Eco-friendly French to ship their wine (to UK) under sail

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/feb/24/food.carbonemissions

Eco-friendly French to ship their wine under sail

60,000 bottles on a 19th-century barque from Bordeaux to Dublin is just the start

Peter Allen in Paris
The Observer,
Sunday February 24 2008

French vineyard owners are returning to a slower pace of life by starting to export their wine by sailing boat - a method last used in the 1800s - to reduce their carbon footprint.

Later this month 60,000 bottles from Languedoc will be shipped to Ireland in a 19th-century barque, saving 18,375lb of carbon. Further voyages to Bristol, Manchester and even Canada are planned soon afterwards.

The three-mast barque Belem, which was launched in 1896, the last French merchant sailing vessel to be built, will sail into Dublin following a voyage from Bordeaux that should last about four days. The wines will be delivered to Bordeaux by barge using the Canal du Midi and Canal du Garonne, which run across southern France from Sète in the east, via Béziers in Languedoc. Each bottle will be labelled: 'Carried by sailing ship, a better deal for the planet.' Although the whole process will end up taking up to a week longer than a flight, it is estimated it will save 4.9oz of carbon per bottle.

Frederic Albert, founder of the shipping company Compagnie de Transport Maritime à la Voile (CTMV), said: 'My idea was to do something for the planet and something for the wines of Languedoc. One of my grandfathers was a wine-maker and one was a sailor.'

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[gateley]

1. Well how cool is that! nt

[peace13]

2. Thanks for this. n/t

[GoneOffShore]

3. Lanquedoc wines rock!

Visited there last year - excellent, underrated, inexpensive wines.

And now green!