Volute Wine Blog

Volute's low carbon footprint

A carbon footprint is a representation of the effect human activities have on the climate in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases produced, measured in units of carbon dioxide.

But is it relevant? Al Gore illustrates how greenhouse gases affect our environment by explaining that although Earth and Venus are almost exactly the same size and have almost exactly the same amount of carbon, the average temperature on Earth is a pleasant 59 degrees Fahrenheit, whereas the average temperature on Venus is a scorching 867 degrees Fahrenheit. While one might attribute this temperature difference to the planets’ closeness to the Sun (Venus being closer), the fault is not in our star; Venus is also three times hotter on average than Mercury, the closest planet to the sun.

The explanation is simple. The difference in the two planets is that most of the carbon on Earth is in the ground and most of the carbon on Venus is in the atmosphere. A fate the Earth is fast steering towards.

Since a Carbon Footprint is directly related to the amount of natural resources consumed it is being increasingly used as a measure of environmental impact. Carbon dioxide is recognized as a greenhouse gas, of which increasing levels in the atmosphere are responsible for global warming and climate change.

The Volute bottles have a lower carbon footprint than their glass counterparts. The Volute bottles are made of aluminum, which is recycled at a rate of over 50% in the US (and over 90% in Sweden) vs. 20% for glass. The main reason for this is due to weight: for the same volume of wine, the volute bottles weight 4 times less than glass bottles, and transporting glass bottles for recycling often costs and pollutes more than producing it from raw materials.

Producing a Volute bottle from recycled aluminum requires about 90% less raw materials, 50% less water and pollutes 50% less air.

Then comes the transportation. Due to its lower weight, importing Volute wine generates 30% less CO2 than the same volume of wine in glass bottles.

Amine, Volute co-founder

Why Bordeaux?

The Volute Sauvignon blanc was the first wine created. It responded to my needs as a consumer as well as a professional. It is fruity, typed and elegant. It is very aromatic, and the touch of Semillon gives it a well rounded pallatte.

For the Red, we could have considered something other than Bordeaux wine varieties, but the Merlot is a very modern variety, fruity, long, and with soft tannins. It is the variety that established Bordeaux's reputation, and more particularly the Pomerol and Saint Emilion appellations.

For the Rosé, we hesitated, but the Cabernet Sauvignon, produced as a Rosé, develops a very expressive nose and vivid colors, giving it a young and modern aspect. We work with small vine growers that share our view that wine can be made more accessible and more modern, yet maintain a high level of quality and authenticity.

Marie-Laure, Volute Oenologist