At the end of 2019, the EU introduced a comprehensive environmental program called “The European Green Deal” to make EU agriculture sustainable. Now, Commissioner Stella Kyriakides has announced certain goals that have been set up as part of this work. One goal is for organic agriculture to reach at least 25% of the total area […]
Between 2012 and 2017, the organic wine surface increased dramatically in Europe. In Italy, it increased by 84% and in Spain by 32%. Italy now has 106,400 hectares of organic vineyards, of which 30% is under conversion. 16% of the Italian vineyards are thus organic. Spain has 113,400 hectares, which is 12% of the Spanish […]
More and more consumers are buying organic wines. Today, the organic vineyard surface in the EU is twice as large as it was 10 years ago. Demand for organic wine is likely to soon outstrip supply. But despite all this, it is not a question of a fundamental shift in wine growing. Conventional wine farming […]
Château Fourcas-Hosten is one of our favourite châteaux in the Médoc. Lovely, classic Bordeaux wines at a price you wouldn’t have thought existed anymore in Médoc. One reason is that the chateau happens to be in Listrac, an appellation that doesn’t have the possibility to charge the same high prices as the more famous Pauillac, […]
It is often debated whether it makes economic sense to work organically and if it is possible to raise the prices of the wines if you switch to sustainable or organic agriculture. Now we have it in black and white, yes, it does pay off, according to a new report. At least for bulk wines […]
Big headlines is a given when a giant like Moët-Hennessy announces that all of their vineyards in Champagne from 2020 will be managed without herbicides (weed-killers). The announcement was made at Vinexpo, which took place in Paris on February 10-12. In addition, their vineyards in Cognac, a region that has not yet distinguished itself for […]
In 2012, the EU introduced rules for organic vinification, 21 years after the rules for organic farming were established. Small changes have been made since then with regard to (mainly) additives. In 2021 further changes will be made to the regulations. Currently, the organic rules allow the heating of must or wine to a maximum […]
Organic wine continues to increase its sales and market shares. Now, consumer demand drives the three largest wine countries, Italy, Spain and France, to increase their organic surface at a quicker pace, according to a report by Millésime Bio, an organic wine fair that takes place in Montpellier at the end of January. Not least, […]
What does it really cost to convert to organic farming? It is sometimes said that “certification is expensive so the producer X works organically but does not certify”. That’s not correct. The certification is a marginal cost. But what about the rest? A French report from consulting firm CerFrance Gard tries to work it out. […]
Every year, over 2 billion Diam corks are sold, so chances are you will now and then pull one out of your wine bottle. Diam Bouchage is a French company that 12 years ago introduced a technical invention that eliminates the molecule responsible for the annoying cork taste (2,4,6-trichloroanisole, TCA) from cork granules. Diam could […]
The now well-known wine fair for organic wines, Millésime Bio, will take place on 27-29 January 2020 in Montpellier. All exhibitors must be organically certified. Being under conversion is no longer enough. There are now far too many producers who want to exhibit. The number of exhibitors – 1200 in 2020 – is increasing every […]
Organic wines are becoming more and more popular with French wine consumers. 48% of them would like to see a larger range of organic wines in the stores where they normally buy wine. The fact that the wine is organic is a buying argument for 50% of the young and 38% of the older consumers. […]
The new “no sulphur” trend There is a new trend, still in its infancy. But it will – most likely – increase. You see it in France and probably in other wine countries as well. It is the “no sulphur” trend. Or to be more precise the “no added sulphur” trend. You might be thinking […]
In recent years, Ruffino has invested heavily in extensive environmental work that includes both the production process and new organically grown vineyards. As part of this, they are now launching a number of organically certified wines. Ruffino Prosecco Treviso and Ruffino Pinot Grigio delle Venezie are currently available on the Swedish market. In mid-June, Ruffino […]
New rules came into force for vinification of organic wines on January 1st, 2019. Six new additives are allowed. Autolysate of yeast: Nourishes the yeast during the alcoholic and malolactic fermentation. Inactivated yeast: Nourishes the yeast during alcoholic and malolactic fermentation. Potato protein: Vegetable protein used as a fining agent. Provides a faster and often […]
