Hi Emery,

> A single bottle produced 1.1 pounds of total waste and released 16 grams of
> suldur dioxide.
>
> "Producing the 2004 vintage of some 100,000 bottles generated
> 10,000 kilograms of plastic waste alone, 5,000 kilograms of paper,
> and oceans of wastewater."
>
> Food for thought, indeed. It makes one wonder about the environmental impact,
> globally, of our personal habits...

Our habit doesn't have to mean excessive waste. I think it's a matter
of how a winery weighs vinting their product for efficiency, versus
environmental impact. And how much waste we consumers are willing to
put up with. If we care at all.

I've noticed that biodynamic and other "green" vinting methods are
catching on a lot in Oregon. The wines are spectacular, and prices
about the same as other commercially produced wines. The difference is
that there is more effort required on the part of the vintner to make
it happen. If I recall... several winemakers at the Carlton Winemakers
Studio use natural fertilizers from local farms... gravity-flow
irrigation from rainwater... and their vinting studio uses renewable
electricity to power their winery equipment.

On a much smaller scale, green methods are in use everywhere... think
about home vintners who don't need all that fancy packaging... We home
winemakers makes wine using less materials, and in a simpler fashion --
and certainly, with much less waste -- than most commercial wineries.
Recycling bottles for multiple vintages (which does not require wasted
energy from recycling and reforming the bottles), and re-using vinting
equipment that, while fine for home use, may not be up to specs for a
commercial outfit (again, repurposing materials so new ones don't need
to be purchased), are just two ways I can see the home winemaker
helping contribute in a "healthy" manner.

Add to this the fact that many vineyard owners who make wine also have
livestock, to whom they feed the leftover pomace, pips, stems, etc. Now
you have the makings of a recycling program right on your own property.
The livestock produce the fertilizer, and there you go.

Green vinting certainly costs a bit more up-front to set up, and may
have some higher operating costs (mostly labor, I should think), but it
can be done successfully, at least on a small-to-medium scale. I should
think that we (wine drinkers) really don't need nice foil wrappers,
expensive labels, or custom-crafted/etched bottles (all of which
contribute to excessive waste), because what matters is the wine, not
packaging. I think we could all start by letting our favorite wineries
know that we would support them in choosing greener production methods.
You might be surprised how many step up to the plate and offer to look
at new ways to make their wines, while reducing the impact on the
environment.

Thanks for sharing,

David