21 Eco-Friendly Wines to Sip Sustainably This Year

It isn’t a role to seek out, being the proverbial canary in a coal mine for global climate challenges, but in many ways, vineyards fall right into it. In wine regions around the world, vintners have tracked — over decades and, in some cases, centuries — facts like harvest dates in incredible detail. What that information broadly shows is that events like budbreak (when the vine first produces new shoots) and the start of harvest have been occurring earlier and earlier, particularly over the past 30 or 40 years.

As Count Francesco Marone Cinzano of Col d’Orcia in Tuscany recalls, “We didn’t know it was climatic change at first, but looking back over the last two decades, we see now that it is. With Sangiovese, we started seeing the picking dates coming earlier and earlier; in 2012, we even started in the last days of August, which in the past was unheard of.”

Today, harvesting red grapes in August in Tuscany or Burgundy or many other places is far from unheard of, and Cinzano’s comments echo the experiences of many winemakers. That’s also true of unpredictable new weather patterns, heat waves, and other issues.

Some changes have been positive — 50 years ago, it was effectively impossible to ripen Chardonnay and Pinot Noir to palatability in southern England; today, it’s become a source for quality sparkling wine. But those are outliers. When the unheard of is the new norm, what do winemakers do? 

You can’t reverse the forward tumble of Earth’s climate single-handedly, obviously. But you can adopt strategies to mitigate the effects of climate change or play your own small part in trying to reverse its direction. Seeking out cooler or higher elevation vineyards, using lightweight bottles and solar power to reduce carbon footprint, testing more heat-resistant grape varieties — the list goes on.

Here are 21 great wines, all from winemakers who are finding smart ways to deal with this new, warmer world — and every single one tastes terrific, too.

Sparkling wine

NV Parés Baltà Brut Cava ($21)

Planting vineyards at higher altitudes, avoiding irrigation, and sustaining almost 1,500 acres of trees on its estate (to promote carbon capture) are all part of the climate-responsive actions taken by this Spanish producer. Its brut Cava is crisp and zesty, with salty lime notes and fine bubbles. 

NV Louis Pommery England Brut ($40)

When Champagne houses like Pommery start buying vineyard land in southern England, you know something has shifted; 50 years ago, making a drinkable sparkling wine here was nigh unto impossible. But here is this wine, from vines planted in 2017 — creamy, pear-scented, and quite impressive.

NV Louis Roederer Collection 245 ($70)

Louis Roederer’s ongoing Collection cuvée came as a response to climate change. To avoid overly ripe flavors, it uses 35% or so of a multivintage blend that’s refreshed with a percentage of new wine each year. This current release balances richness and freshness perfectly.

2020 Gusbourne Estate Brut Reserve ($80)

Since 2004, Gusbourne has been making English sparkling wine that’s on par with Champagne cuvées. Winemaker Charlie Holland has worked with the slow rise in southern England’s temperatures to make a brut reserve that’s complex and elegant, with bright lemon-zest notes.

NV Champagne Telmont Réserve de la Terre ($100)

Telmont has made a major shift toward climate-friendly, sustainable practices: lightweight bottles, renewable energy sources, biofuel tractors, and no air freight. Its Réserve de la Terre cuvée is excellent, with golden-apple flavors and a focused, minerally finish.

White and rosé

2023 Lyrarakis Vóila Assyrtiko ($17)

Due to rising temperatures, for 15 years Greece’s Lyrarakis has been planting higher altitude (cooler) vineyards and focusing on native varieties from Crete — for example, Plytó, a white grape that’s “super drought resistant,” Bart Lyrarakis says. This stony, grapefruit-inflected Assyrtiko is one to seek out.

2024 By.Ott Côtes de Provence Rosé ($25)

Provençal rosé producer Domaines Ott has been actively adapting its viticulture to climate changes: pruning late to delay budburst, working with the soil to deal with water shortages, and experimenting with heat-resistant varieties. This ultra-fresh rosé is full of bright raspberry flavor.

