Stop Before You Sip

Before you take that sip of wine, you may want to check if it's made from organic grapes. Non-organic grapes, along with strawberries, blueberries, and celery (the worst), are among the most pesticide-saturated foods from the garden (or vineyard). When you consider the amount of grapes present in every glass of wine, you start to get an idea of the concentration of pesticides in each sip. Why does it matter?

Headaches are linked to pesticide consumption, along with a slew of other negative symptoms, including poor memory, lack of energy, and diarrhea. Obviously we can't nail these on pesticides alone, because like so many other ailments, they are not caused by only one thing. But it all comes back to this--pesticides are damaging to our ecosystems. And the incidence of cancer and other ailments among farm workers who live and work in pesticide-laden areas is an obvious and major indictment of pesticides. So bring in the ladybugs!

Wines made from organically grown grapes have been growing in popularity throughout the world. I’m lucky to live in Northern California, where there is a delightful host of wineries that produce their wine from organic grapes--Frey (America’s first organic winery, meaning not only do they produce their wine from organic grapes, but they do not add sulfites), Peju Province (where the wine tasting room looks like a medieval castle and the grounds are host to sculptures of some of the goddesses of Greek myth), and Frog’s Leap (vast organic garden, big house for wine-tasting, big old red barn where the wine barrels are stored), to name only a few.

If you’re in California and enjoy wine tasting, you may want to include some of these wineries on your list of things to do. You’ll learn more about sustainable farming, biodynamics, and why this makes sense for grapes, just like any other ‘food’ you put into your body. And you’ll have the opportunity to discover the often amazing architecture and grounds of these enchanting wineries. Look for wines made from organic grapes at stores like Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Safeway, or your local market. Often you need to check the back of the label to see the information you need.

Remember that for a wine to be considered organic, no sulfites can be added in the processing. So even if it was made from 100% certified organic grapes, but sulfites were added--it is not an organic wine. Sulfites are used to inhibit or kill unwanted yeasts and bacteria, and to protect wine from oxidation. In fact, sulfites are formed naturally during the fermentation process, but most winemakers add sulfites during the crushing, fermentation, and the bottling stages as well.

Check out the wine list at your favorite restaurant. If you don’t see any mention of "organic," suggest adding some. And meanwhile, raise your glass and be sure you can really say, "A votre sante."