Finding ConsciousWine on a Budget

You’re on a budget. A big budget. A budget that makes buying wine limited to a small part of the store. $15 is your max. Ideally under $10. Ideally ideally under $8. And you want ConsciousWine! You want wine with zippo synthetics in the vineyards, farmed with practices that give vitality back to that land, AND taste good! Where to look? What to do?

It’s not hopeless out there in Winesville.

American labels to look for include Sobon (Zinfandel from Amador County), Bonterra (a corporate wine but a good one), and Montinore (for white wines from Oregon).

From overseas we have an idea for you. It’s a regional idea. An idea that’s based in the fact that a wind, called The Mistral, blows through the valley at 20-30 mph for a good part of the growing season. This makes it hard for bugs to cause problems to the vines, meaning there’s no need to spray synthetics. It’s also dry there, which means there’s not a lot of mildew problems which often causes a trip to the chemistry set. The soil there is rocky with excellent drainage meaning the vines go down deep for water, and often pick up interesting character along the way. Where are we talking about? France’s Rhone Valley, and the wines of the Southern Rhone are an excellent destination for budget shopping. The appellation ‘Cotes du Rhone’ is a great region to take a risk with in your wine buying. Try something new and more often than not, you’ll get a tasty low or no-synthetic wine. A suggestion: don’t buy the least expensive Cotes du Rhone, buy one notch up.