Organic Sonoma!

Lucky me, sipping Dragonsleaf Syrah!

I spent the past few glorious days touring organic and biodynamic wineries in Sonoma.

Organic basically means nothing chemical or toxic is used in the growing - no pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, etc.  This means either a lot of hand-weeding, or some really creative use of predator bugs and beasts to eat other bugs and to graze the weeds down.  Sheep, for example, is favored alternative to the herbicide.

Biodynamic is something similar, with an additional concern for the vineyard ecosystem in it's modern manifestation, and with an almost cultish set of practices in its early manifestations.  While I am glad when wineries opt to respect the ecosystem, a primary concern for me is toxic residue in the wine.  I want my produce free and clear of toxic residue.  Click here for a little primer on biodynamic wines.

The desire to drink organic and biodynamic wines shouldn't surprise anyone who knows me, but the idea moved from desire to imperative while walking the vineyards of the Castle de Amorosa.  My trip companions wanted to tour the castle, but...I hate to admit how snobby I am...I did not want to tour a fake castle.  Boring.  So I opted to walk the vineyard, for the fresh air and the opportunity to fiddle around with the settings on my newish camera. 

Along the road from Castle de Amorosa

Except...the overpowering stink of pesticide made the vineyard a truly unpleasant walk.

Plan B was an exit strategy - walk 3 miles to Calistoga to find breakfast.  Down the long, long driveway away from the Castle I tried breathing through the fabric of my shirt.  I thought about how right this minute pesticides were being absorbed through the skin of the fruit and the leaf system, and later how pesticides would be taken up through the vine's roots.  Making its way into the fruit, the pesticides would tinge the  flavor of the fruit with a tinny, bitter chemical taste reminiscent of the odor I now smelled.

While I appreciate the unique flavors imparted by a mineral laden soil, or even the smokey ash overlay from the 2008 wine country fire, the idea of pesticide-flavors sickened me.  Maybe most people, used to buying non-organic produce, have acclimated to this overlay of toxic flavoring, but I - whether imaginary or not - believe I can taste it.

Porter Creek vintner's home

That was Thursday.  Friday we hit Sonoma, where I was responsible for the tour itinery.  Our first stop was Porter Creek, a tiny little organic-biodynamic winery off the beaten path - so small you cannot find their wines in a store.  Their store is reminiscent of the old local general store - small, cozy, a place where friends might like to gather to catch up on the news of the day.  Their wines are complex but a bit pricey for me.  I'd read online (sorry can't remember where) that this is one of the premier wineries in Sonoma, and I can understand why after learning about their vintner, who has wine making credentials from both France and the U.S.  His broad education translated into a host of unusual wines.

I learned from the tasting host too.  One wise gem: "Don't join a wine club unless there's a quality about the vintner's work that you like across the board, in each of their wines - so that even if you don't necessarily prefer that particular grape regularly, you can recognize a quality that you like when you drink that grape from the vintner."   Heeding his advice (and my wallet) I did not join the Porter Creek wine club.   I did, however, buy a couple of bottles of a luscious 2008 old vine Carignane.  Loved that!

Portner Creek vineyards

The other thing I'll remember from Porter Creek is the big piece of heavy equipment visible through the picture window directly behind our tasting host, making its way between rows of vines behind the Porter Creek tasting room.  Those vines belong to Gallo.  Gallo purchased the acreage next to Porter Creek from the MacMurray - as in "My Three Sons" Fred, the deceased actor - Ranch.  Friday, Gallo crews were spreading RoundUp, the infamous Monsanto herbicide that kills everything it touches.  Except, that is, crops that have been genetically modified not to be effected.  But that's another post for another day.

I asked the fellow at Porter Creek how they keep their own vineyards - immediately next door - free of the RoundUp.  He pointed out a rather wide swath of land, a drainage area, that successfully keeps the run-off away from Porter Creek dirt.  But, what, I asked him, about the air drift?  He shrugged his shoulders and promised me that the vineyards were certifiably biodynamic.  It must be a de minimus theory or perhaps the wind patterns at Porter Creek are favorable, because I could not smell the RoundUp outside the tasting room.  

