Bottle of Red, Bottle of Green: Organic Wines for Less

Wines made from organically grown grapes tend to rate higher on generally accepted taste rankings, and they also command a higher price — unless of course the label says "organic" on it.

While most people are willing to pay a little extra for organically grown produce, the opposite seems to be true for California wines, at least according to a new study.

The authors looked at over 13,000 wines from nearly 1,500 California wineries and compared them on their Wine Spectator ranking, whether they are third-party certified organic, and whether they advertise that certification on the label or keep it to themselves.

They found that organic wines (labeled or not) were rated about 1 point higher on a scale of 100, probably because of the better quality grape resulting from a more intensive growing process. If the wine was organic but did not advertise that on the label, it commanded a 13 percent higher price than a conventionally grown counterpart. If it had an "eco-label," the price actually dropped 7 percent below an equivalent conventional wine.

Unfortunately for us cheap wine drinkers, certification and labeling had no impact on wines under $25.

So what does this all mean? The negative association with organically labeled California wines is probably the lingering feeling about inferior organic wines from the 1970s and 1980s. But until that feeling changes, try looking for organically labeled wines. You'll be getting a better wine for less money, all while supporting sustainable agriculture.

Photo: ricardo.martins