Department of Terroir Security

Ice Wine Industry Challenged by Climate Change
Published February 7, 2012 - No Comments
Many prestigious winemakers in the Czech Republic are relieved this week after an Arctic blast drove temperatures below 19 degrees Farenheit (-7 degrees Celsius), finally allowing for the harvest of frozen grapes used to make ice wine. “Thanks God! It’s minus 13 (Celsius) tod ...
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Heirloom Grapes & Climate Change: Ensuring Wine Sustainability Through Genetic Diversity
Published February 28, 2012 - One Comment
Jim Richarson Photography Last week, the Long Now Foundation hosted National Geographic photographer [...]
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Technology
Published January 27, 2012 - No Comments
There are different schools of thought about the question of whether technology can build a better wine. While a view that terroir reigns supreme is posited below, the blog will explore technology, wine and terroir at greater length and depth. Dr. John Gladstones is an Australian scienti ...
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About Us
Published January 18, 2012 - No Comments
Keeping wine safe for future generations. We will highlight news related to wine and the environment and explore their intersections as matters of policy. Shelby Perkins is a former environmental attorney, certified sommelier (CMS) and current Diploma candidate with the Wine and Spirit E ...
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Water Security
Published January 18, 2012 - No Comments
“Fight for the Water Hole” by Frederic Remington Whisky’s fer drinkin’, water’s fer fightin! Vineyard areas are growing in the United States at a staggering rate – but is there enough water to sustain so many vineyards? Should water recycling an ...
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Green Certifications
Published January 19, 2012 - No Comments
Description: Prohibits the use of hormones, antibiotics, genetic engineering, radiation, synthetic pesticides, and fertilizers. Issues addressed by this claim: Biodiversity, GMOs, pesticides/herbicides/fungicides, soil, toxins Verification process: Third-party organization conducts ...
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Climate & Weather
Published January 18, 2012 - No Comments
Conceptualizing Climate Change The human brain may have historically relied on its more instinctive, intuitive thought processes when making most of its survival decisions. However, a more deliberative mode of analytical thought and “systems thinking” is required of us when w ...
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The Maker Revolution (Will Not Be Televised)
Published March 19, 2013 - One Comment
The Home Standard: MakerBot Dear Former Pong and Atari Players, you thought you arrived with desktop computing and laser printers, handheld devices, apps, networking, and online over-sharing…but you’re still in a technology desert…lost in a dreamy mirage. A revolution of ...
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Net Loss for the Environment: The Burning of Vineyard Vines Makes a Less Sustainable Wine
Published February 16, 2012 - No Comments
A long-time resident of Calistoga recently told me of a time before the Clean Air Act when smog from San Francisco Bay would blow up the Napa Valley, tinting the sky with a lovely russet hue. Now it seems that the largest threat to air quality in many wine regions (besides the obv ...
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Geoengineering
Published January 18, 2012 - No Comments
What would climate geoengineering mean for terroir? DTS will explore this question further in upcoming blog postings, but the following discussion is provided in the interim as a background on geoengineering. This is an excerpt of a paper written to brief the National Academies on em ...
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Wine, Tasting Rooms & Balloons: Latex is Not Indicative of Sonoma Terroir (or Environmental Responsibility)
Published May 24, 2012 - No Comments
I have been overtaken by an escalating disdain for the wine industry’s love of party balloons. In an era were many are striving towards sustainability in winemaking and viticulture, these symbols of a wasteful and “throw away” society are brilliantly flapping in the winds of vineya ...
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The Economics of Wine
Published January 29, 2012 - No Comments
THE ECONOMIC RATE OF RETURN v. THE ENVIRONMENTAL RATE OF RETURN v. THE SOCIAL RATE OF RETURN Where do they intersect? DTS will address these and other economic issues related to the wine industry.
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Farming Competitions Should Reward Sustainability
Published October 12, 2012 - No Comments
I admit it – I’m smitten with the 28 ribbons and $103 in prize money I won for my veggies at the Sonoma County Harvest Fair this week. Make no mistake – for me, it’s not about winning (…if you ain’t first, you’re last Ricky Bobby…) as much as it is abou ...
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Climate Modeling & Vineyard Decisonmaking
Published January 19, 2012 - No Comments
A climate model is only as robust as its data and the accuracy of its assumptions. Insufficient data has been aggregated to measure the effect of climate change on vineyards and their microclimates. Such modeling is not impossible in theory, however climate modeling is subject to data ...
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Genetic Security
Published January 18, 2012 - No Comments
A number of genetically-modified grape “varieties” have been created, but none has yet been commercialized. What are the risks of transgene grapes and why should we take a “hard look” at them before they are introduced to any terroir? Would the use of syntheti ...
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Soil Security
Published January 18, 2012 - No Comments
Without soil, there can be no terroir. How do we preserve and protect this precious resource to ensure that grapevines survive and thrive as climatic events and environmental constraints challenge winegrowers?
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Mobile Source Toxics and Terroir: Going the Extra Ten Miles in Napa Valley
Published January 27, 2012 - No Comments
Ever been stuck in Napa Valley traffic? Locked in a snaking queue of SUVs, fancy sedans and convertibles, feeling like a fool for being such a weekend warrior? Live in the Valley and dread the bottleneck that is St. Helena on a Friday afternoon? Is there a better way to fly? Napa T ...
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What is Terroir?
Published January 23, 2012 - No Comments
Terroir French [tɛrwar] noun The combination of factors, including soil, climate, and environment, that gives a wine its distinctive character. [literally: soil] – Collins English Dictionary (2003) [T]he total natural environment for any viticultural site – Jancis Robin ...
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Extra-Terroirist-rial?
Published January 24, 2012 - No Comments
A recent article about a wine fermented with a meteorite begs the question of whether a wine that integrates alien bodies can have any unique expression of terroir. “The idea behind submerging [the meteorite] in wine was to give everybody the opportunity to touch something from space ...
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Testing the Waters (and the Wine)
Published January 26, 2012 - No Comments
This is a test. This station is conducting a test of the Emergency Broadcasting System. This is only a test. [A tone is broadcast to trigger special receivers or alert listeners] This is a test of the Emergency Broadcasting System. The broadcasters of your area in voluntary cooperati ...
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The Maker Revolution (Will Not Be Televised)