2023 Weingut Wittmann Riesling Trocken ($28)

German winemaker Philipp Wittmann says that “everything we do is adapted to the changing climate situation.” Reducing water use; lower yields in the vineyard; cooler, higher-altitude sites — all are key. One result? Wines like this tangerine-scented, nuanced dry Riesling.

2021 Centennial Mountain Carricante ($49)

Carricante is a Sicilian grape, but as winemaker Jeff Brinkman observes, it’s also perfect for hot California locations: “It can ripen fully but at pretty low sugar levels.” That’s partly why this full-flavored, lime- and honey-scented white registers only 12% alcohol.

2023 Terras Gauda O Rosal ($24)

In Spain’s Rías Baixas region, Terras Gauda runs an ongoing effort to recover the native Galician grape Caíño Blanco, for its innate drought resistance and tolerance for high temperatures. Today, it grows over 80% of the world’s Caíño Blanco, a large part of which is in this floral, lingering white. 

2022 Familia Torres Clos Ancestral Blanco ($27)

Spain’s Torres family cofounded the International Wineries for Climate Action group. To reduce carbon emissions, Torres uses solar power, biomass boilers, eco-efficient tractors, and much more. This savory white is full of orchard-fruit flavors, with a supple, rich texture.

2024 St. Supéry Napa Valley Estate Rosé ($30)

In recent years, Napa Valley’s St. Supéry has switched most of its energy to solar; removing foil capsules from its estate wines (600,000 bottles) also eliminates 2.95 tons of carbon emissions yearly. Its juicy rosé offers charming watermelon and citrus notes. 

2023 Lail Vineyards Blueprint Sauvignon Blanc ($60)

Robin Lail, the U.S. ambassador for the Porto Protocol (a climate action network of wineries), donates 10% of the online sales from her Blueprint wines — like this creamy, lemongrass-scented white — to organizations that fight climate change.

Red and fortified wines

2022 Argento Malbec ($12)

A burst of juicy, peppery blackberry fruit marks this affordable South American Malbec. Because of declines in Andean snowfall over the past 15 years, Argento has been switching from traditional flood to drip irrigation, using cover crops to enhance carbon capture and prevent erosion, and more.

2022 Herdade do Esporão Monte Velho ($18)

In 2010, Herdade do Esporão planted a 25-acre vineyard with 189 varieties to isolate ones that do best with limited water, high heat, and vine diseases. That project is ongoing, but this full-bodied, plummy red is a great way to get to know the Esporão wines right now.

2024 Santa Julia El Burro Natural Malbec ($18)

This vividly fruity, purple-hued Malbec — made with no sulfur and no filtration — comes from one of Argentina’s largest organic growers. Among its responses to climate change are reducing water use, finding cooler vineyard land, and using more heat-resilient viticulture.

2023 La Crema Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($28)

Jackson Family Wines helped found International Wineries for Climate Action, and at the family’s La Crema property, over 3,000 solar panels contribute 70% of the winery’s energy needs.This violet-scented Pinot is full of pomegranate and red-cherry flavor. 

2021 Salcheto Vino Nobile di Montepulciano ($30)

Salcheto owner Michele Manelli notes, “Nearly a third of wine’s climate-change impact is in the production of glass and transportation of wine in glass bottles.” One fix? Using lighter bottles, which he does; this coffee-scented, black cherry–rich Vino Nobile is in one. 

2022 Col d’Orcia Rosso di Montalcino ($31)

In Tuscany, Count Francesco Marone Cinzano is testing drought-resistant rootstocks and using zeolite, a natural mineral, to increase water retention in the soil, among other efforts. This Rosso offers bright berry-fruit and tea-leaf notes — it tastes like walking in a Tuscan wood.

Taylor Fladgate 10 Year Old Tawny Port ($32)

Taylor Fladgate’s Adrian Bridge is the founder of the Porto Protocol, an international network of wineries working to mitigate climate change. Raise a toast to the group’s success with a glass of this graceful tawny, whose flavors recall candied citrus peels and toffee.