We have partnered with our friends at Sustainable Wine Solutions to bring you an amazing selection of independent wines, produced by sustainably minded winemakers that follow a low-intervention approach.
Sustainable Wine Solutions began their story at Borough Market in 2002, with a wine-on-tap Refill your own bottle scheme using swing top bottles and the mantra ‘rethink what you drink’.
Starting with box wine, they soon developed their Wine-on-Tap to use refillable kegs - the only ones of their kind in the UK.
During lockdown they took things a step further again launching their Bottle Return scheme using a traditional cork sealed bottle, where customers bring the bottle back (as opposed to the Refill system where customers keep the bottle). Returned wine bottles are sterilised and reused at least thirty times.
Both Refill and Bottle Return reduce the carbon footprint of each bottle of wine by up to 95%.
Their delicious Zero Waste wine range is filled with top quality wine from sustainably focussed winemakers.
Wines range from being organic, vegan and biodynamic, with every winemaker committed to reducing their waste output and practising the most sustainable grape growing and winemaking techniques.
With the same core values as we uphold here at Neem, Sustainable Wine Solutions respect their producers, always tracing back to the exact farm, use as little packaging as possible and aim for a circular production system.
Wines that are organic are made using only certified organic grapes, grown without synthetic pesticides, herbicides, fungicides and chemical fertilisers. Very similar to the organic cotton standards we use within our blended recycled cotton shirts.
The wines are all part of three reuse systems (large Refill keg, small Refill keg & Bottle Return), encouraging customers to return or refill always. Again, Neem shirts and knitwear have a QR code allowing products to be returned to be recycled.
So a few wines we both suggest for the upcoming season
The vegan one
- IGP Rubicone Bianco
- Tre Monti
- Vittorio Navacchi
- Emilia Romagna, Italy
This orange wine is vegan, organic and natural; a full taste that has a pleasant bitter almond finish. Best paired with risotto, fried seafood, roast poultry and veal.
The fashionable choice that will get people talking, orange wine is fast growing in popularity and this one is extremely drinkable, and a great discussion point too.
The aperitif
- Abruzzo
- Chiusa Grande
- Franco Giandomenico
- Abruzzo, Italy
An organic, crisp aperitif. Intense nose of pear and green apple, followed by aromas of acacia flowers and honeycomb. A perfect bottle to take to a party.
The English one
- MADE IN ENGLAND
- Clive Barlow
- Defined Wines
A Bacchus grape grown on the Brenley Farm, nestled midway between the sea and Canterbury’s rolling fields and fruit orchards. An aromatic dry wine offering fresh lime, elderflower and green apple. A pre-lunch wine that is a great example of the English wine scene.
The lighter pinot noir
- NATURAL
- Vin De France
- Maison Jean Huttard
A typically bright and ripe Alsatian Pinot Noir, benefitting from the warm, dry conditions of Alsace. Ripe, red and black fruits including plum and cherry predominate, with bright redcurrant providing lively acidity.
A delightful aperitif wine – a lighter example and a great option for the novice red wine drinker.
The heavier red
- ORGANIC
- Abruzzo
- Chiusa Grande
- Franco Giandomenico
Another vibrant organic wine that will take you through from Turkey to Cheese.
Intense, fruity with notes of maraschino cherry, liquorice and vanilla. Balanced, harmonic, soft and round, with good persistence and body.
Please find all wines here
https://sustainablewinesolutions.co.uk/
Sustainable Wine Solutions are a wholesale wine company supplying wine to the hospitality and retail industries. However, they do still have their original shop in Borough Market and one in Hackney, as well as a short list online, should you want to get you hands on some wine.