Sustainability: From Field to Bottle
Sustainable Solutions
Sustainability is not a trend; it’s the only approach to better farming. Our Russian River Valley winegrowers protect the valley’s resources by using sustainable farming to preserve Sonoma County land for future generations. We are dedicated to maintaining agricultural diversity through environmental stewardship.
Our farming community is aligned with the Sonoma County Winegrowers. With these partners, we are committed to becoming America’s first 100% certified sustainable wine region by 2019. This collaboration spans 17 American Viticulture Areas (AVAs) and represents 1,800 wineries and growers.
“Farming is not only Sonoma County’s rich heritage but its identity and its future” Saralee McClelland
Under the Sonoma County Winegrowers sustainability certification program, farmers must follow 77 best practices. To fulfill the certification requirements, growers are rated on the environmental impact of their farming methods. Topics are scored and include water conservation, ecosystem management, habitat diversity, air quality, pest management, soil monitoring, energy efficiency, among others. Winegrowers gain valuable insight and either refine existing methods or adopt new farming practices to achieve their environmental goals.
In Russian River Valley, we’ve been using sustainable farming practices for decades. Many methods are natural solutions to nature’s challenges. From planting cover crops between rows of grapevines to replenish nutrients in the soil to inviting hawks and bluebirds to set up house above the grape rows for rodent and pest control, sustainability simply makes sense.
