12 Step

12 Step Program

10. We are merely temporary custodians of the environment-we should care for it responsibly.

One Percent For The Planet

People have been asking the question, "What's in it for me?" for a long time. We think it's about time for the answer to be "A better world in which to live."

Our world is changing. On that there is no controversy. But is it changing for the better? Sure, basket case is about delivering a good wine for a fair price, and encouraging all of us to have fun doing so. But we're also about doing it responsibly. The world isn't going to change without someone getting up and doing something about it. So we are. We want to have our cake and eat it too! And not only do we believe that it is possible to be both profitable and responsible, we believe the combination will be the next revolution in the business community. The consumer is the most powerful force in the universe, and while they can't effect change with their vote, they sure can with their pocketbook.

1% FOR THE PLANET was founded by Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia, and Craig Mathews, owner of Blue Ribbon Flies. They believed they could change the world, and we couldn't agree more. It's not difficult to effect change, but it does require action. So, we have joined over 700 other companies who donate 1% of their revenue (sales, not profit) back to non profit organizations that are making the world a better place, right here, right now. We don't have time to wait for government and policy to figure it out.

"It's not whether you win or lose, it's how you play the game."

"You can be anything you want to be as long as you put your mind to it."

This isn't just good advice for our children. It's good advice for all of us. Attitude is contagious-is yours worth catching?

www.onepercentfortheplanet.org

Carbon Neutral

Take a look at the picure below.

This, of course, is Washington crossing the Delaware. It occured before the battle of Trenton, N.J., and is a famous symbol of the Revolutionary War. But it also depicts icebergs on the Delaware River, which have not been seen since 1790. There is little doubt that we are in the midst of global climate change. What is also becoming increasingly apparent is that man is accelerating that change. This is collectively called Global Warming. What we don't know is how much influence our actions are having. However, there is a tremendous amount of evidence that indicates at best we are having an adverse affect on our environment, and at worse could be guiding the world towards catastrophic change. We think the reality probably lies somewhere in the middle. But it seems as if each time there is another 'bombshell' of evidence pointing to increased climate change, it shifts the risk of catastrophe that much closer. And here is where it gets a bit scary. While the risk of catastrophe is low, the consequences are undeniably disastrous. We believe that these consequences are drastic enough to justify giving Global Warming the benefit of the doubt. This is one battle where we definitely want to err on the right side.

To that end, basket case wines has become carbon neutral. We have partnered with carbonfund.org to offset our carbon emissions and reduce our carbon footprint. Carbon offsetting is an interesting theory, and one that finds us at times intrigued and excited, and other times skeptical. The basic idea is that you figure out how much carbon your actions and operations cause to be released to the environment, and then you pay to reduce a corresponding amount of carbon elsewhere. This can be done by planting trees, investing in renewable resources, retiring offsets that would be otherwise traded, and increasing energy efficiency.

On paper, all indications are that this is a brilliant idea. But as we really started looking at it, it appeared that carbon offsetting relied heavily on reducing future releases of carbon dioxide. For instance, if a planned powerplant were to go from a non-renewable source to a renewable source, based in part or whole due to carbon offset funding, then what is really happening is that a future source of higher pollution is replaced with one of lower pollution. While this is nothing to complain about, it does nothing to reduce pollution that is being emitted now. And if you've been paying attention lately, the 'now' is already a serious concern. So what does 'carbon neutral' do about the now? To some extent, planting trees and other carbon sequestering plants could have an effect on the now. But as with all living things, they take time to develop. There also seems to be a fair amount of disagreement on whether they do their sequestering jobs as well as stated.

This was beginning to bring us down until we pulled back for a little while and came to the same conclusion we have reached elsewhere in our business philosophy-if you want to live in a different world, you're going to have to do something about it.

We don't know if carbon offsetting is the answer. In fact, we suspect it is not. Or more specifically, it is not the only answer. But it is an answer that is available now. And as our good friend Rich said, 'I can't imagine that planting trees is a bad thing for the environment'. So, in the absence of an absolute solution, we have decided that being carbon neutral is an important first step in what will be a long journey towards correcting the damage we have done to the environment. To put it another way, you have to start somewhere. And if enough of us get started, we can help build momentum that will one day tip the scales in favor of critical mass.

As we are all too well aware, our new business has lots of costs, and wineries, with their long production times, seem to pile up costs at record speed. We have concluded that our footprint on the environment must be viewed as a direct cost, as real as production and overhead costs. After all, enjoying a glass of wine is contingent on there being a world in which to drink it in at all...