Divine Wine from Sustainable Production

AMANI = GREAT WINES FROM SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION

TYPES OF FARMING THAT ARE FOCUSED ON SUSTAINABILITY

Organic
Biodynamic
Biological

WHAT IS SUSTAINABILITY?
Sustainability is simply that which is maintainable.

SUSTAINABILITY REALLY ENCAPSULATES EVERY ASPECT OF BUSINESS:

If a business is to be sustainable it must make enough money from its operations to pay its bills, maintain its property, ect.
If a farm is sustainable it must keep the land and water healthy or its future product will be less valuable. This would affect the long-term "financial" sustainability of the farm.
For out world to be sustainable we must all be attuned to sustainability of the water, soils, economic system, etc or eventually we will run up against an adversary we really don't yet understand. We see pockets of the result of unsustainable business practices all over the world right now. Some make too much, others too little and no concern for the sustainability of the practices that created the situation. In our ecological systems we see the same. Our practices/lifestyle have decimated the land and the air and the water to a point where we now can be certain greater suffering for a greater percentage of the world population is assured.

WHY HAS AMANI CHOSEN BIOLOGICAL FARMING OVER BIODYNAMIC OR ORGANIC?

Amani has always been committed to producing the highest quality wines. We realize that to be sustainable we must take care of our water and land. Also, we must protect our vines, crop and people by using only sustainable farming practices. A wine farm is a long-term business and to make it successful both now and for the generations to come we must preserve the land! Without sustainable practices there is no hope. With both biodynamic and organic farming there are several problems that are quite difficult to resolve in a "generational" sense.
They really speak to the limitations of additions of minerals to soils and the overuse of others like copper. We know and realize the there are some outstanding biodynamic and organic producers and we do not wish to take away from them but we had to choose what we felt would allow us to meet our first goal of

"THE BEST WINE" WHILE ACHIEVING SUSTAINABILITY FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS.

WHAT IS BIOLOGICAL FARMING AND WHAT DOES IT ENTAIL?

First, we utilize Parasitic wasps to kill mealy bugs rather than chemicals. We find them more effective and less costly than chemical control of the mealy bugs.
Second, we are extremely cautious of the use of any pesticide and look carefully at the damage they cause, comparing all the organic and non-organic options and their effects prior to considering their use. We have used a pesticide once in the last five years.
Third, we are very careful of the use of Herbicides and again consider the ecological sustainability and the economic sustainability before ever using them.
Fourth, we spray for fungicides using roughly 95% organic products. By doing this we avoid using too much copper and we always focus on the health of the vines first so they can fight off a fungus infection on their own.
Fifth, we utilize products in fertilization like EM (Effective Microbes), which add life to the soils and the leaves of the vines. New options of healthy soil building products like "Fulvic" acid are being developed each year that provide an opportunity to utilize the good things in the soils which had previously, through bad practices been turned into forms unusable by the vines. IE: some products used in the past as herbicides locked some minerals in a form soluble only in the acid. Fulvic acid helps, along with EM and Worm Tea, to make them water-soluble again.

WATER

Amani built a "Constructed Wetland" a few years ago to treat the effluent created in the making of wine. To explain: "Effluent" is the waste from winemaking. It contains high levels of NUTRIENTS from the grape skins, seeds, and juice. If these concentrated nutrients reach the groundwater they over stimulate growth of algae and plant life to a point that all the oxygen is used up and the water becomes hazardous.

These nutrients are also quite acidic which creates corrosive properties as well. We test the water going in to our "Constructed Wetland", the water in the "Constructed Wetland", and the water in our dam every month except during harvest when it is tested once a week. This is a costly exercise but it actually proves to us that the water we are creating through treatment is better than any other source we have for irrigating our crops. For us, this is a great accomplishment and really it only took some study, a few materials and some sweat to create.

RECYCLING AND RECYCLED PRODUCTS:

All of our boxes are made from Recycled paper
All of our waste paper, boxes, bottles, empty containers are recycled
Any potentially damaging containers are taken away by the proper authorities

CELLAR PRACTICES

Special high pressure nozzles to reduce the amount of water used
Casein (a milk product) is used to fine our white wines and Organic egg whites is used to fine our reds

RAPTOR PERCHES:

Over forty Raptor perches adorn the vineyards that assist the Raptors in balancing our population of Gerbils and Moles

ENERGY SAVING LIGHT UTILIZED THROUGHOUT THE FARM / CELLAR SINCE 2005.

COVER CROP

Planting a cover crop in the winter when the vines are dormant provides many benefits. First, erosion of valuable top soil is minimized. The Cover crop provides early wind protection for the tender new growth in spring. We had a roller manufactured for us, which is used to roll down the cover crop in late spring. This allows a thick mattress of extremely valuable carbon based mulch to cover the ground which keeps heat in the vineyard floor lower, provides a long-term benefit to the overall health of the soil and during the time it is breaking down it releases nitrogen and other valuable nutrients it used in growing itself back into the ground for the vines to use in a time-release fashion. It further serves as a home to some pests keeping them from harming the vines.

SPEKBOOM

At this time we are planting Spekboom all over the farm. Spekboom is a plant that has been proven to produce exceptional quantities of oxygen while processing large quantities of Carbon Dioxide. It also is proven to actually help retain water as opposed to using large amounts of water like most green plants.

In the end we believe that the health and safety of our staff and our customers is of paramount importance! This applies not only to the current generation but also those to follow! Our products must nurture all those things in our world that are positive. We must recognize that we are on a road and we are headed for a destination. Would we go on vacation without deciding where we want to go? What our route is? How long it will take? I submit on behalf of Amani that our destination is as follows:

The best wines we can make - each and every year.
Planning that includes a vision of the future health and welfare of the planet and all creatures great and small.

Tireless efforts to take responsibility for our land, our products, and our future generations.