Wine heavyweights attack heavy bottles February 22, 2008
Jo Iivonen
Two influential wine personalities, Jancis Robinson and Oz Clarke, have attacked heavy wine bottles over the past week.
Robinson launched a 'name and shame' campaign on her subscription-basis website to put the heaviest wine bottles in the spotlight. 'I'd like to introduce a feature in which you name and shame below the wines you come across that are packaged in ridiculously heavy bottles,' Robinson wrote last Saturday.
Speaking at the 2008 Climate Change and Wine Conference in Barcelona, Clarke attacked luxury winemakers' habit of using heavy bottles as environmentally irresponsible. 'I think its one of the biggest nonsenses when the empty bottle weighs as much as a full bottle from another winery,' Clarke told Harpers TV.
The average wine bottle weighs 500g in Britain, according to British Glass, an organisation that works in government's Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP). The results of a two-year WRAP study will be available at the end of March.
British Glass says UK glass waste could be reduced by 20,000 tonnes by encouraging the lightweighting of wine bottles – something that several retailers and mass-market brand owners have already said they will do.
Prestige winemakers have remained more reluctant to abandon their heavy bottles, but experts are now urging them to reconsider. 'Climate change is here. It's frightening and thrilling at the same time but companies can make lots of profit out of being socially aware,' Clarke said.
Lighter packaging represents a win-win situation as savvy winemakers can position themselves as environmentally-aware while enjoying reduced transportation costs.
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The biggest tragedy is that sometimes you are fooled into thinking that there is still one glass left. But there isn't.
Pablo Gallo, Dublin, Ireland
ridiculos for those of us which have electric wine cellars. while bordeaux bottles make a perfect fit, big bottles are pain. one spends time trying to fit them in any way possible, the result is always a mess
Jurg Schwarz, Brasil
What a load of crap. I've had it up to here with these eco-fascists. Shame on you J. Robinson and "Oz" Clark! Jack
Constantine Stergides
Frankly, I prefer that as the quality and price of a wine rise - The quality of the packaging should rise as well. Hence, for premium/low volume products so-called 'heavy bottles' are most appropriate.
This is not just for aesthetic reasons, as I have found first hand that the heavier the bottle, the stronger it is. Therefore more protective of it's contents.
Where I agree with Jancis and Oz is for wineries that are using heavy bottles for inexpensive/high volume products - One from Chile specifically comes to mind (Santa Carolina Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva de Familia). Although a fine $20 bottle of wine, it's price does not warrant 'premium' packaging.
It would seem that addressing the latter point would have the most impact environmentally, not to mention what would appear to be cost savings for the winemakers and ultimately, the consumer.
Ian Tarrant, Ontario, Canada
I agree with both Jancis and Oz, but not just for the environmental impacts heavy glass bottles impose. Another issue that needs to be addressed is cost to the consumer. The cost of glass is a significant factor in the price of a bottle found on a retail shelf. Heavy glass bottles can cost sometimes 3 - 4 times more than the more typical variety. So, if your average bottle costs $1 then the heavy bottle would cost a minimum of $3. This doesn't take into account the cost of corks. capsuls and labeling etc. Now, by the time one factors in distribution markup and retail or restaurant markup, that initial added glass cost can create an additional $5-$10 more for the wine on the shelf or probably $15-$20 more on a restaurant list. All for packaging that ultimately ends up in the recycle bin.
Joel Portmann
I couldn't agree more on the subject of heavy wine bottles. I recently bought the Ambullneo chardonnay and pinot noir from California and the cases were back breaking as I carried them to my cellar. It's ridiculous and wasteful and I'm glad that someone is speaking up on this topic.
Bruce Nakao
Criticism of wines in heavy wine bottles could be mis-directed, as the enormous capital investment for bottle making equipment results in monopolies in some countries: such winemakers have no choice.
Ian Hickinbotham, oenologist
As a wine importer who has had two back surgeries as the result of an injury lifting cases of wine, I have turned down consideration of more than one winery on the basis of the weight of their bottles alone. I wish we could be like Europe and ship everything in six bottle cases but the problem in America is that all the wine trucking companies charge by the case, so it would double the freight costs all down the line.