The number of biodynamic wine producers is growing in France and in the world. It is still only a small percentage of all organic producers that are biodynamic, but they get noticed not least because many of them make outstanding wines. You can work biodynamically without being certified, of course, but many choose a certification. […]
Demand for organic wine will continue to increase in France, SudVinBio announced after looking at developments in recent years and on future trends. The study has been made as a prelude to the organic wine fair Millésime Bio, which takes place in Montpellier in late January. Organic wine sales have grown annually by 16.8% by […]
A European wine that is organic is easy to identify. You just look for the green EU leaf. If it does not have the leaf it is not organic. But now there are also more and more “sustainability” labels on the bottles in France. However, “sustainable” is different from “organic”. Organics is mainly about the […]
The European Commission has now voted on the future of copper in European agriculture. On November 27, the decision was made to lower the limit to 4 kilograms of copper per year and per hectare counted as an average over a 7-year period (in other words, 28 kg in 7 years). This 4 kilos average […]
The cooperatives are many and significant players in the Languedoc. They account for a large proportion of the production here. But to survive in today’s competition, they, like everyone else, have to invest in what consumers want. For example, in organic wines. That’s what Cave Héraclès in the Gard in the eastern part of Languedoc […]
Natural wines are the darlings of sommeliers and wine bars around the world at the moment. But what is a natural wine? For some people, it is a style of wine, a style that you recognize easier than the origin or the grape variety. Often the “style” is unusual, not to say odd, with wines […]
Currently, there are 5,835 organically certified wine estates in France. This is an increase of 11% since 2016. The certified vineyard surface is 61,048 hectares, an increase of 4%. The trend shows a continued increase. 17,617 hectares are under conversion. Of these, 3,369 hectares are in their third (and last) year of conversion, 5,588 are […]
During our spring wine tours we have visited the small and interesting Champagne house Philipponnat. On our visit in early May we saw people working in their prestigious vineyard Clos des Goisses with knapsack sprayers on their backs. Obviously they were doing some kind of treatment. It turned out to be weed control with a […]
Flavescence dorée is a dreaded bacterial disease that spreads through a grasshopper. It was discovered for the first time in 1949. In France it is especially difficult in parts of the southern Rhône Valley and Provence. Here we can even see a decrease in the number of organic producers because it is mandatory in some […]
Cook Magazine is a very beautiful glossy magazine for restaurants, chefs, and hotels in Belgium. As many publications in Belgium, it is bilingual and publishes everything in two languages. A bit like BKWine Magazine by the way. The difference being, of course, that for Cook it is Dutch (or Flemish) and French, two of the […]
It’s nice to be quoted. Must mean that some people read what you write and even appreciate it! “Civil Eats is a daily news source for critical thought about the American food system. We publish stories that shift the conversation around sustainable agriculture in an effort to build economically and socially just communities”, it says […]
The EU rules for organic farming are being reviewed and discussions are apparently in the final phase. Several proposals have upset the French (and also other countries’) organic growers. One of the new proposals is that annual controls should be reduced to every two years and perhaps even less frequent. Organic growers worry about the […]
Very strange things – even completely incorrect – are sometimes written and said about “natural wines”, the wine category that a few years ago became one of the hottest subjects among wine geeks (and that still is largely limited to the wine geek crowd), and one that no one can really agree on what it […]
Here’s a handful of organic wines that we have encountered recently that we certainly recommend trying: Anima, Avondale, Chenin Blanc, 2013, South Africa, ~15 €. Nice honey tone, a little pineapple and citrus, elegant and subtle oak. The wine is full-bodied without being heavy. Vacqueyras Garrigues, Domaine Montirius, Vacqueyras, France, ~16 €. Clean and nice […]
Being an organic winegrower means that you are obliged to spray with copper to prevent certain fungal diseases rather than using synthetic pesticides. Copper is effective primarily against mildiou. As with all other pesticides the authorisation to use copper is renewed every ten years. This year the EU will evaluate copper and decide whether to […]
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