I found a link on Inhabitat quite intriguing, so I followed it and found a great example for a holistic way of combining the ancient old art of wine making, designing buildings and creating beauty wrapped up in a great enterprise: Medlock Ames winery.
The two people behind Medlock Ames are lifelong friends Christopher Medlock James and Ames Morison, and according to them “wine is an amazing and intriguing creation. In many respects, the process that transforms sunlight, air, water, and dirt into wine seems like a miracle. Indeed, it is a magical experience to be part of the entire process from land to glass”.
The Medlock Ames vineyard is located in California’s Sonoma County’s Alexander Valley. The wine makers found this spot after a long search in 1998 and decided to to design it with the goal of making a wine with a real sense of place.
The winery is founded upon some strong principles. Medlock and Ames say on their website: “We are dedicated to environmental sustainability as well as the production of premier quality wine. Our vineyards are farmed organically [inspired by biodynamic principles] with no insecticides, chemical fertilizers or herbicides and solar power provides the energy we need to run. It is our belief that the land we farm is our greatest asset and we take every precaution to nurture and protect it. We also partner with local wildlife (owls and hawks make excellent gopher foes for example) and have reserved the majority of our acreage for oaks and wildflowers, not vines.
Our commitment to sustainability … forces us to evaluate formally every business decision we make, and determine its impact on our environment, on the health and well being of our employees, and on our bottom line. This is our way of farming and we only make wine from grapes farmed this way and from our land, giving us the maximum amount of control and care we find necessary to make the best wine we can. In the cellar, this commitment to quality continues with gentle gravity flow techniques as well as natural yeast fermentation helping to coax the natural attributes of our fruit into the wine.”
How is this framework being translated into actual farming practice?
Solar and energy – “an 84 kWh solar array works tirelessly to provide us with safe, clean, renewable and economically attractive electrical power (free). A fine example of long term sustainable visioning that has a lifespan of 25 years but pays for itself in 9 years. The power it creates takes care of all our needs at the vineyard and winery – including electric vehicles. We also use biodiesel whenever possible to power our vineyard equipment and can even imagine creating our own fuel from crops grown at the ranch.”
Owls and hawks – “gophers and other rodents used to be a problem until we enlisted barn owls to patrol the vineyards. These snowy white predators love the nesting boxes that have been installed throughout the property and quickly made their home at Bell Mountain. Hawks are also encouraged to prey on unsuspecting voles and gophers while bats complete the roster of predatory flyers.”
Sheep and geese – “our flock of sheep eat unwanted vegetation in the vineyard, turning weeds into natural fertilizer. This smart solution allows us to combine several practices with ease. Geese are similarly employed to patrol the grounds, grazing on things like pond algae that would otherwise suffocate our beautiful waterways. These foragers help to reduce our use of tractors dramatically.”
Horse and plough – “tractors guzzle fuel and compact the earth, creating long term problems in the vineyard. A more environmentally friendly way of working the ground can come in the form of, quite literally, horsepower. We are working hard to make cultivation using horses an integral part of our way of farming, while at the same time helping to revive a disappearing art.”
Wildlife and farm life – “many vineyards use high fences to keep out wildlife such as wild pigs, deer, bobcats and mountain lions. Instead, we dedicate large parts of our estate to corridors that allow these animals to pass through the property without danger to us, them or the vines. By providing an animal thoroughfare to our local conservation area, we can limit the damage or danger to our vines and livestock that might otherwise come from trapped beasts.”
Energy Efficient Winery – “our custom-built winery uses the simplest of concepts to handle wine with care. Wine moves throughout its journey using gravity instead of pumps wherever possible, reducing energy consumption at the same time as preserving what we believe the often delicate characteristics of our grapes. By locating our cellar underground we also manage to maintain a more consistent environment for our aging wines, reducing the need for artificial temperature control. [They also often choose to use native or ‘wild’ yeasts to ferment our wines in an effort to promote the uniqueness of their site and the way they farm fine wine].”
In addition to perfecting organic wines in sustainable style, Medlock Ames Winery encourages sustainability in the local community. They recently funded the school garden initiative at West Side School in Healdsburg to help children become skilled and interested in growing their own food. This outreach will expand to bring local school children to the vineyard to see organic and sustainable farming in practice.
Pretty impressive. And this certainly is not all there is to Medlock Ames - their website is full of stories, recipes, events, reflections, etc. Despite not drinking alcohol generally, I think even I could be persuaded to try a drop or two if I ever visit California 
.
[pictures via Inhabitat]
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