It gives longer shelf life to all wines, organic or otherwise.Bona fide “wine made from organically grown grapes” bears an official stamp on the label. This is because the EU’s organic rules cover only how the grapes are grown. They do not cover how the grape juice is fermented into wine. And wine merchants, supermarkets and bars are expanding their selection of organic wine.In fact, in the EU you must say “wine made from organic grapes” rather than “organic wine”. First, that the biblical image of the vine as a hardy, resilient plant is no myth: they can grow perfectly well without man-made chemicals.And, secondly, in the hands of a capable winemaker organic grapes produce wines with more complex scents and deeper flavours than the chemical alternative.So, if like me, you’d rather not risk ingesting potentially harmful residues each time you uncork a bottle, try wine in an organic gastro-pub such as Islington’s The Duke of Cambridge (see page 6).

But at what cost? One former French government soil scientist found soils in Burgundy’s top vineyards were now barren as the Sahara due to constant chemical run-off.Traces of these chemicals are permitted as residue in the wine we drink. The EU allows more than 200 different man-made chemical compounds in our wines. But no one can predict their long-term effect on our health.I switched to organic having seen how needlessly chemicals were used while working in Chilean and Bordeaux vineyards and wineries. My subsequent experience of working on organic Californian and German vineyards showed me two things. These chemical products are commonplace, even for the most expensive wines. But just 1 per cent of world vineyards are officially organic.
Organic rules prohibit chemical weed killer, fertilizer, insecticide and fungicide. The image of wine in the Bible is of grapes ripening with nothing more than the sun, and the tender care of peasants as gnarled as their vines.

Outside of London, try Penrhos Court Restaurant in Kington, Herefordshire (01544 230 720); Juice Caf?rganic in Bournemouth, Dorset (01202 314 143); or the Kai Organic Caf?n Brighton, East Sussex (01273 620104), to name a few.. Most people wrongly assume all wine is organic Perhaps this is a hangover from Sunday school. “It’s a myth that organic food unconditionally tastes better than non-organic food. Just like you get good and bad conventional ingredients, you get good and bad organic produce.