Over at Dr Vino there has been much discussion of carbon neutrality, off-sets and the like.
What surprises me though is that people think they are reducing carbon emissions by buying locally produced wines. While it could reduce carbon emissions, you need to take into consideration the process of growing the grapes, making the wine, the process of procuring the packaging. These will all vary depending on the country, winery and climate. Then consider the relative merits and efficiency in shipping of the finished package.
For example, not every wine region has the luxury of its own bottle manufacturer, many wines use bottles imported from other countries sometimes the other side of the earth. Corks need to come from Portugal, the cardboard cases? Etc, etc…
Paul -
It’s an interesting question whether buying a low-impact wine from the other side of the world would actually be more carbon efficient than buying a high-impact local wine.
And one more factor to consider: vineyard development. Check this video for some recent activity in Sonoma.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIrJRc4P94Q
Best,
Tyler
Interesting video. If you look at at carbon only you would have to take into consideration the effect of deforestation as well.
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