Some Clarifying, Dispelling, and Educating on a Sunday Evening

Ah, another quiet Sunday evening in the Sieger crib, just enjoying some quality time with my laptop, a crusty baguette, a bit of Forme d'Ambert, a few olives from Puglia, and a 2009 Naia Rueda:  100% Verdejo, not biodynamic, not organic, not great, but not bad.  I'm giving it 89 points.  This would definitely be a good match with grilled fish or crustacean.

My daily tasks I believe are in order.  Laundry, check.  Bike repair, check.  Dub playing on the Stereo, check.  Now all that's left to do is a bit of Clarifying, Dispelling, and Educating my fellow wine lovers on the subject of Biodynamic Wine.   Sounds like a daunting task, but thanks to some wonderfully concise information provided  by another iconic biodynamic producer from Alsace, this should be virtual child's play.  So, if you have only vague notions of what biodynamics is all about, or worse, loosely equate biodynamic farming with some kind of mysterious metaphysical ritual, hopefully some of those notions will be dispelled and we will have a bit clearer picture of the significance of biodynamic viticulture and it's benefits.  But before we dig into the nitty-gritty of the matter, let's take a quick look at the source of our enlightenment.

Clos des Capucins' (the vineyard soil of Domaine Weinbach) history goes way back, and I mean WAY back to circa 890, when the empress Richarde gave the land to the Abbey of Etival, who in turn gave part of the soil to the Capuchin monks.  These Capuchin monks then established the aptly named Domaine Weinbach (German for winestream) in 1612.  In 1898 the domaine was acquired by the Faller family and is run today by Colette Faller and her daughters who carry on a long tradition of passion for the wines of Alsace and an unrelenting commitment to delivering excellence.

Nature has endowed the vineyards of Domaine Weinbach with a variety of exceptional soils that are carefully matched to the grape varieties grown on them, as well as ideal topography providing optimal exposure to the sun.  As part of their commitment to producing wine that fully expresses the characteristics of the terroir,  the Fallers began converting their vineyards to biodynamics in 1998.  Since 2005 all of the domaine's vineyards have been cared for biodynamically, and since 2010 are both Ecocert and Demeter certified.

Here then is Domaine Weinbach's very cogent definition of Biodynamics and a brief explanation of how Biodynamic viticulture furthers their high quality standards.

Biodynamics is a farming philosophy formalized by the Austrian born philosopher and  scientist Rudolf Steiner in the 1920's and developed by Maria Thun. It takes organic viticulture as a beginning: the soils are worked and no synthetic chemicals  are used as fertilizers or pesticides. It goes farther then organics in the sense that it considers  a vineyard as a living organism. The soil (the earth is viewed as the mother) is not a simple  support for the vine but a living environment and a source of energy as much as its outdoor  environment is (the sun is the father). The primary principle is to upgrade the soil and the vine life in its natural environment and  increase the natural defences/resistance of the vine with the use of products made from  vegetal (nettle, willow, horsetail, camomile, achillea,…), animal (manure, compost) and  mineral (silica) origins. Secondly, the application of these products and the working of the soils at specific times  according to the sun and moon cycles are also key, there lies the "dynamic" part.

The goal is to achieve harmonious life conditions and better exchanges between the soil, the  plant (including root and foliage systems) and its environment based on: better soil quality thanks to the presence of a greater quantity and variety of bio organisms otherwise killed by herbicides and the absence of oxygen getting into the soil; deeper, thicker and healthier roots favoured by the work of the soil; better development of leaves and flowers (more efficient photosynthesis). The better exchanges that take place enable the soil and climate characteristics to be  transferred to the grapes, increasing the quality of their flavours and the expression of the  terroirs.

For us, biodynamic viticulture means respect of the environment, respect of the terroirs and of the grapes. A viticulture that respects life allows not only the vintage climate and the grape varieties but above all the terroirs to express themselves in the wines.
The benefits of biodynamics were never as obvious as in 2003 (extremely hot and dry vintage). During that year, the vines resisted incredibly well and the wines showed a natural balance and a surprising freshness.
Biodynamics may look esoteric. Yet it is easy to relate to homeopathy for humans. It also involves a great deal of good sense based on traditional peasant practices that were being lost in the new industrial world. It is interesting to note that our grandmother used some of the now fancily called biodynamic methods as well as the "astral" calendar to take care of her garden.


To conclude: The main motivation is to increase soil activity and thus stimulate soil/root/aerial system exchanges with the objective of producing better quality, terroir driven and aromatically complex grapes and wines. Biodynamics helps us care for and protect our vines not only for now but also for future generations.

Hopefully, fellow wine lover, this post has been as interesting and informative for you as it is for me.
I must say all this clarifying, dispelling, and educating has made me quite tired, and so once again I bid you adieu.  Until next time,

Keep it natural, and keep it interesting.