Published March 19, 2013 at 10:29 pm - 1 Comment

The Home Standard: MakerBot Dear Former Pong and Atari Players, you thought you arrived with desktop computing and laser printers, handheld devices, apps, networking, and online over-sharing…but you’re still in a technology desert…lost in a dreamy mirage. A revolution of Makers and the technologies supporting DIY manufacturing is about to change our economy, our [...]

Farming Competitions Should Reward Sustainability

Published October 12, 2012 at 10:34 pm - No Comments

I admit it – I’m smitten with the 28 ribbons and $103 in prize money I won for my veggies at the Sonoma County Harvest Fair this week. Make no mistake – for me, it’s not about winning (…if you ain’t first, you’re last Ricky Bobby…) as much as it is about my little [...]

Latest Articles

Latest Articles from the Blog

The Maker Revolution (Will Not Be Televised)Published March 19, 2013 at 10:29 pm
Farming Competitions Should Reward SustainabilityPublished October 12, 2012 at 10:34 pm
Wine, Tasting Rooms & Balloons: Latex is Not Indicative of Sonoma Terroir (or Environmental Responsibility)Published May 24, 2012 at 5:51 pm
Heirloom Grapes & Climate Change: Ensuring Wine Sustainability Through Genetic DiversityPublished February 28, 2012 at 11:15 pm
Net Loss for the Environment: The Burning of Vineyard Vines Makes a Less Sustainable WinePublished February 16, 2012 at 3:28 am
Ice Wine Industry Challenged by Climate ChangePublished February 7, 2012 at 11:26 pm
Protecting Soils in Sonoma: A Moratorium on Hillside Vineyard DevelopmentPublished February 6, 2012 at 9:12 pm
Who’s Talking About Vermiculture?Published January 30, 2012 at 9:07 pm

A discussion about wine, the environment, and climate change