Parducci winery, part of the Mendocino Wine Company has announced that they are the first U.S. winery to achieve "carbon neutral status." Wine Business News reports that the winery partnered with the California Climate Action Registry to determine their carbon emissions and then took measures to both lessen and offset them. Mendocino Wine Company has had "mitigation" practices such as solar installation, switching to biodiesel in company vehicles and farm equipment, converting from incandescent to fluorescent lighting, and a local tree-planting program. The winery has also purchased carbon credits, supporting projects that focus on methane and biogas capture, wind power and forest projects within its own bioregion. Mendocino Wine Company's vineyards are also certified Biodynamic, Organic, or Fish Friendly Farming and the company's packaging uses tree-free and recycled papers printed with soy-based inks. The winery also participates in reduce-reuse programs including on-site vineyard composting, water conservation and water recycling projects. Want to celebrate Parducci's carbon neutral status, I recommend the 2004 True Grit, a fiesty Petite Sirah-based summer red that goes great with grilled foods. It sells for $24.99.

Last week, I mentioned Silverjet, which has made a commitment to being carbon neutral in order to help the environment. Now Executive Charter Services, a private jet charter brokerage company has announced that they are giving clients the balance out the carbon dioxide emissions by purchasing reductions in greenhouse gases from leading carbon retailer TerraPass. TerraPass supports a variety of eco-friendly project like domestic wind farms and energy efficiency projects. An hour in a private jet can use up as much fuel as a whole year in the family car so it is good to see private jet companies making this move. Even if you are not a private jet flyer, you can buy a TerraPass based on the length of your flight and the fuel used to do your part to help make a difference in global warming, TerraPass has also partnered with Expedia, the popular travel website. For a comprehensive look at just how much it will cost you to fly carbon neutral on a private flight check out Helium Report's comprehensive look at the subject.