On a panel I sat on Saturday at Taste Washington, Pepper Bridge winemaker Jean-Francois Pellet talked about how the previous owner of a vineyard he works with had killed everything with herbicides, and the soil was lifeless.

“Sustainable” has the potential to be the ultimate adjective in responsible winemaking. Unlike a rigid program like certified organic or biodynamic, a good sustainable wine program could allow farmers the option of rescuing a pest-threatened crop if unusual conditions really demanded it, while encouraging herbicide-free and pesticide-free farming most vintages.