green cork
By: Saralyn Mehta, Sommelier( ISG), CSW
The classic opening quote from the Twilight Zone at the centre of this page ran through my mind while researching this article. Last issue, I began this exploration with the celestial components of biodynamic winemaking. Even though I thought it was a little odd, I could see where it offered a spiritual component and, let’ s be real, there is some science to back it up. After all, don’ t you read your horoscope everyday? In this issue, we focus on the farming of the vineyard and the unique practices implemented in the growing of biodynamic grapes.
I begin with this question: How does stuffing cow poop into a cow horn, burying it in the ground, to later dig it up and then apply said poop to the soil, make better wine? I told you it sounds like the Twilight Zone! And this is only one of the nine“ preparations” required to grow grapes biodynamically. Another involves fermenting heads of Yarrow flowers in a stag’ s bladder and then adding it to the vineyard’ s compost. This, however, must be done in combination with“ preparations” 503 to 507, which involve such things as fermented juice from a chamomile flower head, the juice from Valerian flowers, and oak bark that has been fermented in the mesentery of a cow. Again I say,“ Really, how does this make better wine?”
I’ m not sure that I have the answer, but what I do know is that there seems to be some real evidence to back it up. Many articles point to incidences of dying and diseased vineyards not only coming back to life, but thriving with the practice of biodynamics. And indeed, the list of producers practicing biodynamics is impressive. From famed French wineries Leflaive and Chapoutier to California’ s Benziger, Canada’ s Tawse, and Australia’ s
You’ re travelling through another dimension— a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind. A journey into a wonderous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. That’ s a signpost up ahead: your next stop: the Twilight Zone! – Rod Serling.
Burge Family Winemakers, biodynamics appear to be the calling card of some of the world’ s finest producers. The quality of these wines points to the effectiveness of biodynamics.
Curiously, many biodynamic producers do not advertise their biodynamic status on their labels, or even on their websites. For some, this omission may be due to a concern that their practises will not be taken seriously; for others, it is simply how they choose to do things, and they don’ t feel the need to give away the secrets to their success. What my research has taught me is that the“ preparations” have been proven to improve microbial components of biodynamically farmed vineyards, that the attention to detail necessary to grow biodynamically is already in line with the minds of quality-conscious producers.
Most importantly, balance is everything. Biodynamics is about balancing your vineyard’ s needs with nature’ s, caring for it as if it were your own child, and being proactive about keeping it healthy.
If you start from a place of passion and love, holistic care and prevention can yield amazing results. However, making the leap into biodynamics isn’ t as simple as doing away with chemicals. Rather, it is an approach that allows the winemaker to see the winemaking process as a balanced sum of all parts.
For the cynics out there, I can tell you this: I am not going to turn off my computer, plant a garden, and go do some yoga. But I will think long and hard about what the universe has to offer us when we pay attention, and respond to, what the Earth needs. Especially when it yields such fine rewards. b
Eco-friendly tags on Banville & Jones Wine Co. store shelves indicate wines from around the globe that are produced under four categories: sustainably produced, organic, biodynamic, and carbon neutral.
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