Sustainability, LIVE, Earth-Day
Raise a glass of our sustainably-farmed wine to toast earth day today!
We believe a healthy and diverse vineyard environment grows better grapes, better reflects our natural terroir, and enables us to make better wine. We hope you do too.
Phelps Creek Vineyards is proud to be certified sustainable through LIVE. As many of you know, Bob has taken the environmental stewardship of his land seriously from the beginning. In 2021 Phelps Creek Vineyards made it official through LIVE, a third-party certifying nonprofit that works throughout the PNW, under the guidance of the international IOBC.
Sometimes it might be a little more work, and a little more expensive, to farm this way. And we have to maintain extensive records and undergo regular on-site inspector visits. But it matters to us because it protects our land, our water, our employees, and all of you who drink our wine. And by being a part of LIVE, we get the chance to learn from the best-practices and trials at other LIVE-certified vineyards. Each vintage we think about how to further improve the sustainability of our farming and winemaking.
Being a LIVE certified sustainable vineyard means we work to:
• Increase biodiversity in and around the vineyard. We maintain a couple dozen acres of wild and native forestland surrounding the vineyard (over 40% of the main estate), which supports diverse life, big and small, from beneficial insects, to rodent-hunting raptors, vineyard-grazing turkeys, and at least one Chardonnay-loving bear. In addition, we maintain native oaks amongst the vineyard blocks, and have pollinator-supporting plants throughout the vineyard. We must meet the Bee Friendly Farming certification requirements as a part of LIVE.
• Improve the soil health. Soil is a living thing – teaming with microbes that that break down organic matter and help the vines thrive. We protect that life by not spraying harsh chemicals and by practicing low-till farming – no-till for some rows, once every four years for others. We feed the soil by planting a variety of cover crops and returning the grape stems, skins, and seeds back to the vineyard after pressing. We are able to farm without applying any fertilizer.
• Practice integrated pest management without the harsh chemicals. We use pruning and biological controls to manage vineyard pests first to reduce our need for vineyard sprays (like pulling leaves to expose the clusters to wind to reduce the disk of mildew), and when we do spray, we choose from the limited LIVE-approved list – we typically alternate sulfur, mineral oil, and beneficial bacteria; no glyphosate or other systemic herbicides, no synthetic pesticides, not even organic copper.
• Protect our waterways and conserve water. We actually dry farm, which means we don’t irrigate, so our water use is minimal. We don’t use any inorganic fertilizers, and don’t spray chemicals that could hurt life in the creek. And we protect the riparian zone around the creek by not farming too close, preventing vineyard runoff, and leaving it wild. We must meet the Salmon Safe certification requirements as a part of LIVE.
Join us in celebrating and protecting the natural world. Wine is an agricultural product of the earth. Cheers!
