The search for organic wine

If you’re like me, you like wine. A lot. I enjoy a glass of wine with dinner, or after dinner, or any other time for that matter.

A few nights ago I poured myself a glass of my favorite Noir, put my feet up, and started flipping through the electronic guide on my television. I settled on a program on the Planet Green channel called The G Word. Yes, there is a Planet Green channel, and it is exactly what it sounds like: a channel devoted entirely to programming about sustainable living and green issues. This particular episode had a fascinating segment on organic winemaking. I looked down at my glass. Why wasn’t drinking organic wine? So I’ve decided to investigate.

What is organic wine? Where can I get it? And the most frightening question: is it any good?

My first discovery was the Organic Wine Journal, a great source for the basics on organic wine. Organic wine is made using (take a guess) organic grapes. In other words, no fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, etc. are used in the production of an organic wine. To qualify as an organic wine, the winemaking techniques also have to be organic. There are winemakers that use organic grapes, but also add sulfites to their wine. Sulfites are a preservative and are common in many wines. As a result, some wine bottles will have a label that says, “Made from Organic Grapes,” which technically is not the same thing.

According to this recent article posted on the environmental news site Grist, the best wines already avoid the use of too many chemicals out of fear that the chemicals may damage the taste of the wine. So that’s good news! Although I doubt that the demand for organic wines is overwhelming right now, I’d like to think that there are good organic wines out there.

Now that I know what an organic wine is and what to look for, where do I find a bottle? Well it isn’t quite that easy. I have found a couple of promising websites, including the Organic Wine Company and Yorkville Cellars. Both sites sell wines by the bottle online, and both have wine clubs that you can join. The wine clubs sound great, but I’d like to sample a few of these wines before I make the plunge on a monthly commitment.

What about local establishments: are there any that sell organic wine by the bottle? Unfortunately, I haven’t found a lot of options so far. Trader Joe’s carries organic wine on the cheap, so I may have to check that one out. There is also a fantastic restaurant called the OtherSide. In addition to offering a wide variety of vegan and vegetarian food choices, they also carry a completely organic wine list.

So I still have some work to do—ordering a few bottles of wine online, stopping in at Trader Joe’s, eating at the OtherSide Café. I am also going to do a search of local stores to try to find if any of them carry organic wines, or if they would be willing to stock some for me. There must be good organic wine out there, I am determined to find it!