The one bad memory I'll take from my June vineyards visit will be the pesticide odor tinging the beauty of the vineyard environment.  I do not want RoundUp in my wine.  

Sonoma and it's little-bit-wild, rustic feel does something for me, and for the wine too.  We tasted all over Sonoma.  I don't have time to give you the whole rundown, so I'll do an old favorite and a new favorite.

The old favorite: Of course, I made my must visit trip to Peterson Winery on Dry Creek Road.  I've been happily drinking Peterson since 2006.  Fred and Jamie, father and son vintners, must have purchased their taste buds from the same bin where I drew mine.  My favorite Peterson wines are their Bradford Mountain wines.  I learned from the Petersons that grapes grown on the hill have a more concentrated flavor due to the rain downhill run-off, leaving the grapes less hydrated and more full of flavor.  Valley grapes, by contrast, get more water sitting on the field, settling into the ground to be drawn up into the plants.

Bradford Mountain wines must be everybody's favorite because they are the most expensive at $48 a bottle.  However, Peterson's has a bottle called Zero Manipulation ($18) that has that same mouth feel as the bigger bottle, along with whatever creates that Peterson magic.  Jamie gave us a wonderful tour of their very small, very garage feel wine making facility in the warehouse behind the tasting room.  You can see pics on my facebook wall if you're so inclined.  With my hefty wine club discount, the less expensive Peterson wines have long been my favorite go-to reds.  The Bradford Mountain reds are my favorite birthday present to self. 

The new favorite:  My happy discovery whose wines have that something the Porter Creek host was talking about, something that appealed to me across every bottle we tasted:  Imagery Estate Wines. Imagery Estate is the only winery whose wine club I joined this trip.  There wines are right up there with Peterson, so much so that I was moved to tell our tasting host about Peterson.

Imagery Estate Winery is out in the middle of nowhere, so it surprised me to find a thriving little community set into a piece of landscaped heaven.  The tasting room was modern, a big, rectangular bar set up in the middle of a large, airy room full of stuff for sale, art work, and lots of people.  The tasting hosts were friendly and knowledgeable.  Ours, Jen Patterson, let us taste pretty much everything we wanted, even insisting that I try one of their whites over my protests that I'm not a white drinker.  I didn't buy it but even the white had that something.  Or at least it didn't have the other thing that makes me complain.  All Imagery Estates' wines, by the way, are either sustainable, organic or biodynamic, and they are working constantly to improve all things sustainable about their winery too.

Right this minute, I'm sipping a glass of Imagery Estate Dragonsleaf Syrah, the bottle I chose to purchase on the spot and carry home in my suitcase.  However, I joined the wine club, and ordered a case of mixed wines to be shipped.  If you like a beautiful red with a long finish, you owe it to yourself to try Imagery Estate wines.  I even loved their Tempranillos, which were seriously different than wines of the same grape I drank across Spain, complaining the whole way. 

Oh, and the winery has a reputation for a fine gallery of artwork that is also the art for their labels.

Imagery Estate was the last winery of the weekend.  I almost didn't make it there because I was busy enjoying a meal of spanish tapas at the Vineyards Inn on the corner of Adobe Canyon Road and Highway 12.   Luckily I was motivated enough to pull away from the table before the day ran out.  If I'd missed Imagery Estates, I'd have missed a wine I will be drinking for years to come.

And I'm very happy to share this amazing find with my friends who want to have their green and drink it too.

Biodynamic, Organic and Kosher, OH MY!

Opened my email today to an article about 12 biodynamic wines, click here to see the article, and right away I realized,

"Biodynamic - yet another confusing label for the consumer."

I want to define the difference between organic, biodynamic and "regular" wines.  And as long as I'm at it, and maybe because it's almost Passover, I'll say a thing or two about kosher wines, too.

