«My friends, the winegrowers of Bergerac often tell me that life has returned to the vines and poppies, flora of all kinds, beetles and other insects, birds, hares, and earthworms galore! Our vineyard: a real country zoo! It is true that times have changed and that environmental awareness is at work ...

With nearly 10% of vineyard surface certified organic, the Southwest is at the forefront of alternative agriculture, particularly in Bergerac, where organic has a lot of followers ... In AOC Saussignac about half of the Saussignac producers are organic or in conversion. Here organic seeks to achieve greater quality and a hightened expression of 'terroir' or sense of place.

By the way, do you know that organic wine does not exist? We speak of "wine made from organically grown grapes" because the winemaking is not yet regulated. Winemakers who have decided to use organic farming to produce their wine strictly adhere to the organic techniques of working the land (according to the specifications of organic farming). For the winemaking winemakers can follow an organic winemaking charter or to traditional methods while they wait for EU wide regulations on organic winemaking to be agreed.

What differentiates the main wine produced from the methods of organic farming is the word respect: respect for the land on which the vineyard is planted, respect for the vines, compliance and organic methods, all this in order to respect the environment and the consumer. So, organic, it is good!"

Little Memo:

• Organic farming began in the early 20th century in Germany in response to the advent of agrochemicals
• Only after the second world war when intensive agriculture was in full swing did organic farming  experience an echo in France
• The label "Organic Farming" (or label AB) is a French quality label, created in 1985, and defined by the French Ministry of Agriculture who owns it. To use this label a winegrower must be certified and controlled by one of the agreed certification bodies.