. His father, Robert, had already returned to “culture raisonnée,” more traditional viticultural practices, in the late ’70s, but, as he says, “Philippe went further than I.”
Since he took over, Philippe has moved away from all but the most simple and natural treatments of the vine toward a non-interventionist approach and, beginning in 1997, has instituted many of the practices of biodynamie. Considered a leader in the field by fellow Burgundians, Philippe’s credo – and that of the entire family and company – is to bring natural responses to natural problems. Some vineyards are plowed by horses in the steepest areas; grass grows between vines to keep down weeds, fertilization is with natural compost; and treatments are done with herb infusions.
While many wine marketers trumpet organic and “green” credentials with seals, stickers, neckers and brochures, Maison Joseph Drouhin, in its principled and understated way, will confine its achievement only to press releases and web site information. Consumers may be assured, however, that beginning with the 2009 vintage, wines from Joseph Drouhin vineyards, most bearing the words “propriété de famille” on the label, are officially organic – as they actually have been for the past 20 years.
Known and appreciated for their elegant, refined style, the wines of Joseph Drouhin are imported into the U.S. and distributed nationally by Dreyfus, Ashby & Co., based in New York City, whose mission as an importer is to maintain loyalty to all that is special about family-owned and
-operated wineries.
Demand for Australian organic and biodynamic wine continued to increase in 2009/10 despite the wine industry facing one of the largest surpluses in history, according to the Biological Farmers of Australia.
Many organic and biodynamic wine producers have reported record sales in the past year and have received international acclaim from the world’s top wine critics and wine shows.
After tasting 622 wines from 19 different countries, an international jury awarded 5 organic wines Grand Gold medals at BioFach 2010 in Nürnberg, Germany. These MUNDUSvini BioFach International Organic Wine awards went to:
2003 San Michele a Torri Vinsanto Colli del’Etruria Centrale DOC, Fattoria San Michele a Torri s.r.l., Scandicci, Italy
2006 Vougeot 1er Cru Clos Blanc de Vougeot Monopole, Domaine de la Vougeraie, Premeaux Prissey, France
2006 Welschriesling Trockenbeerenauslese, Bio Weingärtnerei Artner, Göttlesbronn, Austria
In all, 220 organic wines were awarded medals, including 70 Gold and 145 Silver. Italy received the most medals with 63. Germany netted 41 awards, France received 26 and Austria won 17.
Winemaker Heather Munden wishes she could just snap her fingers and turn her vineyards organic. The reality is a little harder. “Our first goal is to take 10 acres next to the winery and start with that,” she says. To do the whole thing at once is a little scary for people with no background in organics. If all goes well, we could have the entire homesite certified within five years.”
Like many of their California counterparts, St. Francis Winery & Vineyards has incorporated green practices into their business: a solar electrical system, energy-efficient lighting, electric carts and recycling. They’ve also brought more thoughtful methods to their growing process, using waste water for irrigation, starting a composting program and improving vineyard health with leaf removal and cover crops. So with all this dedication, why isn’t the next step of going organic a sure thing?
It’s a situation being playing out in wineries around the world. A younger generation of winemakers, raised on the idea that organic foods are better, are coming into established wineries and questioning whether organic grapes would make better wine as well. According to Munden, there are the usual economic concerns and internal politics, but it’s also a matter of education. “There is always fear of the unknown. What is organic? What is required of me? It’s not just the vineyard manager and tasting staff. The CFO has to understand and agree to it. What are the costs? We’re a business and we need to make money.”
Coming from a culinary background, where organic ingredients were the norm, Munden made some immediate changes when she became the newest winemaker at St. Francis three years ago. “We used some harsher chemicals in the past, and have backed off a lot of those. We’ve gotten rid of the majority of our sprays, and we’re spraying less with what we do use. We spent a lot more time in the vineyard. Canopy management. Leaf removal. More dry farming. Those changes have been huge.”
Munden then proposed farming ten acres of their home vineyards organically. “I just called it a ‘project’ so people wouldn’t get too worried.” She is working this year to improve soil health, add compost, plant cover crops and release beneficial insects into the soil. “It’s more physical. If I stop using Roundup I need more manual labor to remove weeds. Pulling weeds is difficult just in my own garden.”
Should the first 10 acres prove a success, they will extend these practices onto their entire homesite vineyard, which is 120 acres. “You need to learn to swim before you jump in the deep end. It’s all right if I lose some grapes here and there, but if I wipe out an entire vineyard because I went organic, I’m out of a job.” Munden also plans to apply for certification. “The piece of paper itself isn’t important, but it makes us more conscientious of what we’re doing and shows we’re committed.”
Munden’s colleagues have been supportive of her organic leanings, especially when they see the research she has put into it. Assistant Winemaker, Katie Madigan, was immediately on board, while Tom Mackey, Director of Winemaking, needed a little more convincing. “When Tom and I first talked he said ‘you don’t know enough.’ So I did my homework and wrote up a proposal and then he was like ‘yeah, let’s do this.’”
St. Francis has a supportive community awaiting them for organic advice and problem solving. Domaine Carneros, their sister winery, received their certification in 2008, and many of Munden’s friends already consult on organic vineyard management. It may be years down the road, but Munden thinks there may be an organic future for St. Francis’s other vineyards as well.
