Published June 27, 2024

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Better than a Bottle

for the environment

For winemaking, the biggest single contribution to our CO2 emissions is the production and transportation of the glass bottle. Bottles are energy intensive to make, and heavy to transport.

A Promising Alternative

Most bottles take a long and complicated journey route from the factory to the winery for filling. Then they are shipped to the customer, usually with multiple stops in different warehouses along the way.

In comparison, a single box of 400 eco-packs holds the equivalent of 800 glass bottles. We fill them here and then ship them directly to the consumer – extra storage and stops are not needed. By doing this we can cut our CO2 production by up to 80%!

Small Changes can Make a Difference

When an individual or a business is trying to reduce their emissions, sometimes it is easy to get discouraged. There is no single fix, and every action we take has trade-offs.  Sometimes making a small change does not feel like it will make any difference.

At Winter’s Hill, we believe it is important for all of us to start making better choices to reduce our impact on the environment. We can’t afford to wait for a perfect solution. So far, by using alternative packaging, we have been able to reduce our glass consumption by more than 500 cases per year.

What We are Doing

For any business, it can be complicated to pull apart all of the direct and indirect impacts on the environment. At Winter’s Hill, we look at our farming, our winemaking, and our packaging.

We have decreased our environmental impact by:

• reducing erosion in the vineyard
• decreasing chemical and fuel consumption
• creating habitat for native plants and animals

Our winery is also designed to naturally maintain stable temperatures for the wine, reducing our heating and cooling needs.

Now, by using alternative packaging and reducing the weight of the glass bottles that we use, we are cutting our emissions. And doing this while continuing to improve the quality and reputation of our wines.

There is lots more work to do, and we know we will learn a lot along the way. We hope you will join our effort!

Cheers!

Russell