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4 The Cru Artisan College Study Guide Rome Santiago The use of added sulfites is debated heavily within the organic winemaking community. Many vintners favor their use in small quantities for stabilization of wine, while others frown on them completely. While there are a growing num- ber of producers making wine without added preservatives, a number of potential pitfalls await the bottled wine. The most prominent of which is the wine degrading during transport. Few would argue that wines made with no added sulfur diox- ide are often best enjoyed as close to their point of origin and as youthful as possible. Proponents of organically grown often argue that farming using synthetic chemicals destroys the uniqueness of the land, and the unique flavor that this "terroir" imparts to the wine. Organic certification of wine is complex as different coun- tries have different certification criteria. Some wineries that are technically organic choose not to be certified for various reasons, including the costs and bureaucratic burden of certi- fication. Currently only around 2% of the world's vineyards are certified as organic. Some farmers take additional or alternative steps beyond standard organic winemaking to apply Sustainable Viticulture practices. Examples include the use of composting and the cultivation of plants that attract insects that are beneficial to the health of the vines. Sustainable practices in these vineyards also extend to actions that have seemingly little or nothing to do with the production of grapes such as providing areas for wildlife to prevent animals from eating the grapes and allow- ing weeds and wildflowers to grow between the vines. While many farm their vines in a genuinely sustainable manner it is important to note that a large number do inevitably fall short of many ideals integral to the purest standards of sustainable viticultural practices yet still use the term to market their wines. Biodynamic wines are wines made using the principles of biodynamic agriculture which at its core is an extreme example of organic viticulture. Its principals are based on the theories of agriculture introduced by Rudolf Steiner in the early 1920s. As a practical method of farming, biodynamics embodies the ideal of ecological self-sufficiency and includes emphasis for ethical-spiritual considerations. This type of viticulture views the farm as a cohesive, interconnected living system. While some grape growers who have adopted biodynamic methods claim to have achieved improvements in the health of their vineyards, specifically in the areas of biodiversity, soil fertility, crop nutrition, and pest, weed, and disease manage- ment, others claim the practices to be irrational and unsci- entific. An important point of consideration is the increasing numbers of top quality wine producers from all corners of the globe who have adopted biodynamic practices. Additionally unlike in organic certifications for biodynamic wines there has emerged a single and internationally used and respected certification body called Demeter International. Having a well- regarded international organization and standard has helped the member wineries market themselves across the world. Valparaíso Curicó Concepción Chillán Santiago O'HIGGINS VALPARAÍSO CASABLANCA COLCHAGUA 0 100 miles Rancagua Valparaíso Santiago San Fernando CASABLANCA COLCHAGUA 0 20 miles Montalcino Torrenieri Sant' Angelo Scalo Castelnuovo dell' Abate Poggio alle Mura Castello Banfi Vineyards MONTALCINO 0 5 miles n P o P o ABRUZZO MARCHE EMILIA ROMAGNA TUSCANY SAN MARINO VAT I C A N C I TY Firenze Genova Alessandria Pisa Arezzo Siena L'Aquila Bologna Modena Ravenna Ferrara Rimini Reggio nell'Emilia Forlì Livorno Viterbo Civitavecchia Grosseto LAMBRUSCO DI SORBARA CONEGLIANO VALDOBBIADENE MONTALCINO 0 30 miles Roma