Eileen Crane

Domaine Carneros is owned by famed Champagne house, Taittinger: How would you describe the differences between them?

Within the houses of Taittinger and Domaine Carneros, there are many wines with different attributes, but both aim for elegance, rather than heavy or big.

Why should consumers care?

In the end, organically grown grapes taste better and produce better tasting wines. Some customers will care about organic, some simply about the quality of the wine. Anyone who's ever tried an organic piece of fruit versus a non-organic can tell you there is a taste difference.

Can you taste the difference between true Champagne and quality "imposters?"

I would not use the word imposters: It connotes that anything but Champagne is something lesser than or an intentional imitation. I would only say that quality can be had anywhere as long as you have the right ingredients, great grapes, climate and attentive winemaking.

What are three tips to serving and enjoying sparkling wine?

1. Treat a friend or love to a glass or bottle of sparkling 'just because.' (My 'just because' is Friday night.) Don't wait for an occasion, make one. 2. Fill champagne flutes only half full, and refill as needed. This keeps the bubbly in your glass from getting too warm. 3. Buy a champagne stopper so that you can open a bottle of sparkling even when you want only one or two glasses. A properly stoppered bottle of bubbly will keep in the fridge for at least a week (assuming, of course it's not consumed sooner).

What was your inspiration for the change to 100% organic?

Living through the 60s.

Was there a market for organic wines during that time?

There was interest, but as you know, the wine market in the U.S. was just getting off the ground in the 60s, and people were still drinking generic wines like Chablis and Sauternes [or the U.S. version of those wines]. It wasn't until the great tasting of Paris when California beat out its French competitors that American consciousness on a large scale about wine was raised. The stories I've heard from those in the business back then were that the early organic wines were marginal at best. Sulfites weren't being used [and unless naturally occurring, cannot be used in organic wines today] in the winemaking process, which led to spoilage.

What were the costs involved with transitioning to organic?

$6.50 a case. This cost is for extra cultivation [conventional uses herbicides]. The extra cost is worth it as it creates a better environment for our workers and a better quality of wine. It was actually a surprise how much better the wine was using organic grapes.

When and how did you fall in love with wine?

I was about eight. Dad had a wine cellar and I loved the stories of where the wine came from and the labels and tasting the wine. He had landed in France on D-Day, and over the course of the war fell in love with wine. My first wine was probably a German Riesling, at Sunday dinner with the family.

These days there's a lot of trendiness involved in going green—and wine is no exception. What do you make of that?

Trends are good, and create awareness, consideration and then action. However, I consider the green or organic interest to be a movement, not a trend, a very important distinction. It is now the new baseline for consumers. Companies need to be responsible for their actions minimally and building from there. Luckily for us, we have been thinking organic since 1992, five years into the founding of Domaine Carneros.

What is the most recent green habit that you have adopted in your own life?

Never buy anything I do not really need. If I own something I do not need anymore, but is still nice or useful, try to find it a new home.

As for personal consumption, how much wine do you need?!

One or two glasses a night.

How many bottles are in your collection?

Seven hundred, including a 1975 Heitz Martha's Vineyard given to me by Kathleen Heitz at the time my husband and I were married in 1983. It will be opened next month for our 25th anniversary.

If you were on that proverbial desert isle with one bottle, not your own, what would it be?

A great bubbly, current choice: Taittinger Prelude. Tastes great and goes with desert-isle cuisine.

What countries, regions or grapes have been exciting you lately?

There are lots of great wines to discover from many places, but Spain is a place to look to right now, and southern Italy.

Why is sparkling wine the most food-friendly wine on the planet?

It goes with virtually anything, from filet of sole to New York steak. It does not go with coffee or hot Schezuan or curries. When you think of most sparkling wine blends, they are a combination of red and white grapes—in the case of Domaine Carneros, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay principally—so we have all bases covered, food matching-wise!

What's the most celestial food and wine pairing you have enjoyed with Domaine Carneros?

Brut Vintage and oysters. Try it yourself and see!

Do you have any eco-sins, a guilty pleasure or enjoyable indulgence that isn't green but you must have in your life?

Sheets shipped from Italy. By the way, my most favorite time to drink bubbly in bed is New Year's morning.

Do you have any wine pet peeves?

Wine snobs, people who want to talk about their wine cellars rather than opening a bottle and just enjoying good conversation.