I have to admit; I am a huge fan of wine. There’s nothing like winding down a day with a glass of Pinot Noir; I am especially big fan of French Wine. But I do wonder how Eco-friendly is wine exactly? There’s a new trend of many wineries producing Organic wines; yet sometimes I get confused by the labels. Today, We are going to debunk the Organic Wine labels and break it down Jolly Green Girl’s way.

According to the the Organic Consumers Association, the history of organic wine and the labeling of organic wine dates back to 1990 when congress passed the National Organic Foods Act. The goal of the Organic Foods Act was to protect producers, handlers, processors, retailers, and consumers of organic food by assuming that foods labeled as organic were in fact organic. National Organic Program which is part of the USDA states that there are 4 categories that organic wines can claim.

• 100% Organic:For a wine to be labeled “100% Organic” and bear the USDA organic seal, it must be made from 100% organically produced ingredients (in other words, the grapes must be grown organically), have an ingredient statement on the label, and give information about who the certifying agency is. A wine in this category cannot have any added sulfites. It may have naturally occurring sulfites, but the total sulfite level must be less than 100 parts per million.

• Organic: To be labeled “Organic” and bear the USDA organic seal, the wine must be made from at least 95% organic ingredients, have an ingredient statement on the label where organic ingredients are identified as being organic, and give information about who the certifying agency is. Again, a wine in this category cannot have any added sulfites, but it is allowed to have naturally occurring sulfites below100 parts per million. The other 5% are ingredients that cannot be made organically such as added yeast.

• Made with Organic Ingredients - Made with Organic Grapes Organically Grown: To claim any of these statements, a wine must be made with at least 70% organic ingredients, have an ingredient statement on the label where organic ingredients are identified as being organic, and give information about who the certifying agency is. A wine in this category may not bear the USDA seal. It may contain added and naturally occurring sulfites and the total must still be under 100 parts per million. The 30% of non organic ingredients must be non organically produced agricultural ingredients that are not available in an organic form or another substance.

• Some Organic Ingredients:This category is for products that have less than 70% organic ingredients. It cannot bear the USDA seal nor have information about a certifying agency or any other reference to organic content.

There also seems to be some confusion about sulfites. Sulfites are used in wines as a preservative. It has a strong anti-bacterial and antimicrobial properties. According to the NOP labeling laws. Any of the NOP categories could claim to be sulfite Free or have No Added sulfites, but the 100% Organic and Organic categories must meet one of these criteria. The Made with Organic Ingredients and Some Organic Ingredients categories may or may not have added sulfites.

Here are some Organic Wine sites you can check out.
Organic Wine Company
Imported French and Italian Wine; Certified Organic
Frey Vineyards
California Vineyard; Certified by USSA
Frogs Leap
California Vineyard: Organically made grapes.

In the next couple of weeks; in the name of research.. (yippee!) I will personally try some of the wine and let you know how they taste. So stay tuned.. Oh I love this job.

Resource: Organic Consumers Association

Image Credit: Trish Hughs: inxsive28