Weed Slayer: Organic Wonder Drug for Weed Control is Just Clove Oil Basically

At Unified Wine Grape Symposium this year, I attended the panel on Weed Control and the big buzz at the end of the 90 minutes panel seemed to be the moment when moderator John Roncoroni asked the audience, "Who here is using Weed Slayer?"

Hands shot up, and most were not from organic growers (who are a tiny percentage of those who attend Unified).

In the race to stop using what Ronconi and others called "the hammer," - i.e. Roundup - growers have been looking for a kinder, gentler replacement for years.

So today's blog post by Craig Camp of Troon Vineyard - a deeper dive into Weed Slayer - is much appreciated.

Slide of the Day | Remember to Count: Chemical Fertilizer Energy Inputs Compared to Compost (Typically Applied in Organic Systems)

Slide from Glenn McGourty presentation

Last week I visited Russell Ranch at U.C. Davis for soil health presentations, including those by Kate Scow and her team who have recently documented the dramatic impact of compost in sequestering carbon.

Today, while searching for something else, I came upon Glenn McGourty's fabulous presentation on soil health and vineyards.

We are often told that "sustainable" wine grape growing is the answer to climate change and soil issues, and that because organic certification does not require regenerative practices, it is not as good for the environment.

Nothing could be further from the truth, as, even though the regulations don't mandate healthier soil practices, most organic growers do use compost.

Tillage turns out to be not nearly as important as previously thought (as long as it's just the top 6 inches, according to the Russell Ranch study's experts).

Slide from Glenn McGourty presentation

The slide above shows that, aside from carbon sequestration alone, compost has HUGE benefits when we look at the resources needed to fertilize soils with chemicals.

You can see McGourty's whole slide deck here.

I guess I haven't yet posted anything about the U.C. Davis trip (except on social media) so here's a link to the published version of their compost research from CalCAN.

And as a slide from the presentation last week shows (see below - the vertical bar on the right) there is vast potential for carbon sequestration in the organic farming example where compost is applied.

In recent years, the U.C. researchers have also added a fourth system in which compost is added to conventional plots with cover crops to see how well soils treated with conventional chemicals sequester carbon.

To date, scientists are divided over what the impacts are of using compost in non-organic systems in terms of the impact on carbon sequestration.

Compost study results from Russell Ranch study, published 2019. The compost (organic) system on the right sequestered
far more carbon - about 0.7% per year which added up to 12% over the length of the study, The study has recently adopted a fourth category - which includes compost with conventional farming. Note that cover crops, while they have many virtues, do not aid in carbon sequestration, according to the researchers.

IN PHOTOS: Slow Wine Guide 2020 Tasting

Slow Wine Guide 2020 kicked off its annual tour yesterday in San Francisco with a sold out tasting at Pier 27.

The event consisted mainly of Italian wineries (the core of the book's focus) and is based on the book Slow Wine Guide 2020. The Italian version of the book contains more than 500 Italian wineries and 1,000 wines and is the bestselling wine book in Italy.

You can download a free copy of the English edition here.

The English version includes 366 Italian wineries and 245 U.S. wines, including 176 from California and 69 from Oregon.

Enjoy these photos of U.S. organic and biodynamic producers from the event:

Lulu McClellan (right) of Handley Cellars in Mendocino's
Anderson Valley
with Don Neel (left) of Practical Winery & Vineyard

Mitch Hawkins (left) and Jerry Baker (right) of
Hawk and Horse Vineyards, located in Lake County's Red Hills AVA

Rosemary Cakebread's delicate Gallica wines (from Napa, Sonoma
and Amador County grapes) were featured at the tasting.

Jason Drew of Drew Family Cellars in Elk (above Anderson Valley in
the Mendocino Ridge AVA) poured his award winning reds and a Chardonnay.

Ehlers Estate winemaker Laura Diaz Munoz

Jeff Chaney from Grimm's Bluff in Santa Barbara County poured the
biodynamic estate's Sauvignon Blancs and Cabs

Slow Wine Guide 2020 | Free EBOOK Here

Happy to announce that the 2020 edition of Slow Wine Guide is now out.

As a Senior Editor for California, I wrote about 60 of the winery listings in this year's guide. It was a pleasure to meet winemakers and to work with Deborah Parker Wong, Senior Editor, and Jeremy Parzen as well as all the field contributors in the two day marathon tasting in Sept. where we tasted all the wines nominated for awards.

California wines just keep getting better and better. What rockstars we have!

Get a free download of the book here:
https://edigita.cantook.net/campaigns/kU9mBoSQD5mA7Tt3/participants/7nPpW3SEb8WruDmH

Slow Wine Guide is the number one bestselling wine book in Italy with more than 5,000 copies sold.

The Slow Wine Guide 2020 Tour kicks off next week:

• February 18th, San Francisco, California: Pier 27, The Embarcadero
• February 19th, Seattle, Washington: Bert & Tot Ballroom, Block 41
• February 21st, Denver, Colorado: Asterisk, Downtown
• February 24th, New York, New York: Union Park, Flatiron
• February 25th, Boston, Massachusetts: Artist for Humanity, Fort Point

UK Organic Wine Sales Up 47%, Says UK Soil Association's Latest Report

A new story published in Forbes today shows that organically grown wine is making great strides in the UK market.

• Sales of organic wines increased 47% to $65 million

"U.K. retailer, Waitrose, is a big winner as it is the largest supplier of organic wine with over 70 organic wines from 18 different countries," the article said.

Organic Yum for Your Valentine: Port Style Wine Paired with Chocolate Covered Walnuts

Good things come in twos like port wine and chocolate covered walnuts. Where can you find them from an organic producer in California? 

From Manzanita Manor Organics.

This Paso based, women owned enterprise grows walnuts and makes a port style wine which they sell along with chocolate covered walnuts. A two pack with both is just $29.

Order now to get them by the all important date-Feb. 14.

I ran into Cynthia and Jutta at the Ecofarm wine tasting this year, where they also featured their delicious chocolate covered walnuts, which I sampled, so I can say this vintage is every bit as good as last year's.

But don't take my word for it. Try them yourself.