From Dave Smith

Clearing up the confusion about Organic Wines
…there are four categories that organic wines can claim: 100% Organic, Organic, Made With Organic Ingredients, and Some Organic Ingredients. Today, these categories define organic wine so understanding the differences among the four categories is important if you want to know what you are really buying.

Key Differences Found Between Organic and Conventional Red Wines
This study found that among 15 varieties of red wine, organic wines had the greatest concentrations of antioxidant activity and of the key antioxidant resveratrol. An organic wine also was found to have the highest level of total polyphenols. Contamination of the mycotoxin OTA was over three times higher in conventionally grown DOC varieties compared to organic wines, and the OTA levels in table wines were 2.5 times higher that organic red wines.

Organic Wine Journal
Biodynamics is the most advanced form of organic farming. It works with cycles of nature to grow grapes and make wine, and uses plants and animals to take the place of chemicals and fertilizers.

When Organic Wine Went Mainstream
“We’ve leaped forward to the past,” says Tim Mondavi, who is the Robert Mondavi Family of Wineries’ managing director and winegrower. “We’ve learned over the years that every time we had a choice between a repressive technology, like the use of pesticides, or an inspired technology, like the use of cover crops to help establish beneficial insects that control pests naturally, the inspired technology proved to be a better method,” he explains. “It addresses the fundamental vineyard and winemaking problems and not just the symptoms. Technology should help you look into life, to see how and why it works as it does, not to just slaughter it.” (an older article by our own Jeff Cox in the on-line Wine News)

Mendocino County leads nation in acreage devoted to grapes grown using certified process
Mendocino County has more certified organic wineries — 15 — than any county in the nation, making it home to more than a third of all certified organic vineyard acreage in California. It’s a trend receiving national attention, and its success is a combination of visionary winemakers and a climate and geology that makes Mendocino County an almost perfect environment for organic farming.

Organic Beer
With more and more doctors extolling the health benefits of red wine, you may wonder: Does beer have any health benefits? If so, are some beers healthier than others? Read on to learn what natural food stores have to offer in the beer cooler.

Organic Home Brewing
As a home brewer you have many choices. Why not choose to brew organic. Your choice will give you clean tasting, fresh organic beer, and your choice will have a positive impact by supporting chemical and GMO free sustainable agriculture. Organic homebrew might cost slightly more, but it is significantly less expensive than buying organic beer at a store. Plus, the cost is an investment in a better world.

Organic Beer, Now Without That Pesky Organic Part
Cheers! Have a refreshing sip of an organic beer. Except it’s not organic, but it says it’s organic. But it’s not. What?

The Green Guide Readers Rate Organic Beer
More people had tried Wolaver’s, Samuel Smith’s, Butte Creek, Fish Tale and Pinkus’ than any of the others.
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Dave Smith is author of To Be Of Use – The Seven Seeds of Meaningful Work and lives in Mendocino County, California.
Photo: a morning fog settles over sleeping Cabernet in front of Mendocino County’s Frey Winery, the oldest (since 1980) and largest purely organic winery in the United States, family owned and operated from the start. It is also the first in the country to produce Biodynamic wines.
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