Organic/Biodynamic
Directions
Modern Minimalism
This week WineDown tiptoes with unaccustomed restraint through the consumer minefield that is…
Minimal Intervention Wines: Organic, Biodynamic and Natural
Most people these days happily agree that Organic/Biodynamic foods are inherently better for us. We’re not sure how or why exactly (liberal applications of horse manure perhaps?) – but we’re convinced. Well, we fork out extra dollars for them without batting an eyelid, so they’re obviously better. And it follows that Organic/ Biodynamic wines are better than regular wines, right? Er… you know that minefield we were talking about?
Organic / Biodynamic
So, let’s get a better understanding of the topic. Organic and Biodynamic practices have much in common, but they’re certainly not the same thing.
The National Standard for Organic and Biodynamic Produce (from the Australian Dept of Agriculture and Water Resources) defines both. WineDown will spare you the unpoetic details, but the gist is this:
Organic is a whole-systems approach to growing food. It protects, respects, and enriches soil, plants, animal life and environment - while optimising yield ‘without the use of artificial fertiliser or synthetic chemicals.’
Biodynamic agriculture uses the Organic system as its starting point, then places specific additional requirements on top. Conceptualised and promulgated by Rudolph Steiner in the 1920s, Biodynamics treats the earth as a living and receptive organism. Controversially, Biodynamics prescribes specific soil preparations (manure-stuffed cow horns buried in the soil, for example); and advocates planting and cultivation schedules based on the lunar calendar and astrological influences. (You can see how it might be provocative.)
Forward to the Past
But let’s face it, there’s nothing new about any of this stuff. After all, synthetic fertilisers and chemicals were only invented in the 1840s. Prior to that, ALL farming was organic. And for millennia, farmers have relied on lunar events, almanacs, and lord knows what else to ensure a bountiful harvest. Some of the world’s most famous wine brands – like the great Domaine de la Romanée-Conti – have always been Organic/ Biodynamic, simply because they declined to use chemicals when they became commonplace in the early 1900s.
Happy Dirt
But do Organic wines taste BETTER? That’s a tough call. Many experienced tasters reckon they could never pick an Organic/ Biodynamic wine in a blind tasting. Others report that the clarity and purity of flavour in these wines is a dead give-away, and enthusiasts insist that they display an enhanced sense of vitality, time, and - in particular - place. It stands to reason: happy dirt makes happy vines, makes happy wine.
CERTIFIED Organic
Here’s the thing, though, the National Standard referred to earlier is a VOLUNTARY standard. The ACCC says: ‘Businesses do not necessarily have to meet the requirements of the standard in order to label and sell their products as ‘organic’ within Australia.’
Like we said, it’s a bit of a minefield. Terms such as ‘spray-free’, ‘natural’, ‘organic practices’ and ‘biodynamic practices’ abound. These wines may well be absolutely smashing, but if you want to be completely certain that what you are drinking really is Organic, look for the words CERTIFIED Organic on the label.
Natural Wines
Natural wines are the unruly offspring of the Organic & Biodynamic movements. These, essentially, are wines that make themselves - with nothing added during the process, and nothing removed. (If you ever wondered what wines were like a thousand years ago, here’s your answer.) But some additives play an important role: Sulphites, for example, preserve freshness and prevent oxidation. Their antimicrobial action allows wines to age elegantly for years, instead of simply becoming a microbial stew. But Natural wines rely solely on the small quantity of sulphites that already exist in the juice. As a result, your Natural wine’s shelf life is naturally short, so make hay… These are punchy, flavoursome, challenging wines: unfiltered and unfined so they’re often cloudy and even a bit unstable - but that’s all part of the thrill.
But here’s a heads up: There are no legal definitions for natural wine in Australia, so in spite of its minimal-intervention philosophy, your natural wine could well be made from non-organic grapes.
Orange Wines
A quick recap on red winemaking v white winemaking will help here: Red wines are fermented on their skins to extract colour, tannins, and other compounds; while for whites, the skins are quickly removed early on, to protect delicate flavours, and avoid pigmentation.
Your Orange wine is basically a Natural white that’s been vinified like a red. The resulting wine is amber to orange in colour, with bold, in your face flavours, structural tannins and a bitterness not normally associated with whites - which can be a bit of a shock to the uninitiated.
Because these wines don’t age terribly well, production levels are kept low - so Natural wines can be hard to find. But if you’re feeling adventurous, they’re worth a crack. Just know that the ‘minimal’ concept tends not to find its way to the price tag, so approach your Naturals with an open mind and a relaxed wallet. Or the other way round.