Throughout California wine country, good things are happening when it comes to environmental responsibility. Every so often, I like to share some of the Earth-friendly success stories.
For instance, an array of environmentally sound farming practices are embraced by Coturri Winery in Glen Ellen, part of the Sonoma County wine region.
Only the best agricultural practices are employed at the Estate vineyard, and it receives special handling to ensure that something is growing in the soils throughout the year. Tony Coturri personally attends to the vines.
Weeds are controlled by disking, and the resulting mulch captures important moisture for the dry-farmed vines. The open head-pruned vines or “monkey claw” controls mildew problems.
Like all of the vineyards planted and maintained by the Coturris, no pesticides, fungicides or herbicides are ever used on the Estate vineyard, and it is certified by the California Certified Organic Farmers organization.
In 1996, Tony and Phil Coturri earned top honors from the Sonoma Ecology Center for environmentally friendly business practices with their farming and winemaking practices.
In other words, they’ve been doing the right things for a long time.
