by Joanna Simon
One of this month's lowest scores was for a biodynamic wine. I confess to being disappointed, even though some of the theories and practices of biodynamie seem pretty dotty to me. There's
the 'dynamising' of the essential horn manure and horn silica preparations (sprays) before applying them - to soil as the sun goes down and to vines as the sun comes up, respectively. To
dynamise, you stir the preparations a set number of times in one direction, then a set number of times in the other, to imprint on them the cosmic and earthly rhythms. I think I've got that
right, but don't hold me to it. And there's the burying of cow manure (for the horn manure spray) in cows' horns in the ground over winter, or possibly over summer. Search me.
Some of the exponents seem even dottier. One of my early encounters with biodynamie was in Austria where I was shown a detailed biodynamic lunar calendar which indicated precisely what work could be done when in the vineyards, according to the position of the moon. I was happy with that. But I was unnerved to be shown which days were apparently entirely unsuitable for human hair-cutting and hair-washing, There were three in a row when, I was told, I shouldn't wash my hair. The horror! As for the wines: wonderful, and they still are.
Give or take the fanatics, I have huge admiration for the dedication, perseverance and determination of biodynamic producers to make good wine while working in harmony with, rather than against, the daily and seasonal rhythms and patterns of nature. Anyone who aims to protect and nurture the resources of the planet surely deserves to be supported and valued. What's more, no one could deny that some of the world's greatest wines are produced biodynamically, particularly in Burgundy (Leflaive, Lafon, Leroy, De Villaine et al), where the small scale of land holdings lends itself more readily to labour-intensive biodynamic methods.
Occasionally, the ideology seems to get in the way of making good wine, but that's not exclusive to the cult of biodynamie. When it happens, it's usually more to do with expertise, or lack of it. You don't, for example, have to be biodynamic, organic, sustainable or anything else to try to make wine without using sulphur dioxide, if that's what you want to do. Some would say you just have to be foolhardy to eschew the wine world's oldest disinfectant and preservative. What you certainly have to be, to do it successfully, is a very skilled winemaker (possibly with a bit of luck on your side too).
So, yes, I was disappointed that we had a low-scoring biodynamic wine, but I don't think biodynamie was the problem.
A final thought: The Wine Gang Christmas Wine Fair is on Saturday November 6th, which is a flower day on the biodynamic calendar - not as good as a fruit day for wine tasting, according to followers, but much better than a root or leaf day. Come along and give us a verdict.
This month's roving Bunch of Five categories is 'Last of the summer wines'
This month our top scoring wine costs a relatively modest £23.99 (but get in quick if you want it) and we also found an even cheaper option at just £13.99 that managed a highly
respectable 92 points.
Zind Humbrecht, Heimbourg Riesling 2007
Terredora, Greco di Tufo 'Loggia della Serra' 2009