Great post! Thank you very much, this is very useful to me. The only point that doesn't work for us is posting prices. We are an Italian winery and our wines are sold all over the world. We sell direct to visitors to the property. I feel that posting prices creates confusion since our wines have different shelf prices in different countries and I have no control over my distributor's costs (temp-controlled shipping etc) or margins. I don't know if it's helpful for a Japanese client to see a price in Euros that bears no relation to the price of our wines in Tokyo... I also worry that I will undercut the work our importers do if I show our prices. If people contact me I can give them correct information for their country. Thanks again for a great post. Laura Gray www.ilpalazzone.com

Elizabeth, Ben and Josh... thank you! I am honored to have had a chance to talk about what we are trying to do. I am at pains to point out that we are one of many estates in the same position. I just came across an article by James Christopher Tracy, the winemaker and partner at Channing Daughters Winery in Bridgehampton regarding the use of copper sulphate as a pesticide. http://www.edibleeastend.com/winter-2010/a-winemakers-wonderings.htm Winemakers and producers all over the world seem to be mulling over the same issues - this has to be a good thing all round!

Ciao again! I run a small winery that is environmentally engaged but is not certified organic (nor will we it ever be). It is very frustrating since we are actually very attentive to the environment in many ways; from eliminating polystyrene and choosing lighter bottles to having a solar powered cellar or locally sourced posts in the vineyard. There is no way for me to convey this to people who might buy or drink our wine. In France there is a register of producers commited to responsible agriculture. In Italy the same concept exists although it is not currently regulated - RA is a wider category than organic but it extends to all aspects of production, from the land to the bottle. I have outlined some of our practices on our site, here are the links: http://www.ilpalazzone.com/the-estate/il-vino-si-fa-in-vigna/ http://www.ilpalazzone.com/the-estate/environmental-concerns/ The organic label on food and wine is only part of the whole picture.

For the record, the organic charter allows the use of substances such as copper sulphate (an anti-mould treatment) that do not break down in the soil and are ultimately harmful to the ecosystem so unfortunately there's another layer of ethics and complications since organic should not be considered a synonym for Good For The Whole Environment. That said I raise my glass to the future that Steve describes and agree whole-heartedly that all steps in the right direction are a good thing!