Santa Maria Sun / Eats

Riverbench gets green recognition

BY K. REKA BADGER

Seeing green Located in a vintage Craftsman-style house, the Riverbench Winery tasting room recently earned certification as a Green Business for its exemplary use of sustainable practices." PHOTO COURTESY TOM POSS

The Green Business Program of Santa Barbara County, an effort that includes local governments, nonprofits, utilities, and chambers of commerce, recognizes a handful of area enterprises each year. At a recent awards ceremony, Santa Maria’s own Riverbench Vineyard and Winery tasting room was among the three recipients—and the first tasting room ever—to receive certification.

“We are really excited about this,” Laura Mohseni, general manager of Riverbench Vineyard’s winery division, wrote in an e-mail. “One of my staff, Colleen Davis, mentioned how proud she is that we worked to get the certification. She said so many people are jumping on the ‘green’ thing because it’s marketing, and she’s proud that Riverbench makes honest efforts to be environmentally conscious. That made me really happy to hear.”

While the owners and staff at Riverbench actively pursued the certification, their original efforts to build an environmentally conscious business put them well ahead of the game. For instance, they have long maintained the practice of using recycled wine labels and boxes and reusing office supplies, whenever possible.

“Our renovation in 2008 was made with the environment in mind,” Mohseni wrote of the Craftsman-style home that serves as the tasting room. “The lights are on sensors; we installed aerators and low-water-usage toilets. We have some lawn, but we have very regulated and monitored water schedules, and some drought-tolerant plants.”

Still, it took about a year of completing checklists, attending interviews, and passing examinations to earn the certificate.

“It’s a relatively rigorous process,” said Frances Gilliland, the Green Business Program director. “The businesses contact us, and we work with them to complete the process. Riverbench contacted us last January and was one of the first Santa Maria-area businesses to do so.

“A few things they really excel at,” she continued, “is recycling and buying recycled-content supplies; the other is water conservation. They also organized a neat little ride-sharing program for their employees—and that’s not all that easy for people in the wine industry.

“They’re energy efficient,” she added, “and they really think about everything they do.”

At a lively breakfast presentation in late February, Riverbench Vineyard and two other local businesses, Be Green Packaging and the Santa Maria area office of AECOM Environment, accepted their Green Business certificates. Wes Hagen, vineyard manager and winemaker at Clos Pepe Vineyards, a leader in sustainable vineyard operations, delivered the keynote address.

Get in on the green Riverbench Vineyard and Winery is located at 6020 Foxen Canyon Road, Santa Maria (937-8340). Celebrate the tasting room’s Green Business certification and sample green-tinted wine ($10) on March 17, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information about the Green Business Program and certification, visit greenbizsbc.org or call Frances Gilliland, program director, at 705 –1686.

The Green Business Program, which launched in December 2008, is free and entirely voluntary. It offers assistance and incentives, including the official Green Business certification and its inherent promotional perks.

Certified Green Businesses are entitled to display a window decal, as well as receive a listing on the program’s website, making it easier for customers to identify and support companies employing eco-friendly practices.

“The beauty of this program is that businesses can take their time getting through the process,” Gilliland said. “You need to be dedicated, but we offer a lot of expertise to help you move toward sustainability.

“In the end, ” she added, “we’ve seen that businesses find a lot of benefits, not just in being able to tell their customers they’re green, but they also see it reflected in their bottom line.”

Earning the Green Business certification means satisfying a checklist of requirements based on the type of business, such as office/retail, restaurant, or lodging. Coming soon are checklists for auto shops, winemaking facilities, and dental offices.

Among the areas covered are solid waste reduction, pollution prevention, recycling, and energy conservation. When a business has met the requirements, representatives of the Green Business program visit the site.

“We have people come out to check that they’re recycling, conserving, and doing all that,” Gilliland explained. “We verify that what they say they’re doing, they’re actually doing.”

To celebrate their official Green Business status, the staffers at Riverbench Vineyard have planned a fitting, if unusual event.

“We are honoring our certification this St. Patty’s Day—you know, the whole green thing—with a corned beef and cabbage pizza party,” Mohseni declared in her e-mail. “And even the wine will be tinted green!”

K. Reka Badger drinks red, white, rosé, green, whatever. Send comments to rekabadger@hotmail.com.