Organic options
Would you pay more for an organic wine compared with conventional wines made using synthetic chemical fertilisers, pesticides or herbicides? The organically certified wines reviewed here are mostly high-priced, although some can be bought for less than $20.
A study by the Gironde Chamber of Agriculture in Bordeaux found that organic grape growers typically harvest smaller crops. While saving on chemicals, they pay more for manual labour, and those lower grape yields result in increased production costs. Fortunately, many wine lovers in Western Europe are willing to pay an average premium of about €3 (NZ$5) for an organic bottling.
Aurum Mathilde Organic Central Otago Pinot Noir 2018
Invitingly perfumed, this hand-picked red was estate-grown at Lowburn, matured for a year in French oak barrels and bottled unfined and unfiltered. Bright ruby, it is sturdy, fleshy, sweet-fruited and very savoury, with concentrated, ripe cherry, plum, spice and nut flavours, showing impressive complexity, good tannin backbone and obvious cellaring potential. Best drinking 2023+. (14% alc/vol) $55