I've come to appreciate the whole idea of foods grown without pesticides, herbicides and synthetic fertilizer concoctions that end up in my system - all used to ensure a successful harvest in today's normative agricultural industry. 

Normative:  Generically, it means relating to an ideal standard or model. In practice, it has strong connotations of relating to a typical standard or model. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normative.

I also fancy but can't prove that a lot of organic foods taste better than their non-organic counterparts.  I think I can taste the slightly off-taste of toxic residues.  I didn't realize I could taste them until I started eating organic foods and then did some side-by-side tastings. Generally, the organic item tends to taste more zingy and true to the anticipated vegetable or fruit flavor, while the non-organic item is blander, maybe with a slight tinny or other under-flavor.  Although, on the other hand, I've had some pretty bland-tasting organic foods.  Organics can only be as tasty as the quality of the soil they're grown in.  Let me know if you've had any similar experiences.  Or if this is all in my mind. 

Organic farming avoids all pesticides, synthetic fertilizers and other toxic soil additives in favor of natural alternatives. These alternatives might be anything at all - old fashioned the way people used to do it before the wonders of chemistry, or downright creative.  For example, soil amendments tend to be manure and other organic materials.  More creatively, the vintners at my favorite organic vineyard, Montemaggiore, use sheep to eat their weed growth down.

From Wikipedia: "The most widely accepted definition of 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 and herbicides.

Organic wine is generally consumed for its perceived health benefits and reduced environmental impact. The consumption of organic wine grew at a rate of 3.7 percent over the year ending September 19, 2009, out-pacing growth in the consumption of non-organic wine which grew 2%  during a similar period. There are an estimated 1500-2000 organic wine producers globally, including negociant labels, with more than 885 of these organic domaines in France alone.

The legal definition of Organic Wine is a complex issue and varies from country to country. The primary difference in the way that organic wine is defined relates to the use (or non use) of preservatives during the wine-making process."  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_wine



Definitely not an Organic Apple Tree

 Biodynamic farming is a form of organic farming that dictates very specific practices in terms of soil amendments, planting preparations, and in its original form, first developed by Rudolf Steiner, some spiritual rituals.  Wikipedia says this:

"Biodynamic agriculture is a method of organic farming that treats farms as unified and individual organisms, emphasizing balancing the holistic development and interrelationship of the soil, plants and animals as a self-nourishing system without external inputs insofar as this is possible given the loss of nutrients due to the export of food. As in other forms of organic agriculture, artificial fertilizers and toxic pesticides and herbicides are strictly avoided. There are independent certification agencies for biodynamic products, most of which are members of the international biodynamics standards group Demeter International.

Regarded by some as the first modern ecological farming system and one of the most sustainable, biodynamic farming has much in common with other organic approaches, such as emphasizing the use of manures and composts and excluding of the use of artificial chemicals on soil and plants. Methods unique to the biodynamic approach include the use of fermented herbal and mineral preparations as compost additives and field sprays and the use of an astronomical sowing and planting calendar. Biodynamics originated out of the work of Rudolf Steiner, the founder of anthroposophy." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodynamic_agriculture.

In conclusion, both styles of farming are good for the ecosystem, the environment and you.  Whereas the norm is not. 

Kosher wines are another matter altogether.  Since there is nothing inherently non-kosher about wine, there is no particular wine-growing or wine-making techniques that must be employed.  Use of pesticides are not inherently unkosher, for example.  However, there are a bunch of religious requirements that make wine kosher.

One that always worries me has to do with a strict kashrut law against ingesting bugs, which means that grapes must be from bug-free vines.  I once had the pleasure of separating grapes from stems during a Sonoma harvest, and was shocked to see all the little six-legged critters scurrying away from the vines as we worked.  While many got away, I've opted to forget what I suspect about how many must not have made it.  Maybe the grapes used for kosher wines get a good power hosing, but maybe they get serious pesticide application.  I suppose it depends on the vintner, and this is something to be researched before buying kosher wine, if you're looking for organic product.

