Wine & Spirits - February 2018 - 20

Red White
& Green

The State of Sustainability in California Wine
by Tyler Colman
The most popular color in the California wine world, it seems,
is neither white nor red: it's green. While there has been longstanding environmental awareness in many quarters, the industry as a whole has adopted a "green" focus lately. Several reasons lie behind this. After years of drought, the water footprint
of winemaking (and agriculture writ large) has come under
scrutiny. The decline in the price of solar panels has spurred an
interest in renewable energy. And there's evidence that consumers, particularly younger consumers, favor brands that they perceive to be doing good, either for the planet or society.
While many producers go green simply because they feel it
is the right thing to do, others take the next step and submit to
certification. The most stringent certifications-with the fewest
acres covered and wineries participating-are organic and biodynamic. Both programs have a zero-tolerance policy for chemicals, meaning that one pesticide application will disqualify a
candidate.
The biggest rise in recent years has been in "sustainable"

winemaking. Rather than a strict focus on soil health and prohibition of chemical use, the sustainable approach adopts various
environmental protocols, including water and energy efficiency.
Detractors of the sustainable approach point to the fact that
the process starts with a self-assessment and tolerates the use of
chemicals in treating pests, weeds and vine maladies.
But there's no denying its popularity. The number of vineyards certified under the California Sustainable Winegrowers
Alliance (CSWA) doubled in the decade after 2004, rising from
800 to more than 1,600 (with a similar jump in acres covered).
Wineries have seen an even greater rise, vaulting from 128 in
2004 to 475 statewide. As of last year, 21 percent of vineyard
acres in the state and 78 percent of total wine production fell
under the "certified sustainable" program. In addition, regions
such as Napa and Sonoma have launched their own sustainability certification programs, and aim to have 100 percent participation within the next few years.
In this space, we examine all the shades of green.

The Wine Certifications
Navigating the thicket of "sustainable" certifications can be dizzying. Here we've broken down some of the important components
of four major certifying agencies in California: California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF); Demeter (Biodynamics); California
Sustainable Winegrowers Alliance (CSWA) and Napa Green (environmental sustainability).

FOUNDED

THIRD PARTY
ASSESSED?

RENEWAL TERM

IMPROVEMENTS
ASSESSED?

2000

Yes

Yearly

N/A

1928 (USA: 1985)

Yes

Yearly

N/A

CSWA

2003

Yes

Yearly

Yes, annually

Napa Green

2004

Yes

Every 3 years

Yes, annually

CCOF
Demeter

*Includes naturally occuring and added sulfites, and applies to "made with organic grapes" and "made with biodynamic grapes" only.

WINE & SPIRITS

FEBRUARY 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - February 2018