Biodynamics

Distillery

We practice the old-world technique of artisan, small-batch distillation in a copper pot still. Our still was custom built in Germany by Christian Carl in 2005 and then reassembled at our 5,000-square-foot distillery in Fresno.
Historically, copper has been the material of choice for distillation for many reasons. Copper is an excellent conductor of heat, removes off-odors and creates a higher-quality spirit than other materials

Biodynamic Practices

Composting
Demeter certification requires that all farming operations make their own compost on the farm. It is permitted to buy raw material – but the actual aging control happens on the farm. At Marian Farms we use dairy and horse manure based compost. For our vegetable crops we use a blend of these manures, for our vineyards and tree orchards we use only dairy based compost.

Cover Cropping
At Marian farms we have an aggressive restorative soils program. We grow summer cover crops, usually a mixture of cow-pea and buckwheat. During the winter, to prevent erosion and to build the soil structure, we grow vetch, oats and a pea mixture.

Seed Saving
Seed Saving is a unique aspect of Marian Farms. Seed saving is an old agricultural tradition which has been lost with the modernization and hybridization of seeds. For centuries farmers were able to control the quality and vigor of their plants by carefully selecting those seeds with particularly desired attributes. Seed harvested from hybrid plants produces seedlings which are unlike the parent seed, and in most cases are inferior to them. With seed saving the farmer ensures the quality of plants and products. Typically today’s purchased seed has lost its vitality and the seed’s germination and quality is inferior to that of on the farm saved seed. Moreover, most purchased seeds are treated with fungicides. Demeter certified Biodynamic practices require the use of untreated seed – one way to ensure that seeds are not treated is by saving the seeds yourself.

Biodynamic agriculture encourages the practice of seed saving on the farm. Marian Farms has implemented a program by which we carefully select the most robust and disease-free plants each growing season for seed saving. We choose strains which are uniquely suited and can withstand the extreme weather conditions of the Central San Joaquin valley. Marian Farms in their fifth year of saving seeds, and we have seen incredible results from this practice already.