Organic Wine

News flash!. Not all organic wine is subject to the same requirements to be certified organic. Perhaps bigger news flash!! The requirements are stricter in the US than in the EU. 

When I first learned that, it surprised me. I wonder if it surprises you. 

The fact is that the requirements to produce a wine in the US that is certified as organic are really tough to meet. They are really expensive to meet. As a buyer, even as a particularly "green" buyer, is it worth it? Is it worth it, for example, to take the steps to move from a wine made with organically grown grapes to an organic wine? 

Well, for starters, you can't taste the difference. I don't think you can taste the difference. I know that I can't taste the difference. So, if you are drinking wine for the snsory experience that you get, skip the organic and save some money.

Let's examine what is going on and let's start with the big difference between US-made certified organic wines and EU-made certified organic wines. The ones made in the US cannot add sulfites. Period. No exceptions. In the EU, however, dry red wines can have up to 100 parts per million (ppm), dry white wines up to 150 ppm, other than dry red wines up to 70 ppm, other than dry white wines up to 120 ppm, and for wines that combine both red and white grapes, well, I just don't know what to tell you. As is the often the case with regulations, they are clear as mud on this matter.

Let's come back to the US. While there are a very limited number of wines that are USDA certified organic, there are a lot more that are made with organically grown grapes. What does that mean?

Organically grown grapes share a number of characteristics. There are no chemical -cides used in the growing process. That means no chemcial herbicides or pesticides. That is easier at some vineyards than others. If, for example, your vineyard is particularly prone to naughty little pests like phylloxera, you might want to think about going skipping the organically grown and keeping your vines healthier. On the other hand, to some, growing organically is that important.

What else? You can't use GMO (genetically modified) yeasts. Now, I don't know very miuch about yeast. I know how to spell it. I know how it is used in winemaking. I know where to find it at the groceery store. I have absolutely no idea whether the yeast I buy is GMO or not. And, I don't know what challenges it causes.

In addition to those requirements, there are further rules around use of machinery to do the work that instead is done by hand. For higher end wineries, much of this work is done by hand anywy, however. Hand picking, for example, allows the winemaker to choose the grapes that (s)he views are perfect for the wine to be made. Machine picking gets you, well, everything.

All in all, I know I can't taste, per se, the difference between an organic wine, a wine made with organically grown grapes, and just a wine. I doubt you can either. So, if you are making the personal decision to buy organic wines or ever wines with organically grown grapes, it's a decision made with motivations other than taste. And, that's okay. But, I think it's important to understand what you are paying ... a lot ... for.