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Does organic wine taste bad?
Figuring out which (if any) organic wine to buy can feel like navigating dawn with a hangover.
By Rebecca Clarren [2007-12-01]

  • Thoughts from an Organic Wine saleman

    Hi.

    I sell organic wine for a living. I am a trained sommelier.

    About 70% of what I sell regularly is wine which contains little to no detectable sulfites. All the wine I sell is made at the very least, with organically grown grapes. A fraction of these wines are produced biodynamically.

    Here is the thing: The science as to how sulfites affect people is fairly controversial in my circle of associates. So, let's just say this: like all wine, conventional or organically produced, there is good, and bad wine.

    To say the wine is bad because it is organic is foolish. Wine is bad because of one (or all) of three things: poorly sourced grapes, poorly crafted, poorly stored. Wine that is made without added sulfites does tend to be less stable than wine made with added sulfites. However, there are amazing sulfite free wines. Pick up any sulfite-free wine from Stellar Organics, out of South Africa. These are really good wines, with no detectable sulfites, that are true to the varietal. Every single buyer who has tasted them has been blown away.

    Lesser-known, but very amazing, is Casa Barranca's Arts and Crafts Red, also sulfite free. Like good pizza, this wine actually tasted better the next day, which is saying a lot for most wines, and completely amazing for sulfite-free wine.

    My final points are:

    1) It so happens that much of the worlds most highly-regarded and highly-coveted wines happen to be made from organically and biodynamically grown grapes.

    2) Another consideration is wines that are not made with any sort of organic oversight are often full of additives. Many wine producers are not above adding glycerin, flavoring and other additives to maintain consistency and quality, let alone sulphur dioxide.

    So, to make a distinction between organic and non-organic wine as good vs. bad is unfair. There are great wines on both sides, and there are some truly horrible wines from both sides too.

    But the only way to find out what you really enjoy is to get out there and try, try, try!

    Cheers.

    -- salamimansam
    [Read salamimansam's other letters]
    Friday, November 30, 2007 09:43 PM
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