Magazine May/Jun 2018

WINE RANT

By Alvin Gho, Wine Specialist The organic food movement has been fuelled by US market enthusiasm since the early 2000s. Organic food sales rose 17-20 percent at the turn of the millennium, compared to sales of conventional food, which rose just 2-3 percent year-on-year. In 2012, the American organic food market was reported to be worth approximately $30 billion (out of the world’s total $81 billion). With its underlying premise forged upon the drive to keep our land and soils sustainable for generations to come, the organic movement is driven primarily by people’s desire to eat better and healthier. For all the marketing hype surrounding organic foods, consumers have developed the perception that organic products are healthier and naturally taste better. The concept of ‘organic’, however, and the philosophy surrounding it go much deeper than that. With organic wines also taking the world by storm these days, I would like to take this opportunity to unravel some myths. MYTH: ORGANIC WINES TASTE BETTER Organic wines are simply wines produced with organically grown grapes. This means that the processes and sprays used in the vineyards are selected with sustainability of the land in mind. Synthetic pesticides, herbicides and other synthetic add-ons are not permitted. While this MAY result in better quality of grapes for winemaking, other man- made controls that can be used to manipulate the grapes and/or juice in the winery also means that great tasting wines can be produced, regardless of whether the grapes are organic or not. Organic Wine Myths

MYTH: ORGANIC WINES ARE NATURAL Certain things are left unspoken from winemaker to consumer. I am surprised how, unlike almost all pre- packaged food and drink, ingredient lists are not mandated on wine labels. The use of sulfur dioxide (sulfites) as a preservative is highly common in the food industry. Found in many consumables from dried fruit and coca- cola to fruit juice, sulfites are added to almost all wines in varying quantities to extend their shelf life. Most conventional wines are subject to a limit of 350 parts per million (ppm), with EU organic wines limited to 100 ppm. The US Department of Agriculture requires a wine labelled “Organic” to contain less than 10 ppm of sulfites, while those “Made with Organic Grapes” can contain an upper limit of 100 ppm. A list of other additives can be added to organic wines. Tartaric acid can supplement finished wines that are lacking in acidity. Sugar (in several forms) can be added to unfermented grape must (juice) to ensure the wine achieves minimum alcohol levels as required by local law. Grape concentrates can be added to “fix” light wine colors. And of course, wood chips are famously stirred into wines for a tannin boost when the latter is lacking in the fruit or if oak barrels are too costly. As they say, you are what you eat. By extension, I believe you are also what you drink. Slowly but surely people need to become aware of where their wines come from and what goes into them. It is alarming that information like these never make it to consumers.

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MAY / JUN 2018 THE AMERICAN CLUB