Winery Raises the Bar

There's no shortage of wineries in Napa, but the environment isn't necessarily a priority for all of them. Then there's Newton Vineyard, which has incorporated recycling, cover-cropping, reduced-energy irrigation and natural fermentation into its wine making process for over three decades. Now that's definitely worth a toast ...

Newton has just gone one step farther with this unusual tasting bar, officially called "Re-Inspired Elements": A Tasting Installation." OK, fine. That does sounds like something you'd see in a pretentious art gallery, and we admit that it looks a bit like a sculpture made out of giant Lincoln Logs. But this piece of usable furniture is designed to mirror the shape of Newton Vineyard's rolling hills, and its wooden sections are made from reclaimed oak wine barrels, most of which were used to age Newton's delicious reds. There are 112 wood segments; each stands for a parcel of land at the Vineyard on which grapes are grown.

But there's more to this bar than just eco-aware design. Newton commissioned it in a limited edition of five, one of which will be auctioned off later this year to benefit Global Green USA. It's anticipated to bring in around $20,000 to help curtail climate change.

So although it can hold red, white, or rose, there's really only one variety of wine that "Elements" is designed to store: green.

For more information, go to www.newtonvineyard.com.