About kosher wines, from SeriousEats.com:  "Grapes from new vines may not be used for making wine until after the fourth year. Every seventh year, the fields must be left fallow, and there is a prohibition on growing other fruits and vegetables between the vines. All the equipment, tools, and wine-making storage facilities must be kosher. During the harvest, only Sabbath-observant male Jews are allowed to work on production of the wines. During the production of kosher wine, no animal products may be used. Even the fermentation yeasts must be certified kosher.

There's also the question of mevushal and non-mevushal wines. Mevushal wines are heated to near boiling, which means that non-Jews can handle an open bottle without rendering it unkosher. For this reason, most restaurants and catering halls serve only mevushal kosher wine.


That sound you hear? Traditional winemakers wincing at the prospect of that flash-pasteurization (boiling) process. And that's with good reason: the boiling process can hurt the quality of some wines, and destroys bacteria that contribute to the aging of wine. That means mevushal wines must be drunk young; forget about fine old vintages."  http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/03/an-introduction-to-kosher-wine-for-passover-seder.html

If you're interested in a well-made Napa kosher wine, you might try Hagafen Winery.  Not sure about their bug policies.

Anyway, I'm a reform Jew, and because there's nothing inherently unkosher about grapes in any form, I'll go with a de minimus rule as regards the bug issue and stick with organic wines. 

Let me put in a small plug for my favorite organic red wines, especially if you love Syrah, from a little boutique winery, Montemaggiore in Sonoma.  Their 2007 Syrah Reserve won a 91 point score from Parker Roberts!

When nobody's going organic because they've already gone!

I've just walked into the house from CVS, where I spent far too long crawling through label after label of hair spray looking for a natural, organic alternative.  I tend not to make the long drive to Whole Foods unless I'm already headed that direction for school, but the times they are a-changin', (with apologies for mixing musical metaphors here).  I was hopeful I'd find something at CVS. 

Checking my email, I discovered a note from my wonderful cousin Denise Yonemoto, urging me to read the latest story about a lawsuit over greenwashing.  The suit, brought by the Organic Consumers Association, Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps, Intelligent Nutrients, and Organic Essence, disparaged the misleading use of the term "organic" in the labeling of personal care products.  Imagine my chagrine to see on the list the maker of some of the hopeful products I'd just encountered at CVS.  Although not culpable until proven guilty, the plaintiffs claim the following companies advertise products as "organic," when in fact the products contain raw materials of non-organic origins.

From the news release posted by one of the co-plaintiffs, the Organic Consumers' Association:

“Consumers who pay a premium for high-end organic products expect the main cleansing and moisturizing ingredients of a product labeled “Organic” to be made from certified organic agricultural material produced on organic farms, and not from petrochemicals or pesticide and herbicide-intensive conventional farming,” explains Horst Rechelbacher, founder of Intelligent Nutrients (and founder and previous owner of Aveda Corp.)

The corporations named in the complaint are The Hain Celestial Group, Inc.; Kiss My Face Corporation; YSL Beaute, Inc. (“YSL”); Giovanni Cosmetics, Inc. (“Giovanni”); Cosway Company, Inc. (“Cosway”); Country Life, LLC (“Country Life”); Szep Elet LLC (makers of Ilike Organic Skin Care); Eminence Organic Skin Care, Inc.; Physicians’ Formula Holdings, Inc. (makers of Organic Wear); Surya Nature, Inc.; Organic Bath Company, Freeman Beauty Division of pH Beauty Labs, Inc. (makers of Freeman Goodstuff Organics)."

According to the news release, which you can read in its entirety here, www.organicconsumers.org/bodycare/index.cfm , the USDA is rather lax about policing personal care labeling, while much more strict about food products.  I couldn't tell from the article whether that's because the law actually only regulates food labeling and not toiletries, or whether it's just a resource allocation choice made by the feds.

