Pride (In The Name of Cabernet)

More

Skip Marley and the New Conscious Reggae Renaissance 

More

Mario Cantone Talks Whoopi Goldberg, Sarah Jessica Parker, Woke Culture

More

Geena Davis Talks Oscars, Thelma & Louise, Gender Bias

More

Wine X

  • X Rated WinesWine Ratings – XXX Style
  • Eat
    • Surreal Gourmet
    • City Bites
    • Dining Out
    • Entertaining
    • Foodie Products
    • Dips
    • Sauces
    • Starters & Soups
    • Main Dishes
    • Desserts
    • Wine & Food
  • Drink
    • Wine
    • Spirits
    • Beer
    • Coffee & Tea
  • Play
    • Celebrity Interviews
    • Black Label
    • Trippin’ Out
    • Rage
    • Music
    • Head Space
    • Goin Big
    • G Spot
    • Education
    • Cellar Rat
    • Black Label
    • Among Men
  • ShopWoocommerce
  • Home
  • Submitting Samples for Review
  • About Us
    • About Us
    • Our History
    • Archives
    • Writer’s Guidlines
    • Contact

logo

Food Advertising by

Nudist Camp II. Lets talk more about making organic wines.

by Christopher Sawyer
Magazine Issue: U.S. Vol. 6.1
images by Christopher Sawyer

Okay, let’s TiVo back. In the last issue (Vol. 5.6) we talked about the organic approach to growing grapes and making wine. Seems the revolution has started, being spurred on by the awesome demand for organic products.

According to statistics compiled by the national Organic Trade Association, sales of organic products have increased an average of nearly 21 percent each year over the past decade. By 2008, annual sales are expected to reach $30.7 billion – an amazing jump from the relative chump change of $1.5 billion per year in the early 1990s.


Today, hundreds of natural products are readily available at supermarkets and grocery stores, “organic” is the buzzword on the Food Network, and the organic fare is often found on menus at fine restaurants nationwide.

By definition, the term “organic” refers to a farming system that promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles, and soil activity. It’s based on minimal use of off-farm inputs (i.e., chemicals) as well as management practices that restore, maintain, and respect all-natural living systems.


Northern California has become a prime location for what foodies now refer to as “organic penetration.” Early in the 1970s, the seeds of this trend were planted by Chef Alice Waters, at Chez Panisse, who began working directly with organic farmers. Waters has written a number of cookbooks on the topic and more recently has become director of The Edible Schoolyard, an outreach program that teaches elementary school students how to grow, cultivate, cook and eat fresh veggies and fruit.

More recently, Millennium Restaurant (in downtown San Francisco’s Savoy Hotel) has earned a reputation for sophisticated vegetarian cuisine. It also boasts a wine list featuring more than 50 wines made from organically or sustainably farmed grapes. Executive Chef Eric Tucker, who’s been with the restaurant since it opened, began purchasing organic vegetables and fruit from the farmer’s market while attending culinary school in New York City. According to Tucker, the difference in flavor profiles between organically and commercially grown produce is extreme.

And that’s the secret to Tucker’s style of energetic, contemporary cuisine: the freshness of the produce. As seasons change, so do the items featured on the menu. In winter, specialties include exotic mushrooms and hearty root vegetables. In spring, it’s young, fresh produce. And in summer and fall, emphasis is on locally grown herbs, ripe melons, heirloom tomatoes, and other offerings that’ll last until the end of harvest.

“People that love food and wine are constantly looking for new flavor sensations,” Tucker explains. “What we’re doing at Millennium is evidence that the organic movement is not a fad. It’s here to stay.”

From Table to Terroir

If you follow the ecological approach to farming, you know the mantra is to give more than you take away. But here’s a new idea: use recycled restaurant food scraps to make better wine.

At the Olivet Grange Vineyard in California’s Russian River Valley, winemaker Kathleen Inman, of Inman Family Wines, treats her vines to a four-course gourmet compost. Produced by Jepson Prairie Organics, this concoction is made from fish bones, oyster shells, vegetable cuttings, melon peels, broccoli stems and other recyclable material – all sourced from some of the best restaurants in the Bay Area.

Once the food scraps are collected, they’re transported to the Norcal Waste headquarters in Dixon, CA, where they’re mixed and stored for two months in giant aerated ag-bags. When the compost is ready, it’s transported to the vineyard and applied to the base of each vine.

Near the small town of Graton, CA, Winemaker Merry Edwards and husband Ken Coopersmith have teamed up with Gourmet Mushroom, Inc. The company produces a special organic mulch consisting of mushroom mycelium (dried fungi), ground oak shavings, corncobs, and basic mill material made from grain husks. This unique natural mulch is so clean and powerful that it immediately saturates the soil. The vines love it, and the result is the arduous task of controlling their growth. There’s nothing magic or secret about this mixture. It simply kicks the vines in the ass and tells them to start working.

Prior to working in the wine industry, Coppersmith cultivated citrus fruit with his family in California’s Imperial Valley. “Throughout my experience in commercial farming over the years, I never saw better results than when I began farming organically,” Coopersmith says. “It’s truly mind-boggling how this approach helps grapevines.”

In Oregon’s Willamette Valley, Sokol Blosser Winery is currently converting its entire estate property to the organic concept. Birdhouses have been installed to attract bluebirds that eat harmful insects; barnyard felines have been introduced to control rodent populations, and wine shippers made from corncobs are now used. Even the interior of the tasting room has been revamped using recycled materials. In addition, construction was recently completed on a barrel cellar that features a living roof made of shrubs, plants and vines. It’s the first of its kind to be certified by the U.S. Green Building Council.

“It’s pretty simple,” says Susan Sokol Blosser, “Our goal is to apply organics to everything that we do!”

“People that love food and wine are constantly looking for new flavor sensations,” Tucker explains. “What we’re doing at Millennium is evidence that the organic movement is not a fad. It’s here to stay.”


“Our goal is to make sure the vines are happy,” Inman notes. “It’s all about doing the right thing – working with nature instead of against it.”

Sep 29, 2017Wine X
Nudist Camp IIINice Wine (Shame About The Label)
Wine X
4 years ago Wineorganic wine
logo
Food Advertisements by
Most viewed
Silver Oak & The ONE
Leon on Madonna, Tupac, Co-Parenting with RHOA’s Cynthia Bailey
Protected: Walks
From The Archives
Walla Walla: Napa in Blue Jeans
The Insider
One-Two Salsa
The WHAT of Party Planning
Protected: Heart
logo
Food Advertisements by
Products
  • Embroidered Champion Bomber Jacket $63.00 – $71.50
  • Unisex sueded fleece hoodie $42.00 – $44.00
  • Snapback Hat $21.00
Wine X

Check out our X Rated wine reviews to see what we are drinking.

Advertise with us
I swear we are accommodating and yeah we've got lots of traffic. Hit us up if you want a really cool way to reach the Millennial foodie and potential wine drinker. We'll do our part to evangelize your brand. Ask us more at info@winexmagazine.com
logo
Food Advertisements by
About

Wine, Food & a Slice of Vice.   Delightfully snarky, proudly irreverent, and yet light on our feet.

First published in the 90’s, Wine X Magazine’s mission is to bring new wine drinkers into the category and ripen them until they’re ready for mainstream or  until they just get bored with us…. (that never happens)

Categories
Articles By Date
Email-Subscription

Sign up for our newsletter to receive the latest news and event postings.

2020© Wine X Magazine