Wine101: Organic Wine

The organic movement is quickly growing and the wine industry is not about to miss out on it!

Organic wine is wine made from grapes grown in accordance with principles of organic farming, which typically excludes the use of artificial chemical fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides or herbicides. Technically, a wine cannot be organic itself as very often, preservatives like sulfur Dioxide/SO2 are added. So organic wine it is actually wine made from organically grown grapes.

In ‘conventional’ farming, chemical fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides are used to treat crops against disease and encourage higher volumes of production. Those chemical make their way up the roots to the leaves and fruits. A very small amount may actually have a detectable presence in the wines.

There are different levels of organic farming:

Some wineries have a ‘Natural’ approach, with full organic farming and no addition of preservatives. These ‘Natural’ wines, in most cases, are made for immediate consumption, because they don’t age or travel well. This is why it is quite unlikely we will find any here in Malaysia. They will be too sensitive to the climate.

Some wineries or even wine regions employ a fully sustainable approach. This means implementing the recycling of their rain water, creation of their own compost and re-introduction of specific wildlife (birds or insects) to fight actual disease among other sustainable actions. They allow themselves the uses of selected chemicals like copper or sulfates but only in dire cases on of disease attacks and not for systematic use.

Organic farming however, forbids the use of such chemicals. After a few years of rehabilitation, the vines produce healthier grapes that are more resistant to disease. Recently, the Kingdom of Bhutan took action to become the first country in the world to be 100% organic, banning the use of any chemicals in their lands. As far as I know, they do not produce wines but organic farming can be used in the cultivation of any crop.

Another level of organic farming is the biodynamic farming. Created in the 1920’s by Rudolf Steiner, an Austrian esotericist/philosopher/social reformer and architect, the approach emphasizes on the holistic development and interrelationships of the soil, plants and animals as a self-sustaining system. All natural treatment done in the vineyards are done following the cycle of the moon all for the improvement of the soil quality.

Sounds a bit crazy doesn’t it? Organic farming is not a guarantee to make better wines, but the grapes produced will definitely be much higher quality. you can actually feel the difference between drinking organic wines and regular wines (especially the next morning). Some organic farming methods like biodynamic farming seems a bit over the top for many. However, many of the most renowned wineries in the world do not apply it for nothing. For example, Domaine de La Romanée-Conti in Burgundy has implemented it for many years and produces one of the world’s most sought-after (and most expensive) wine.

Here at Wine Talk, we try to provide a wide range of good quality wines. We offer a few Organic Wines that have been produced using the best sustainable practices. Give them a try and let us know what you think of organic wines!