Whitecliff Vineyard, a Vegan, and Sustainable Winery
Whitecliff Vineyard and Winery stands apart from the various vineyards within the Hudson Valley with their impressive accreditations, large wine selection, and environmental sustainability practices. Located in Gardiner, New York, the vegan, artisanal, family-owned vineyard was awarded Winery of the Year in 2022, featured in Hudson Valley Magazine, and recently celebrated 30 years of business.
“My parents opened in 1979 as a hobby business and then in 1999 they opened commercially. I’ve been working there my entire life,” said Tristan Migliore. “My chores as a kid would be helping to harvest the crops, processing grapes, and later doing the deliveries. Now, I’m the general manager.”
Sustainability and veganism are at the core of what Whitecliff values. Winemakers will often use animal byproducts or egg whites during the filtering and finning process before bottling the wine. However, Whitecliffs ensures they use plant-based products and tools as they filter.
“Not using any animal byproducts in the filtering process of the wine makes a huge impact and creating vegan wine is also a part of our branding, marketing, and identity,” said Migliore. “In some ways, it is easier and cheaper than using animal byproducts and it’s still doing the same thing.”
Although plant-based filters are easily substituted, there are many other sustainable practices Whitecliff uses that take more time and energy. However, the vineyard is willing to work twice as hard in order to lessen its impact on the environment.
“We’re very focused on sustainability and we do a lot of things differently than other wine producers. We use the mildest possible pesticides only when we need them and use the smallest amount,” said Migliore. “We use a lot of netting and scare tactics from vulture statues and even those inflatable tube men you see at car dealerships. Also, we will not use pesticides during the fledging season when birds are feeding their young.”
The use of chemicals and pesticides is the easiest way to prevent pests from eating and destroying crops, but it may lead to harmful pollution in the soil, water, and air. Pesticides can be toxic to certain plants and animals, weakening the environment’s biodiversity and decreasing a species’ population. It is often more challenging to practice environmentally friendly alternatives. Despite this, Whitecliff faces these obstacles head-on.
“It would definitely be a lot easier to not care and pump our grapes with pesticides and chemicals, but what would be antithetical to our mission and our values,” said Migliore.
Efforts to reduce climate change and sustainability efforts are needed now more than ever. The severe consequences of humans’ impact on the environment continue to worsen throughout the years. Average temperatures have risen twice as fast in the past 50 years. Whitecliff Vineyard and Winery has witnessed firsthand the results of climate change on their crops.
“We have seen the impacts of climate change. One of the greatest challenges is birds. As the climate changes, it forces animals to change their habits. Birds and deer will put more pressure on organized agriculture and they can take a lot from our vines,” said Migliore. “It’s where they can get nutrients from.”
This past winter has been especially tough for crops due to the weather’s unpredictable changes and cold snaps. Farms typically expect cold temperatures in the winter that crops can prepare and adapt to. Recently, there have been extreme temperature drops following unusually warmer weather which crops cannot survive.
“We had that couple of days where it was single digits and negatives in the night, that normally would be fine. But, 30 years ago it would have been cold throughout the winter instead of 50 degrees one week and then a cold snap,” said Migliore. “That kind of snap does its own damage because the vines don’t have time to harden and get used to it.”
Incalculable weather, climate change, and laborious sustainability practices all create hardships for local farms and vineyards. Fortunately, Milgorie’s passion is within Whitecliff Vineyard and Winery and he prides himself on watching the family business blossom.
“One of the most rewarding parts of working on the vineyard is that it’s my family’s business and I care about us succeeding, and we have been doing well.” described Migliore. “And on the rare days, I’m behind the bar and I love finding exactly what a guest likes. Especially when they say ‘I only drink Miller Lite’ or ‘I don’t really like wine’ and I can make that work and have them enjoy the experience.”
