Good Grape Wine Company

February 13 2007

The Taste of Terroir – An attempt to make sense of Biodynamics Pt. II

By Damien Casten

Pt. II Organic and Biodynamic Enclaves

Farmers fleeing Hitler took Steiner’s methods with them founding Biodynamic Gardening Associations in England and California as early as 1938 and it further spread to Australia in the 1950’s.  The approach was not widely applied in viticulture until the Frenchman Nicolas Joly of Coulee de Serrant in the Loire Valley halted the use of all pesticides in his Chenin Blanc vineyards and adopted biodynamics in the early 1980’s.  Joly became a true believer and is still one of its most vocal proponents. 

Biodynamics widest following is in France where it flourished in the late 1980’s.  Burgundy, Alsace and the Loire valley are the three regions with the greatest concentration of converted farms.  This makes some sense as the communities within these regions are often close knit and even share vineyard plots, as anyone who has tried to understand Burgundian labels can attest..  Where one grower has converted with success, others have often followed suit.  France’s most famous biodynamic producers include Lalou Bize Leroy of Domaine Leroy in Burgundy, Alsatian Master of Wine Olivier Humbrecht of Zind-Humbrecht and Rhone based negociant Michel Chapoutier.  At the iconic Domaine de la Romanée Conti, proprietor Aubert de Villiane is cautious when speaking of biodynamics. “DRC is organically farmed and has been for more than twenty years.  People credit Steiner when they convert from traditional farming, but for me the real key is organics.” Still, de Villiane is curious.  He farms a small parcel of vines as a test but for the moment is not convinced that the entire estate should be converted .  For a more affordable taste of French Biodynamics, seek out the Muscadets of Guy Bossard at Domaine de l’Ecu in the Loire Valley.  He produces a number of different wines from plots with different subsoils that retail around twenty dollars.

Many of the large, often corporately owned vineyards in Champagne and Bordeaux have been slow to adopt strict organic methods, much less biodynamics.  The merlot based Pavie-Maquin of St. Emillion is perhaps the most famous of the Bordelais chateaux to experiment with biodynamics.  Part of the problem in climates susceptible to mildew like Bordeaux is that biodynamics has no method of treating the disease, but focuses instead on prevention whereas there are effective inorganic sprays available.  Risking an entire year’s crop to maintain biodynamic standards is difficult to imagine. 

In the US, the pattern of concentrated areas of interest has been repeated.  Master of Wine Jancis Robinson points out that Napa Valley has in the past few years begun “flirting” with organics and biodynamics but that the move is a slow one.  In contrast, Oregon, with its smaller vineyards, favorable climate and statewide dedication to natural produce is one of the leading organic wine regions in the world.  Nearly half of all vineyards in the state are certified organic.  Robinson cites numerous wineries that have significantly improved quality levels in recent years after adopting sustainable practices.  The uptake of biodynamics has been slower, but the 2002 conversion of Beaux-Freres, run by Michael Etzel and co-owned with his brother in law, Robert Parker is notable.  Robinson says “the contrast between the 1998 and 2003 vintages from his Jackie Block…could hardly have been greater… (The biodynamic) 2003…was probably the finest Oregon Pinot Noir I tasted during a…visit there earlier this year.”

Famously, Northern California is a hotbed of organic farms feeding the revolution Alice Waters instigated at Chez Panisse.  Vineyards have followed suit with organic and biodynamic methods catching on in the past fifteen years. Frey, Fetzer and a bit farther south, Benziger are recognized as leaders. 

Fetzer Vineyards in Mendecino County extended organic methods from a test garden in the 1980’s across their property.  They started Bonterra, an entirely organic vineyard in 1990 and just bottled their first biodynamic wine from Bonterra’s McNabb Ranch.  Julian Miclette, a grower on McNabb ranch speaks clearly of the quantifiable and spiritual benefits.  He cites a study comparing the pruning weight of vines farmed organically and biodynamically at Bonterra over seven years.  Pruning weight is the relation of the weight of new wood produced by the vine each year to the weight of the fruit.  It speaks to the vine’s ability to self regulate and produce just as much fruit as its health, root structure and environment will allow to ripen The biodynamic vines consistently produced the ideal pruning weight ratio, while the organic vines were close, but not spot on.  For Julian this indicates the vines’ increased ability to “reliably produce a sustainable amount of balanced fruit”. Technical terms aside, Julian says “the whole trip of biodynamics is learning to be more observant as a farmer”. Echoing biodynamic growers across the world, he adds “the whole farm feels better since converting, it seems to make people happy and it attracts wild animals like boar that contribute to the overall health of the vines.” Alan York, one of the Bonterra study’s coauthors and perhaps the leading biodynamics expert in California focuses on biodynamics’ apparent ability to extract the most terroir from the terroir. Stressing the process, York says “the objective of biodynamics is authenticity, and (that) doesn’t equate to better.’’

Authors note:  quotes with Julian Miclette taken from personal phone interview.  Quotes from Alan York excerpted from UC Davis news article

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