I won't mention the winery name but we had UPS delivering some samples to our office. A bottle fell out of the box at the top of a very steep set of concrete stairs. It bounced down 21 steps, chipped a step on the way, and landed at the bottom unscathed. Later, that same bottle fell off a shelf and hit one of my employees on the head. This resulted in several stitches, plastic surgery and laser treatment. The bottle still didn't break but we decided to end its run and drank it one lunch with the aforementioned employee, who was graceful enough not to have sued us! If we didn't have an office full of witnesses and a UPS man to back up this story, one could not tell it because nobody would believe it.
So, along with overly sweet, overly ripe, overly alcoholic wines [not counting Port!], yes, we also turn down wineries if their bottles are unnecessarily heavy.
Bartholomew Broadbent, San Francisco, USA
One has to wonder what Ms. Robinson and Mr. Clarke are really thinking? I don't believe for a second that their real intention behind making comments about heavy glass bottles, has anything to do with environmental issues. If they were really motivated by the environment, they'd go after farming practices in some of the biggest wine growing regions in the world. Glass is a completely environmental product in that it is made from Silica Sand with some other components and is in most cases 100% recyclable. How would the weight of the bottles make this any different? No, I think their gripe is clearly that the very same wines that they loathe for being either made by Michel Rolland or from "over-ripe" fruit, or being the ones that Parker score highly, happen to be in these heavy monster bottles. Consumers think highly of the wines made in these bottles, because it is a psychological factor when purchasing a heavy fat bottle, it appears more exclusive and expensive. Colgin, Harlan, Abreu, Araujo, Screaming Eagle, Shafer, Masseto and Romitorio to name but a few are all the kind of wines that come in these heavy bottles and are probably not exactly among these two fine critics' top choices...
Gil Lempert-Schwarz
In response to Gil Lempert-Schwarz's comment 'How would the weight of the bottles make [wine's environmental friendliness] any different?', I believe Oz and Jancis are referring to the emissions caused by shipping the glass. The heavier the bottle, the more energy is consumed in transporting it, and therefore the greater the impact on climate change (since even shipping by sea generates significant levels of atmospheric pollution). Additionally, if it takes a certain amount of energy to produce a given quantity of glass (although made from natural resources such as sand, the energy used in its production may come from polluting sources), the more bottles created from the same quantity of glass, the less energy required to produce each bottle. Thus, reducing the weight of the bottle cuts the environmental impact of this form of packaging at every stage.
Personally, however, I like the feel of a fairly weighty bottle. I would also wonder how much glass could be shaved-off pressurised sparkling wine bottles before they became dangerously unstable.
Barry Dean, London, UK
From a much more day to day, practical point of view. Everyday there are more women involved in the commercial and public side of the wine business. We have more and more very good female sommeliers.
It is far harder for a female wrist to pour wine correctly from an excessively heavy bottle.
Charlotte Rodriguez, Spain
Agree totally. We will be eliminating all heavyweight bottles from our range.
John Spiers, Backsberg Estate Cellars (Carbon neutral since 2006)
I am just surprised to read in a very serious magazine like yours such comments about Jancis Robinson and Oz Clark speeches' given in Barcelona. I respect them and I have known them for a long time, but technically they are wrong. If we can still drink fantastic wines from the year 20's it is not just because of the quality of the wine itself but also because of the quality and the thickness of the bottles, the quality and the length of the cork, when you have a light bottle you have a short neck, if you have a short neck you cannot feet a long cork etc..,etc…. As wine producers and winemakers we are sick of being obliged to be “politically correct” because of Al Gore star system. Mrs Robinson and Mr Clark, who both know very well Brian Croser, should ask to very good winemakers, French or Australian or Robert Mondavi for example, why they prefer to put their top wines in heavy dark bottles with long corks. It is not just fashionable, it is the only way to keep the wine alive for long years and they should have read the numerous of scientific publications about the subject published in the last thirty years by very serious people. But Mrs Robinson and Mr Clark are very influential people in the wine industry and they could easily destroy the reputation of an appellation or winery or even a country by such comments. So, please before anathematize the use of heavy bottles think about it twice. If you want to speak about it, I am ready and we are ready to demonstrate technically the whys and wherefores.
