On April 22, after taking part in some eco-friendly activities, toast Earth Day by opening a bottle of sustainable wine from a local B.C. winery
From Eco-Glass and chicken tractors to making completely organic one-of-a-kind wine, these B.C. wineries are leaving a positive mark on their environments while still making delicious wines.
If you’re raising a glass on Friday, April 22, opt for one of the following B.C. wines, made consciously and sustainably...
1. Blue Grouse Estate Winery’s 2020 Amphora Collection Bacchus
As stewards of the land, Blue Grouse Estate Winery aims to leave everything better than it was found. The winery has invested in a variety of sustainable activities, like bottling with Eco-Glass, which uses uses 25 percent less glass than a typical wine bottle. Instead of sourcing glass from overseas, Blue Grouse sources its Eco-Glass from the Pacific Northwest.
The 2020 Amphora Collection Bacchus is not only made with Eco-Glass, but also contains grapes that have been grown at the winery’s estate vineyard. Purchase this wine online.
2. Monte Creek Winery’s 2020 Living Land Sparkling
Monte Creek Winery recently went through a complete rebranding to better align its packaging with one of its key business pillars: sustainability. One of the unique initiatives implemented at the winery is the use of chicken tractors. These “tractors” are actually coops with wheels that move throughout the vineyard, and, as they move, the chickens follow. As they go through the vines, the chickens naturally replenish the fields with manure.
Monte Creek Winery’s 2020 Living Land Sparkling wine is made with 100 percent estate-grown La Crescent and Frontenac Blanc grapes, meaning that the grapes didn’t have to travel far to get from field to bottle. Purchase this wine online.
3. Monte Creek Winery’s 2020 Haskap Fruit Wine
Monte Creek’s Haskap Fruit Wine takes sustainability one step further, as it’s made from Haskap berries that are grown at the winery. These Haskap berries were planted so that the winery’s honeybees can feed on the Haskap flowers and pollinate the plants. In return, the winery receives both Haskap fruit wine and all-natural honey. Purchase this wine online.
4. Okanagan Crush Pad’s 2018 Free Form Rosé
Okanagan Crush Pad’s Free Form brand is all about celebrating the natural taste of great B.C. wine. Free Form wines are made with organic grapes, native yeasts, and are free from additives. Due to this natural process, each wine is one of a kind.
The 2018 Free Form Rosé is made with certified organic Cabernet Franc grapes from Osoyoos, and the label is made using eco-friendly stone paper, a sustainable alternative to paper labels. Purchase this wine online.
5. Blasted Church’s 2020 Unorthodox Chardonnay
Blasted Church takes a holistic approach to vineyard management, as the winery team understands that it’s not just the grapes that are being farmed, but also the surrounding land. The winery uses cover crops (which are plants that grow between the rows of the vines) to achieve a natural balance within the vineyard and enrich the soil.
The winery’s 2020 Unorthodox Chardonnay is made with estate-grown Chardonnay Musque, meaning that all the grapes in this wine came from the winery’s own vineyard, where the soil was replenished through the sustainable cover-crop program. Purchase this wine online.