Either way, I think it's quite fair to expect that raw materials in a product labeled organic do, in fact, have organic origins.  And, I sometimes do spend more to get that benefit.  And I do feel misled by these companies, if, in fact, the law suit's claims are accurate.

Having said all that, I recently complained on my facebook wall about another organic purchase dilemma.  I was looking for eggs that were all things good.  Regional.  Organic. Vegetarian fed.  Free range.  High omega-3.  No hormones.  Etc.  And I found them, but they were in a PLASTIC container.  Drat!  What are those purveyors thinking?  I imagine they're thinking tensile strength, because - not sure if you've seen this - the plastic egg cartons actually have a third layer of plastic nestling the eggs, between the eggs themselves and the top of the plastic carton.  Eventually I opted for non-organic eggs from Good Natured Family Farms [GNFF], because they were everything else I wanted, and sold in a recycled paper carton.  My friend Kaye Johnston, who is very into the local food scene here in Kansas City, left a note on my fb wall that Good Natured Family Farms is, in effect, producing organically, but had opted out of the organic certification process because of the overburdening expense associated with certification. 

Although I don't doubt Kaye, I am left wondering how exact their organic practices are compared to those required for certification.  Their website, link here,   On the other hand, if their practices are truly organic, I really don't care whether they've paid for the certification or not.  I just care if I'm getting good, local, organic produce.  If certification is out of reach financially, especially for the type of small- to medium-size farm that is often at the forefront of organic agriculture, then I want to accept their produce and support their practices.  The last thing I want to do is have these farms put out of business due to the price of certification.  And honestly, the price for those GNFF eggs was within the realistic range for the non-wealthy among us.  If certification is pushing the price of organics into the luxury range, that's totally counter-productive.  By the way, the 6.7 oz. bottle of Intelligent Nutrient Organic Hairspray (top right) retails for a whopping $29.  Organic needs to become the norm, not the luxury alternative it is now.

Yes, I get that the certification assists consumers in being confident, and thwarts greenwashing and deceptive marketing practices. And to prove the point, I recently took a great walking tour of a four-generation family-owned vineyard in Sonoma (Kunde) where I heard a lot about sustainable practices, and was shown row upon row of large, covered compost heaps piled up on the hill.   But then we walked by a large fertilizer tank, and I suddenly realized that I had not once heard the term "organic," and while they were busy hawking what was good and green, they had opted for half-measures.  I felt a little hoodwinked.

So, the jury is out as of yet on the defendant companies named above.  Are they supporting growers like GNFF, or are they misleading the public like Kunde?  

Although really, I'm not sure I want to rag on Kunde.  They're moving in the right direction, which is better than most.  I live for the day when nobody's going organic, because they've a-a-l-r-e-a-d-y gone!

Read here about Kunde's sustainability practices: http://www.kunde.com/
More about Good Natured Family Farms, http://www.goodnatured.net/our_story/story.html

ORGANIC vs LOCAL PRODUCE?

I’m not lazy. I’m busy. And as much as the last political season proved to be the season of activism, I still believe in the efficient use of my time. So if I’m going to be activist, I want to get a real bang for my buck. Which leads me to bucks. Frankly, despite the economy, despite the ascendancy of Obama and the cries for change, some things don't seem to change. America still walks with wallet in hand.

So, with this in mind, I want to discuss the "organic versus local" produce debate. However, I'm not going to tell you that buying regionally grown produce is better than buying organic, nor that buying organic is preferable to buying local. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not undecided. I’m very decided. If we have to make the choice between regional and organic, we all lose. What you’re going to hear from me is that we need to buy regionally grown organic produce. Local AND organic. Period. And if it isn’t available, we’re going to have to use our wallets and a little ingenuity to make it happen.