Jean de Saint Charles, St Etienne la Varenne, France
I don't think anyone, including Jancis and Oz, is suggesting that ultra premium wines should be compromised by light bottles with short corks. Surely the point is that many wines made for immediate drinking are using excessively heavy bottles as a marketing ploy. There is, however, a limit to how light you can go. Last week I attempted to open a bottle of inexpensive Chilean wine with an ah-so only to completely twist the neck off the bottle!
Robert Holmes, California, USA
Wine is art. That includes not just the beverage, but the packaging and the presentation. I spend lots of energy making sure my art is as perfect to my aesthetic as I can. Selecting bottles that suit a particular wine is part of that rigorous process. Sometimes heavy bottles are absolutely necessary to accurately portray the contents of them. I have noticed no attempt to legislate the thickness of a ceramic vase or the thickness of a bronze sculpture or the size of a glass work of art. Why? Because society values art, and art cannot be legislated. It is the expression of the artist, alone. Therefore, Ms. Robinson and Mr. Clarke, please don't try to legislate my art. I take umbrage at your attempts to do so.
John Bell, Owner/Winemaker Willis Hall Winery, Washington State, USA
As a new wine producer starting up in puglia, aiming for to super quality, I chose to avoid the over done "cheap trick" of putting wine in heavy bottles, to convey the impression that the contents are high end. I prefered to use the slower less sensational aproach of producing good wine that finds loyal customers.
Lisa Gilbee, Morella
Wrong question, wrong solution.
The discussion should be about is why wine bottles are not re-used. Re-using would have a far greater impact on the environment than simply making bottles lighter.
Re-using would actually allow for heavier bottles to be used, which is what I prefer.
Morgan Alexander, Amocat Cellars, Tacoma, WA, USA
I must say that as a winemaker, much of the industry as a whole is missing the boat, literally. We ship packaging products all over the world for no real reason. For instance, most glass used in Oregon is shipped from France. Corks are shipped from Spain, as well as capsules. Labels are often printed in Australia. All these supplies converge at the winery, are assembled into a cohesive package, and shipped out as a finished wine. My goal as a winemaker is to make a difference not only in the vineyard, farming sustainably, in the winery vinifying with minimal intervention, but to make mindful choices for the products I use.
For instance, I have no choice but to use French barrels. They are the backbone of my wines. But, rather than shipping finished barrels I can buy barrels made from staves shipped from France and assembled here in the United States. Now, a container can be packed full rather than shipping the space taken up by empty barrels. I can source glass bottles locally, and make decisions about what I can control. The same goes for labels. It's all about minimizing my carbon footprint and changing what I can and accepting what I cannot.
I understand the backlash at over-sized bottles. But, look at the problem in context. The United States has an infatuation with all things big. We are the land of the Hummer, Pamela Anderson, and sprawling mc mansion subdivisions. For so long, our culture has embraced the notion that bigger is better. Wines that were made in bolder riper styles fared well in reviews by the critics. I think that the packaging is merely a reflection of the wine inside the bottle and the mindset that created it.
There is a visible shift in the mentality of consumers about wines, packaging, and winemaking and vineyard practices. The more educated the consumer, the more influence you will be able to leverage on the wine industry. I welcome the change, as does most of my cohorts here in Oregon. For those of us who have positioned ourselves squarely on the greener side of the fence, the changes in the wine industry have not come soon enough.
Thomas Houseman, Winemaker Anne Amie Vineyards, Oregon, USA
Unless they are weak or defective - or prove to be unsuitable for shipping
-why NOT use lighter wine bottles?
Unless there's evidence that heavier bottles do a better job of preserving wine or that they're necessary for some other reason - for example, Champagne and sparklers - we can all do the world a favor.
