Many of us choose a popular and tasteful beverage. However, sometimes, we are forgetting that we are allowing these things to dictate us with our choices. For example, in choosing a good bottle of wine, either it is white or red wines, we always look for the basic qualifications. And that includes sweetness, acidity, tannin, alcohol, and body.
But how about the ingredients? It is essential to know the elements of wine before you can conclude that you got a good bottle of wine. Let us go ahead and distinguish the differences of a wine that was made by natural ingredients and non-organic. Then you might want to consider drinking organic wine than non-organic wine.
What is Organic Wine?
Organic wines are produced only with organically grown grapes. To have organically grown grapes, a vineyard director must implement a totally separate set of techniques for preserving their vines. Organic doesn’t really mean that there are no additives in the wine.
In reality, there is a list of additives that are permitted in natural wines, including stuff like yeast, egg whites, and animal enzymes (such as rennet in cheese). It doesn’t necessarily imply that being organic means, a wine is vegan.
The challenge of natural wines (and what distinguishes them from other organic foods) is the significance of sulfur dioxide (SO2) in the process of winemaking. Wineries are in a dilemma because they instantly lose time producing organically grown grapes because they are using SO2 in the bottling line.
What are the Non-Organic Wines?
In vineyards, non-organic wines can use chemical substances such as herbicides and fungicides and other additives (such as sulfur or Mega Purple) in a wine. In the vineyard, you will discover most of the strange chemicals used in non-organic wines.
Pesticides and fungicides are commonly used in calm (low wind) regions with more air moisture to cause fungal infections (maybe near a river, pond or lake). Many fungicides and pesticides are used to kill invasive species. For example, in Napa, Pierce’s Disease carrier is a foreign bug called the glassy-winged sharpshooter. Basically, this specific disease transforms vines into lepers with rotting leaves and ultimately kills them.
How Bad to Drink a Non-Organic Wine?
There are a lot of studies of what are the exact chemicals being used to create a wine. According to research on Wine Folly website, they found out that one of the vineyards in Napa owned over 30 different toxic chemicals being used inside the parameter.
Some testimonies can support these findings such as the story about Monty Waldin who attested first-hand to the absence of regulation in developing wine-producing countries such as Chile and Portugal, which affected even wine-producing employees.
In mentioning this subject to their wine colleagues, another tale emerged about a winery in Southern France found guilty of one of their workers ‘ pesticide poisoning. In other words, once it is made out of chemicals, it can cause harm.
How To Know If You are Drinking the Organic Wine?
Luckily there’s a solution that American wine drinkers should know about and it’s called ‘ Made with Organically Grown Grapes. ‘ For two reasons, these little words on a bottle are your ticket to drink more green, which is wines are made from Certified Organic Vineyards and contains less than 100 ppm sulfites.
There are also other sustainability programs that you can trust such as SIP Certified (Sustainability in Practise), Salmon Safe ( the wine are not processed near streams and rivers) Demeter (produce biodynamic certifications) and USDA Organic.
Takeaway
Drinking a wine brings satisfaction to our soul, and sometimes it leads to a beautiful celebration. However, it is essential to consider the process and ingredients of wine before enjoying every sip of it. Look for a wine that has all the qualifications of a good bottle of wine which includes sweetness, acidity, tannin, alcohol, and sustainability.
Organic wines may not be that famous and tasty, but it is good for our health and to the environment. A simple act of choosing to drink organic wines can contribute a lot in saving our mother earth. Indulge yourself of the delicious and healthy taste of wine and be amazed by all the benefits you can get upon drinking a glass of it.
Author’s bio:
Margaret Wallace is an expert in the food industry. Her expertise and skills about food and beverage pairing have helped her in becoming an effective mentor inspiring everyone to maintain a fit and fab lifestyle.
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