Local wines, professionally made from amateurs’ grapes

Regular Springwise readers may recall City Winery, the winery-cum-wine bar in New York City that lets consumers crush, ferment, bottle and label their own bottles of wine. City Winery customers typically use grapes sourced by the company from vineyards around the world, but a UK contender focuses on making wine from grapes locally grown by consumers themselves. Aiming to support consumers interested in locally made wines, the Urban Wine Company collects grapes from oenophiles all over London and the southeast UK and presses them collectively according to variety each October. Consumers with productive vines growing in their yards or allotments can join the Urban Wine Company as producer members; in exchange, they’re entitled to six bottles of collectively produced wine, vine care news and updates, and invitations to exclusive events, including tastings and tours. Wines are produced in partnership with professional vineyards, but consumers can choose the label they’d like on their own bottles, which are typically delivered in March. Membership fees are GBP 65, according to a report in CNN. For those without existing vines, there’s even an option to have one provided by Urban Wine, the company says. By last fall, Urban Wine Company’s membership had reached almost 200, CNN reported, yielding a harvest of about a ton of grapes. Prospects for growth seem promising, too, given the combined bouquet of a compelling status story, an eco-minded effort and some heady (still) made here appeal. One to emulate for the grape-growing oenophiles near you…? (Related: DIY wine blending kit — Sustainable forest supported through crowdfunding.) Spotted by: Matthew Traver