So, what's the debate about, then? The normal arguments, I am going to tell you upfront, turn out to be too simplistic. They go like this:

Buy local: Buy regionally grown produce because supporting local agriculture means that farms can find more buyers locally, and therefore won’t have to ship their produce to far-off places. Shorter transport translates into lower transportation costs (and by extension, lower prices for the consumer), reduced carbon emissions attributable to lengthy transport distances - supposedly an average of 1500 miles for most produce - and fresher food. And, of course, produce grown locally tastes better because it didn't have to be picked before it ripened in order to survive the lengthy journey without spoiling. Finally, buying local supports the local economy, one component necessary for economic, social and environmental sustainability. http://www.enn.com/agriculture/commentary/33366

Buy organic: Organic food is pesticide-free, grown with sound ecological and biodiversity practices. It is therefore healthier for both you and the earth, because proper care of soil, critters and the ecosystem promotes the overall ecological well-being of the planet. And, because it is true that we are what we eat, e.g. our bodies are constantly regenerating and the raw materials for regeneration are the foods we put into our bodies, eating pesticide-free food is ultimately healthier. There is plenty of research to back that claim up. Oh, and organic produce also tastes better, because it lacks trace fertilizer and pesticide by-products. http://members.ift.org/NR/rdonlyres/A5367812-A6CF-46C0-80B9-B1EF39A0BCC4/0/OrganicFood.pdf

That was the abridged version of the debate. If you’re insatiable, look here, www.enn.com/agriculture/commentary/33366 ; here, http://www.ebfarm.com/AboutUs/Environment/CarbonFootprintDilemma.aspx; and a couple of particularly controversial editorials here, http://reason.com/news/show/129855.html, and here http://www.grist.org/article/fromartz/, to list a few.

SO LOOK. To me the debate between organic and local is like asking, should I sacrifice my health for the good of the ecosystem (by buying local)? or should I sacrifice the ecosystem in favor of my health (by buying organic)? In fact, Grist writer Samuel Fromartz (article linked above) suggested that it’s actually a false choice anyway - that the economics of agricultural profit-making drive even local organic farmers to export their produce outside their regions in order to survive. However, he says it's not important which decision you make, so long as you're aware of the impacts of your decision.

I disagree. I say it IS important.

I want to eat organic. I do not want to intake pesticides, even in minute amounts (over the course of a lifetime, I visualize us taking in 5 lb bags of fertilizer and pesticide - why not just put it in a salt shaker and add it that way?). And I do not want produce that is farmed using questionable practices, and by questionable I mean practices that do not lead to sustainable agriculture or that do lead to degradation of the ecosystem. At the same time, I want to help reduce the strain on the world’s food and economic systems by buying more locally, but I want it to be organic. And I want more people to buy organic - more demand means more local farms respond by switching to organic practices, leading to more supply, and more supply means lower prices for organic, which means even more people will buy it - cycle continues! A win-win all around.

So what do I do? I have devised a system to vote with my wallet. The system that works best in America, apparently, and a system I hope will influence the less-than-perfect choices I now have at the store.

1. Favor produce that is marked both “locally grown” and “organic.” Be flexible enough to take whatever local/organic produce is available when I shop, instead of going to the store with preconceived notions about what to buy.

2. If there is no produce labeled both organic and local, I buy organic. My thinking is that the higher the demand for organic, the more local farms are likely to respond to it. This way I feel good that I am both putting healthier food in my system, and using my wallet to influence the system to provide more organic.

3. If there is no organic produce, by local produce. And TELL the store manager that you want organic AND local produce.

Returning back to my original statement on activism, here is my efficient activist suggestion. You know those bulletin boards at every grocery store? Where realtors and insurance agents tack up cards, and babysitters post contact information, and churches and Alcoholic Anonymous and local venues post information about the next event? Well, my idea is to put up one of those hand-made advertisements with the little pull-off tabs at the bottom (usually with a phone number to call) that people can tear off and hand to the store management. Below is an ad you can print off and post on the bulletin board at your grocer that hopefully will leverage your opinion. Put it with your green grocery bag so you don't forget to take it in with you!





Click HERE for a full size, printable version of the above image.