Eco-Friendly Wines Are Our Future

Sooner or later all businesses will have to react to the reality of global warming. Hopefully the wine industry will respond sooner, although a few wineries have already responded in a positive manner. Along with industry, consumers can make the choice to pull in the right direction. Today, we will look at some of the ways consumers and industry can make a difference.
Many of us have heard about the 100 mile diet; the average ingredient or beverage we use for our meals in North America travels about 1500 miles. In order to reduce shipping, and thereby carbon emissions, it is recommended we source and purchase our ingredients within 100 miles. Let me tell you I have tried and it is quite difficult. However the thought of how far this wine travels to get to me has begun to get me thinking and I believe that is a good starting point.
There are not too many wineries within 100 miles of the tri-cities; however there are fruit wineries and some grape wineries in the Lower Mainland and Langley. Domaine de Chaberton produces Bacchus, Madeleine Sylvaner and Ortega wines from vineyards at their Langley location, and Blue Heron and Fort Wine Company source their fruit from the Lower Mainland for their fruit wines. The fact is, however, over 90% of all grapes for BC wine production are grown in the Okanagan Valley well outside our 100 mile target. Wine from Australia travels 8000 miles so the 220 miles from the Okanagan seems to be the better choice. Washington, Oregon and California wine regions are a bit further but better than far away vineyards in Europe. So you see the idea, closer is better given the price and quality of the wine.
Wineries are doing their part to reduce the weight of glass bottles and reduce waste. Wolf Blass is leading the effort in BC and around the world with their 750 ml plastic bottle containers for the Bilyara Reserve Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. The containers reduce waste by more than 85 percent compared to glass and divert less waste to landfills than traditional bottles. They also have a higher recycling recovery rate and are recycled into carpet fibre, t-shirts and automotive parts. But what about the quality? I have tasted both the Chardonnay and the Cabernet Sauvignon and found no “plastic taste”. The quality was good and the price reasonable. They have been tested by the most stringent quality assurance laboratories and were found to be completely safe.
Tetra packs and wine boxes have been around for awhile and usually contain basic wines. Many producers such as Peller Estates and Sawmill Creek produce these and they are much more environmentally friendly than regular glass bottles. They are space efficient, easier to ship and the container weight is reduced compared to bottles. Millions of pounds of shipping weight are reduced by the purchase of these container wines and that translates into thousands of saved litres of gas and emissions.
This is only a tiny step in the right direction; more wineries have to step up to the plate to make a difference. Winemaking has been a human skill developed over 8000 years, but more effort has to be made to protect the environment that grapes are grown in. I remember about twenty years ago a grape grower in California told me that his neighbouring vineyard managers were teasing him about the un-kept nature of his vineyards. He told me that when he stepped into their vineyards, vines were perfectly straight and there was a silence in the air, no insects, no animals, all had been sterilized and fertilized. His vineyards used natures cycle and was humming with insects and small animals which produced excellent grapes. It’s our future, how would you like to see it?