Freeman Vineyard & Winery--named by the San Francisco Chronicle as one of the Top 25 Wineries in Sonoma--has earned 100% organic certification through the California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) for its Gloria and Yuki estate Pinot Noir vineyards. Set adjacent to the winery in the Green Valley of Russian River appellation, Gloria is planted to eight acres of vines. The 16-acre Yu-ki vineyard sits above the town of Occidental in the West Sonoma Coast appellation.
“Akiko and I care deeply about the environment and about leaving the world a better place for future generations,” Ken Freeman said. “We live amid the Gloria vineyard, so that gives us even more reason to care about what goes into the soil.”
Freeman has also made significant changes to its packaging to reduce the winery’s carbon footprint, switching to lighter-weight glass bottles and eliminating tin capsules from the bottle necks.
Glass bottles typically account for one-third to one-half of a winery’s total greenhouse gas emissions due to the energy required to manufacture the glass, and the transport of the wines. Freeman’s new bottles weigh 25% less than standard bottles and allow Freeman to ship more cases per pallet—reducing the product’s carbon footprint in transit. The lighter bottles have no negative impact on wine quality or integrity.
Freeman also did away with tin capsules. Hundreds of years ago, protective sleeves were necessary to keep the tops of the bottles clean and prevent rats from gnawing at the corks. However, with modern sanitation practices, they are no longer needed. Most capsules ultimately end up in a landfill, Freeman noted. “Capsules are very environmentally unfriendly,” he said, “from the digging of the ore to the production, which uses tons of energy.”
The Freemans have long championed environmentally conscious practices. When they purchased the land for the Yu-ki Vineyard in 2007, they donated 25 acres of old growth redwood forest to the Bodega Land Trust to ensure that the trees will never be cut down. That same year, Ken joined the board of the Sonoma Land Trust to help with the organization’s conservation efforts.
The winery also supports Russian Riverkeeper and donates 5% of the proceeds from its Friends of Freeman wine club to local charities including LandPaths, which helps send kids to summer camp in the forest.