We write a lot about alternative methods of growing vines to the mid-twentieth-century norm of using agrochemical additions, but how prevalent in practice and in quantitative terms are organic and biodynamic viticulture?
I asked specialist writer Monty Waldin to report in detail on each significant country but didn't expect him to produce nearly 9,000 words on the topic. As a result, we'll be publishing what he wrote in five parts all this week. Here is a guide.
Introduction/overview (Inside information) 16 September
France (Inside information) 17 September
Spain and Italy (Inside Information) 18 September
Rest of the world (Inside information) 19 September
What has changed (Inside information) 20 September
The picture, taken by Monty like all the others in this series, shows Bürklin-Wolf's Italian winemaker Nicola Libelli in the Jesuitengarten vineyard hand 'spraying' biodynamic horn manure 500 (which he had previously hand stirred for one hour).