BIODYNAMIC VITICULTURE? IT’S STILL A “MYSTERY” FOR CONSUMERS, OR AT LEAST AN ODDITY. BUT A MEETING ORGANIZED BY THE TUSCAN WINERY COSIMO MARIA MASINI HAS BROUGHT THE PHILOSOPHY AND EXPERIENCE OF BIODYNAMIC PRODUCERS INTO PUBLIC DISCUSSION

For today’s consumers biodynamic winemaking is still a complete “mystery” and even an oddity according to the latest surveys. But for experts, however, this is the only solution in combating the problem of a planet that is becoming continuously more arid. And it was precisely with this goal in mind that the conference “Biodynamic, Philosophy of Wine” was organized recently by the Tuscan winemaking company Cosimo Maria Masini. It was a day to make public the different experiences of wine producers who have adopted the methods of biodynamic farming: from Cosimo Maria Masini to Caiarossa, Fabbrica di San Martino and Tenuta di Valgiano. The director of Porthos, Sandro Sangiorgi, moderated the event.

And expert Marco Nuti of the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Pisa explained how even the didactic methods that are offered these days have felt the effects of a “cultivation problem” that does not satisfy the soul: the agricultural system in use today is not transmittable to future generations. “The indiscriminate exploitation of the land, the demographic boom and the increase in energy consumption are creating a volatile combination. Plants, in fact, find on their own and in their own time what is necessary for them to grow and to reproduce. Pushing the accelerator and straining this balance by supplying chemical elements in excess, obliges the plant itself to eliminate these excesses. For example, nitrogen given to plants is in turn ‘de-nitrified’ and released into the air”.

“Personally” – noted Cosimo Masini – “I began this adventure in 2003 with the intention of creating agriculture that would be sustainable. The land was tired and very compact, parched. With dedication and patience I began the work in the vineyard, revitalizing the land with the help of biodynamic preparations. The primary goal has always been that of arriving at completely understanding the territory in order to acquire the sensibility necessary to understand the natural biological rhythms of nature and the energies that enter into play when working with plants and, more largely, when one works to maintain the vitality of the agricultural organism”.

A change that, according to this young winemaker, does not interest only the surrounding environment, but means continuous attention, the observation of nature – to understand its needs – has also mutated the sensibility of those who work it. “The product” – continued Masini – “that one obtains is alive, not always the same and standardized, but becomes the result of that harvest year, of the microclimate, the expression of the terroir.
There are no standard wines, the fruit of protocols that homogenize a product. Biodynamic agriculture is not only a philosophical approach, but has become a necessity to safeguard our health and to preserve the productive capacity of our land. This, as well, allows us to create a product that has its own character and connotations that render it ascribable to its territory of provenance”.