As we all tiptoe into the third millennium, the constant media bombardment from the "save the planet" brigade and the "global warming" guru's seems to be finding a clearer resonance with more and more of us.
Anyone with even a modicum of gardening knowledge will know that a vine can live in virtually any type of soil. Indeed, quite often the poorer the soil, exemplified by the impenetrable schist of Portugal's Douro valley and the almost vertical terraced slate vineyards of Germany's Mosel, the more vigorous the vine, boring down ever deeper to find nourishment.
No wonder then that the quality of the soil found in some of the top vineyards of the world is poor, compacted earth, that is never allowed to lie fallow, often requiring chemical intervention to stay fertile, and expected to produce healthy vines year in year out.
Similarly, the hard to define, and much hackneyed term "terroir", used to describe a wine's idiosyncratic "je ne sais quoi" seems to exist whether a winegrower cares about his vineyard's soil or not.
However, there is change afoot, with the gradual but persistent rise in the number of winemakers who are changing to Bio-Dynamism.
Unlike the Organic viticulture movement that is also expanding, Bio-Dynamism is more a philosophy, providing a clearly defined set of principles for the care of the land using the application of natural treatments, in addition to following strict timings for operations like pruning, planting and harvesting.
This might sound like hocus-pocus, and has in the past, linked the earliest pioneers of bio-Dynamism to almost Pagan-like rituals, much to the mirth and curiosity of the mainstream winegrowers. Not so anymore.
Modern Bio-Dynamic viticulture has been inspired by the founding father of Bio-Dynamics, the eminent Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner. His series of lectures in 1924 set out the principles for the renewal of agriculture in a world where industrialization, and the increasing demands of intensive farming were choking the earth's natural balance.
Succinctly put, there are three basic tenets that underpin Steiner's Bio-Dynamic vision.
Firstly the soil itself should be re-invigorated regularly by working methods such as ploughing, tilling and blazing, processes hardly ever undertaken in conventional viticulture nowadays.
Secondly the soil and plant life require upgrading within their own natural environment, using only organic products from vegetal, animal and mineral origins.
Finally, and most controversially, the application of these prepared treatments should follow the symbiosis of the annual lunar and solar cycles. This, the "dynamic" element of the whole philosophy, recognises the earth itself as an organism in its own right.
Critics will ask why it is necessary to cultivate the soil if vines grow happily anywhere, some citing the view that a vine requires a certain degree of stress to give of its best.
The Bio-Dynamists main goal is the development of the soil, so that it becomes not merely a means of supporting the vine, but a balanced and harmonious environment with the right quantity and quality of micro-organisms with which to enrich the vine.
Furthermore they believe that providing this encourages the healthier vine to "give back" to the soil, therefore perpetuating and re-invigorating this new microcosm.
I have visited a Bio-Dynamic vineyard in France and seen first hand the tremendous differences in soil quality between that of my host and his neighbour.
Proudly displayed in his tasting room were baskets of fertile, crumbly, fibrous, chocolate-brown earth that literally ran through my fingers when handled.
In contrast the sample of his neighbour's soil appeared grey, cloddy and thick like badly mashed potato. I was immediately convinced.
The so-called "preparations", which incidentally are applied in minute quantities, are the key to providing this delicate environment. Derived from a wonderful array of natural ingredients, each performs a certain function whether included in a compost mixture, sprayed on the soil or onto the vine itself.
Camomile, Nettles, Oak bark, Dandelion and Valerian together with Cow manure, Cow horn and ground Quartz are some of the elements that when administered over a period of two years will transform the vineyard dramatically.
In addition, it is common, although not absolutely necessary, to see both chickens (in summer) and sheep (in winter) amongst the vines, each playing their part in weed and parasite control.
The rigid "timings" of when and where to administer the treatments, and also undertake the more routine tasks in the vineyard, are where the biggest leap of faith is required for anyone trying to comprehend Bio-Dynamism.
Understanding that tilling the soil in the Spring will give a different outcome from the same task performed in the Autumn is key to the process. Similarly, working the soil before Noon adds vitality to the vines, whereas doing the same in the afternoon assists water retention.
The warm and cool, expansion and contraction cyclism of both the lunar month's calendar and the birth, growth and renewal aspects of the solar year's seasons, does seem to hark back to more innocent times, when man was less willing and able to fight the elements like we tend to do today.
A very good example of this comes from a close friend of mine who is a serious gardener.
"Plant garlic on the shortest day and harvest on the longest day" she always says. There are many old sayings that ring perfectly true, giving added gravitas to the Bio-Dynamists proclaimed regime.
So are the wines produced by Bio-Dynamists better for us as well as the planet? Are those winemakers in Europe's Biodyvin association, together with their world-wide colleagues Demeter Inernational, a bunch of cranks, or should they be applauded for putting their money where their heart is?
The answer possibly has already come from the words of Michel Chapoutier, the head of one of France's most prestigious wine families. He has transformed all his 250ha (562 acres) of vineyards in the Rhone Valley to Bio-Dynamism since 1991, the largest to date.
His view is, that the much-vaunted benefits of viticulture that follows the Bio-Dynamic ethos, must be backed up by a clearer and appreciable understanding of how its science actually works.
Then and only then will those doubting Thomas's take a more appreciable view of those wines that should by rights, be showing a cleaner and more palatable expression of their place of origin.
Perhaps then, that certain "je ne sais quoi" will be easier to put one's finger on.» Back to words