Presentation of the Eder red wine 2009 by Bodegas Escalera (Escalera Winery)

“We started focusing on our organic production because we did not like the aggressiveness with which crops were treated (herbicides, chemical products, etc.), and we thought that had to be a more natural and less environmentally aggressive way to handle agriculture. In fact, more than 400 chemical products of the 600 currently used in agriculture will be forbidden in Europe in the following five years”.

This is the beginning of the article about Bodegas Escalera (Escalera Winery) published at the Diario de Navarra back in 2005, titled “Crianzas and Reservas may also be organic”.

In 2001, Joseba Landíbar and Isidro Escalera inaugurated their winery in Beire, close to Olite (Navarre), although their families have been growing wine grapes since the XIXth century

Joseba presenting (in Spanish) the Eder Red Wine 2009 at the First International Organic Wine Fair, held in Spain.

Related posts:
First International Organic Wine Fair in Spain
First International Organic Wine Fair in Spain. After the event.
In Spanish: Bodegas Escalera en la primera Feria Internacional del Vino Ecológico

The purpose of the fair is to promote organic viticulture in south-western Europe.

The Fair is organized by the Asociación de Agricultura Ecológica de Navarra. (Organic Agriculture Association of Navarre)

There will be 52 wineries from Spain, Portugal and France, and representatives of 27 DOs (Denominación de Origen) and 13 Regional Governments (Comunidades Autónomas)

Organic wine production, organic consumption and the number of organic wineries are actually increasing despite the economic crisis in which we are immersed.

The goal of the fair is to promote organic wines in the international market, and reaches out to producers, distributors, retailers, and hotel and restaurant managers. Importers from 17 countries have confirmed their attendance, including from Japan, Germany and the United States (the major markets of organic wine) .

I’ve split the video into 4 sections to make it easier to follow:

First: An introduction by Edorta Lezaun (from “Lezaun” organic Winery)

Second: Ignacio Bidegain (General Coordinator of the FIVE)

Third: Salvador Eraso Stephens (Navarre regional Govt. Spokesman)

Lastly: Questions and answers

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For more detailed information, check out the website created for this purpose: www.five-bio.com

This post in Spanish: Primera Feria Internacional del Vino Ecológico

Continued from Bodegas Páramo Arroyo. Organic wine from Ribera del Duero.

In a market as today’s globalized world, it is more important to be very attractive to a very small percentage of consumers more aware scattered around the world, than to be very popular in the surroundings of your winery.

This is a practical example of the long tail theory, so important at this moment. But best of all is that this minority is growing continuously, since people are increasingly concerned about the ecology, to preserve the environment, by consuming organic products.

But the best thing that counts is not what I could say about Bodegas Páramo Arroyo, but what its creators act, and there’s Alejandro to show the work they do in the vineyard and on the winery, and explaining why they do what they do. And when you listen to him, you realize that it is important not only what he says but how he says.

At the end of the visit, Alejandro gave me a Viña Eremos Crianza 2004. I have not resisted to open the bottle and taste his wine while I write this post..

The result? It convinces me with his message and his wine. Not only in appearance to the eye, nose and mouth, which is delicious, but because I keep in my memory the image of Alejandro showing me that love and care for his vineyard and having clear that this extra effort the do to produce this so special wine will have sooner or later reward.

But I believe this reward has to arrive very soon. It only requires to be a little better known in international markets. And he will get It by just spreading his concept among those people with that special feeling for ecology and for very special wines.

Because there is only a single global market, in which more and more consumers with diverse needs and tastes demand special products,

Managers of Bodegas Páramo Arroyo. Let´s go for your clients that are just waiting for you!

Bodegas Páramo Arroyo. Vino ecológico de Ribera de Duero. (2) (in spanish)

I recently visited the facilities of Bodegas Páramo Arroyo.

Bodegas Páramo Arroyo is interesting for me for several reasons.

On one hand, they have opted for organic viticulture. With this decision they face a higher cost process to protect the vineyard and to produce without resorting to certain chemicals. And they do it although there is no substantial sensitivity in the local market for this kind of working, and so far, have decided no impact on prices their higher costs.

They’re not alone on this kind of initiative. There are more wineries in Spain that have decided to produce organic wine, but very few do organic viticulture in Ribera del Duero.

They have also decided to place their products in the market later than usual. This has meant that sometimes they have been unable to attend competitions for failing to meet certain requirements in terms of vintages. They prefer to age more their wines. They believe in Paramo Wineries in this way get a better wine. And that is the most important argument for them for doing so.

I do not know if they are right or not, but I admire people who create their own path and follow it 100% without adjusting to trends that make the products somewhat homogeneous or undifferentiated.

This is a world we all know well and it seemed we were doomed by the proliferation of such establishments as McDonalds and so on. Long live the wines and foods, with personality, authentic.

One of the positive things that the wine world has is that you have quite a relatively high probability to succeed if your wines and your processes have their own personality and differentiates on a diverse world, as far as you elaborate a high quality product and remain consistent.

They tell me sales do not grow in the local market but they do in European markets, in Japan, the United States, where every they day sell more and more.

In my opinion Internet is the great ally to help spread their specialty. Internet makes it easier to be found by those consumers in the world who are more sensitive to environment and to such a special elaboration that this winnerie does.

Bodegas Páramo Arroyo. Vino ecológico de Ribera de Duero. (in spanish)

Continued on Bodegas Paramo Arroyo. Organic wine from Ribera del Duero (2).