There is no easy way to start a letter like this. For years you have been on this journey with me. We have traversed the hard-won successes and the setbacks of trying to reimagine agriculture at the family farm scale. When I left Bethel Heights, this farm, this place, was where I lived. It was […]
Letters from the Edge
Seeking an Optimum and Never a Maximum – Slow Wine Manifesto
Last October I was honored to be invited to join several winemakers from around the world who participated by video in the introduction of the Slow Wine Manifesto in Italy on October 11, 2020. My part was nice and short, but it gave me the opportunity to appreciate one of the brilliantly stated key principals […]
The Regenerate Forum: Regenerative Methods in Viticulture
Dear Friends, Last year I had the great pleasure of being interviewed by Andrew Keen on his new webcast, Regenerate Forum. Mr. Keen fears no controversy, having made a career of tackling the great political dilemmas of our time, and his experience makes this a fun spin on my usual topics: https://www.regenerateforum.org/interviews I highly recommend Mr. Keen’s […]
Outcasts
I have few more pungent olfactory memories than those from the late summers of my childhood. The grapes growing softer and sweeter, the smell of the grasses changing from green and sappy to spicy, sweet and dry, the crackling of insect noises in the fields and forests. But nothing could compare to the purple-black, heady […]
“Controversial and even Incendiary” Interview with Organic Wine Podcast
Dear Friends, Here is an interview I did with Adam Huss about a month ago on his Organic Wine Podcast. This was an interview I totally enjoyed because Adam asked me the kind of “controversial and even incendiary” questions I really like to talk about. ~Mimi
Vendange 2020: The Hardest Lessons Yet
Dear Friends, Outside of my field notes, I rarely write in the growing season or near the harvest. Keeping up with the work takes 110% physical and mental presence, but this year I have decided that some things should not be looked at in the rearview. I have wanted to maintain a spirit of both […]
Mimi Casteel of Hope Well Wine in Oregon is Crusading for Regenerative Agriculture
Sustainability was the theme of Jancis Robinson’s 2020 writing competition, and this story about Hope Well was submitted for the competition by American Katie Quinn. Thanks, Katie, for taking that detour to Oregon! READ THE STORY
NYT: “From Good Wine, a Direct Path to the Wonders of Nature”
In this beautiful and heartfelt piece, Eric Asimov perfectly captures how our interactions with food, especially wine, can inspire and move us toward a new relationship with the natural world. Read in the New York Times (Subscription Required) Graphic: Brian Britigan