And I don't think that suggestion is even remotely "fascist." Common sense, really. We Americans do have a little left, even after 7+ years of George Bush.
David Gaier
Are Oz & Jancis using the same criteria for their plethroa of wine books? Why not use recycled toilet tissue for a cover instead of those heavy hardcovers?
Stop with the climate change discussion. How much CO2 is put into the environment when a volcano blows? I do not know for sure but I assure you it is much more than all of the cars combined in the world can do in multiple years. The climate change discussion is nothing more than economic playing field leveling. Has anyone been to a third world country and seen the environmental disasters created there?
In the 70's in the US the major magazines discussed a coming ice age, it did not happen. Then we were going to have massive "acid rain" caused by all the factory pollutants, it did not happen. Do you remember the smog in LA? I have not seen a smog story in the US in many, many years (much longer then Gore has been on his ego trip). LESS than a 1 degree increase in our world climate temperature in a few short years (actually not even that since 1999) and all this misguided attention, money and political wrangling.
Stop and write about your profession....wine, not global environmental politics.
Mark Ballard
As an American producer of fine Oregon Pinot noir, I would like nothing more than to have a choice in the packaging we use for our wines. Unfortunately, we do not have that luxury. Most, if not all, of our packaging materials come from abroad, at great expense and with limited options. Sadly, at the end of the day, all that is sustainably grown and produced by our family winery must be packed and packaged in imported containers.
Additionally, there is really no bigger pain in the backside than to have some wine critic (no matter their pedigree) shoot off their mouth about something they clearly have not fully considered. Their concern should lie primarily with what is in the bottle, not the bottle its self, although image and quality do play a role here. If they really feel strongly about this issue, especially when so many folks are becoming aware of sustainable practices, why not lobby for the local manufacturing of bottles, capsules and closures? It would be ever so lovely to have a "wine critic" actually advocate for something positive, help to foment a sea change for the better instead of reinforcing the "dyspeptic gasbag" image many of them so duly
deserve (with due respect, of course, to Ms. Robinson, who's fabulous and most assuredly the least gassy of the lot).
We are very concerned about where our packing comes from, where it ends up after its use all the while doing our best to convey the quality and fine reputation of our wines. We encourage further discourse on this topic, it's important and deserves some serious thought.
Susan Igleheart, Dundee, Oregon
Except that they cheapen the image of a wine, don't sell as well and break while being re-cycled, lightweight bottles make a lot of sense. You could have a light bottle with no punt and anything from a screw cap to a long cork finish to minimize weight and production energy costs. Note, the bigger the punt, the bigger and heavier the bottle has to be; it's a matter of the physics of bottle construction. You could even standardize the bottle molds to some boring little shape and mandate the use of washed and recycled bottles (though return transportation and bottle cleaning might eat into carbon savings.) This would also make it less easy to cheat in blind tasting when some idiot displays the bottles in the brown bag. (Don't lie, everyone looks!)
While I'm sure this latest edict from our “heavyweights” will cause a lot of “speechifying” and energy efficient press releases as we proclaim to have the greener winemaking practice, why not instead buy a bunch of offsets from Al Gore's company and pretend we are now carbon neutral with our big bottles? As I understand it, any waste of carbon is politically correct as long as you fork over some cash to our Nobel “heavyweight.” Maybe our big bottles could have his company, Generation Investment Management, or the GIM logo stamped right in the glass. And maybe this sort of gesture might satisfy our journalistic “heavyweights” to call off their witch hunt.
Or maybe these same journalists will get their heads out of “you know where” and read that all four major global temperature tracking outlets (Hadley, NASA's GISS, UAH, RSS) have just released updated data. All show that over the past year, global temperatures have dropped precipitously, due to lower sun activity. The total amount of cooling ranging from 0.65C up to 0.75C. That's 100 years of warming we lost in just one year. Heck, maybe our big bottles might soon be helping to stave off global cooling!
Tom Ferrell
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The biggest tragedy is that sometimes you are fooled into thinking that there is still one glass left. But there isn't.