“It would be great if I could get my other growers to go organic. I’m going to start bringing one of my consultants when I do my grower tastings, talk to all of them and walk them through the process. The next step is to introduce sustainability, then after that talk organics to them. When you have 4th and 5th generation growers on their land, introducing something new takes encouragement. But some people surprise you and want to jump on board immediately.”
We like their organic and biodynamic practices, but we’ve recently learned of another reason to appreciate Napa Valley’s Ehlers Estate. One hundred percent of their proceeds go to the Leducq Foundation, a non-profit foundation dedicated to funding international cardiovascular research.
As a passionate philanthropist and a longtime sufferer from heart disease, Jean Leducq, and his wife Sylviane, established the Leducq Foundation to help fund cardiovascular research in 1996. The foundation was created with the idea that the fight against cardiovascular disease is international in scope. By forging and funding scientific alliances that transcend national borders, it efficiently uses its resources to support innovative cardiovascular research, while promoting international cooperation. No other foundation focuses in this area, and very few make international collaboration a cornerstone of the granting process.
Early on, the foundation was able to benefit from the help of eminent leaders in cardiology and cardiovascular surgery, who, in an inaugural meeting held in Paris in 1999, helped to define the mission, objectives and guidelines of the foundation. The Leducq Foundation awarded its first research grants in both Europe and the United States later that same year.
As part of its endowment, the Leducq Foundation holds Ehlers Estate in trust, with all proceeds from the sale of Ehlers Estate wines supporting the foundation’s philanthropic mission.
They say a glass of red wine a day is good for your heart. In the case of Ehlers Estate that would seem to be twice as true.
Wine importer J. Soif, Inc. has today announced two significant partnerships it has established through its certified organic wine brand, Yellow+Blue, making it the only carbon-neutral wine importer in the U.S. and the only wine importer in the world to put a portion of its sales towards global microloans.
Due to its eco-friendly Tetra Pak packaging, the carbon footprint of Yellow+Blue wines is 46% less than that of wine in traditional glass bottles. In order to offset the remaining 54%, the company has purchased 472 metric tons of verified carbon offsets to take responsibility for one hundred percent of the emissions generated by moving its wine from the vineyards to its packaging plants and warehouses. The carbon credits, which were purchased from Boulder, CO based Renewable Choice Energy, support a landfill gas-to-energy carbon reduction project in the United States.
“Yellow+Blue’s commitment to analyzing its environmental footprint and supporting carbon reduction shows leadership and demonstrates a best practice for environmental responsibility,” said Quayle Hodek, CEO of Renewable Choice Energy. “This organization is creating awareness for voluntary carbon reductions and the importance of investing in clean technology solutions.”
“Keeping in the spirit of our Drink Well Do Good mantra, oenophiles can not only enjoy our wine, they can feel good about buying it,” said W. Matthew Cain, founder of Yellow+Blue. “I’m proud to say that Yellow+Blue’s investment has the collective environmental impact to help avoid the same amount of CO2 emissions produced by driving nearly 1.1 million miles in an average passenger vehicle.”
Yellow+Blue has also devoted itself to strengthening the global community by becoming an official partner of Kiva (www.kiva.org), the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending website. Yellow+Blue is giving 1 percent of each sale to Kiva, which empowers unique entrepreneurs around the globe and strives to alleviate poverty. Currently, Yellow+Blue is the only wine brand in the world to join the Kiva community of over 662,000 individuals who have loaned more than $117 million to 290,000 entrepreneurs in 51 countries.
“Yellow+Blue’s decision to work with Kiva is an important milestone for both of our organizations,” said Premal Shah, President of Kiva.org. “We’re looking forward to all the positive things to come from this partnership and admire its dedication in helping to make Kiva the world’s hub for alleviating poverty.”
“Our commitment to Kiva strives to enable entrepreneurs throughout the world to realize their dreams of creating a company and giving back to their communities,” said W. Matthew Cain, founder of Yellow+Blue. “As the only wine company affiliated with the organization, we hope that with each glass of Yellow+Blue poured, an entrepreneur somewhere in the world is a step closer achieving his or her goal.”
Organic Wine Review is a brand new site featuring short, informative and entertaining reviews of organic and biodynamic wines. Their team consists of host Winston Jones, sommelier Jennifer Arye and “average wine guy” Brent Harrison. We will be posting some of their reviews here, and you can find all their videos at their website organicwinereview.com.
Here is their latest video – a review of Frog’s Leap Zinfandel 2006.
Twenty years after Philippe Drouhin first began introducing organic practices to the vineyards making up the family company’s domaine (estate), Maison Joseph Drouhin (MJD), the highly regarded producer of Burgundy wines, has been awarded organic certification for all grapes grown within its vineyards beginning with the 2009 vintage. Announcement of the certification was made by Frédéric Drouhin, chief executive officer and president of Joseph Drouhin.
Winemaker Heather Munden wishes she could just snap her fingers and turn her vineyards organic. The reality is a little harder. “Our first goal is to take 10 acres next to the winery and start with that,” she says. To do the whole thing at once is a little scary for people with no background in organics. If all goes well, we could have the entire homesite certified within five years.”
