Long Island wine pioneer returns with organic wines sold online and in local stores

Michael Douglass, a pioneering wine merchant whose flagship Syosset store introduced many Long Islanders to affordable fine wines from around the globe, is heading up a new online shop to promote and sell organic and sustainably produced wines. 

Working with winemakers from around the world and, at least initially, six Long Island wine retailers, Douglass, 83, has launched Nature’s Vineyards to offer an online array of good, healthier wines at affordable prices in a way that encourages the sustainable wine market, he said. 

Nature's Vineyards, formally launched in the fall after a soft-launch this spring, promotes and sells organic wines from an international collection of vineyards, using local retailers to fulfill and ship the products, and promote them in their stores. The company charges a small fee to market the wines to vineyard owners; retailers who help fulfill the sale make a profit from the sale.

Industry in flux

"Our industry like everything is in a state of flux," Douglass said Wednesday, pointing to recent wine-industry downturns. "Everybody's a little off their business. With our program we have an added advantage that this is all healthy for the environment. I think that will help us in all directions." 

Douglass said his more than half-century in the wine business is an added boost.

"I've been doing this for 55 years — I know everybody," he said. 

Nature’s Vineyard, which was conceived in 2019 by Douglass and his son Josh Douglass, will list only wines produced through organic, biodynamic or sustainable farming practices, eschewing toxic chemicals in grape-growing and production. Farms can either be certified organic or in the process of becoming so, or fall under the broader definition of sustainable, with operations that are family- or independently owned. 

The global organic wine market, estimated at $11.87 billion last year, is projected to double to $21.48 billion by 2030, according to analysis by Grand View Research, a San Francisco firm. That's still only a small, but growing, percentage of total wine sales that exceeded $515 billion last year, the firm reported. 

Those who know Michael Douglass say there's no one better to launch Nature's Vineyards.

"Mike has deep, deep expertise, not just with organic wines, but in the wine business on a larger scale," said Jeremiah Bosgang, executive director of Sands Point Preserve, where Douglass leads the wine-education program. "He’s truly passionate about wine, and he loves educating people about it and exposing them to wines."

Go-to guy

Bosgang described Douglass as a "very kind, warm guy" who "knows the history of wine, the art of wine and loves telling stories about it. He’s our go-to guy for wine tastings, education and fundraisers, more out of his passion for the work and that world."

The Nature's Vineyard website features an initial list of 32 wines.

The list includes wines from Argentina, France, Italy, New Zealand, Spain and Long Island, including four from Paumanok Vineyards in Aquebogue. Prices range from $12.99 to $82.99. Wines are available for purchase at six Long Island stores.

Retail stores that carry Nature’s Vineyards selections, according to its website, include Rich Harvest Wines and Liquors in Mattituck, Halcyon Liquors in Roslyn Heights, the Woodbury Wine Vault, One Kourt in Greenport and Wines by Nature in Wading River. They will both ship the wines and serve as local points of contact where customers can discuss and buy the wines at retail.

Josh Douglass, an environmental lawyer and co-founder, is also a partner, with a company goal of donating up to 10% of the net profits from the operation to environmental causes, he said. In addition to the Douglasses, the company is run by chief operating officer Jeffrey Britz, and its wine council includes Diane Harris Brown, a former director at the James Beard Foundation.

A return to retail

Michael Douglass at the helm of the operation represents a jump back into to wine retailing after selling his Post Wine and Spirits five years ago. The shop during that half-century was among the first to bring world-class wines at good prices to Long Island and the metropolitan area, nurturing a generation of wine aficionados and retailers. 

Douglass has remained active in the wine business, where he’s rubbed elbows with some of the world’s best-known producers and served as an adjunct professor in the fine wine program at Hofstra University. He continues to lead the wine education program at Sands Point Preserve.

George Eldi, 57, of Ridge, owner of Wines by Nature, is a member of Nature’s Vineyards’ wine council, which includes experts and retailers who advise on its efforts and selection. Eldi said he and Douglass worked closely through years of developing the idea, which was inspired by their shared love of great-tasting organic wines.

"It occurred to me early in my career, in the early 2000s, that the organic wines are the ones that were tasting better," said Eldi, who worked as a sales rep in the wine industry for 17 years before opening his shop in 2017.

"When Mike found me and reached out to me he quickly understood my focus and basically I folded right in with Mike," he added. 

Nature’s Vineyards’ team hopes that by stressing wines that are organic or sustainably grown, some related health concerns are tempered. The World Health Organization in 2023 released a statement saying there is "no safe amount" of alcohol consumption "that does not affect health." 

"There’s a lot of downward pressure from the government saying bad things about alcohol and wine," Eldi said, referring to recent studies that indicate adverse health impacts from any level of alcohol consumption. "In moderation, wine has its benefits. And those who choose wine, having all this information, are going to look for a better option and we are in a prime position to help them reenter the marketplace."

Nature’s Vineyards is starting on Long Island, and its founders believe it can be expanded across the state and country, using the same model of partnering with local retailers to carry, sell and ship the wines.

"In this economy, people are looking to buy better wines for the dollar," Eldi said. "We have it with our selections. It’s a great time for these types of wines."

Douglass said he realizes it will take time to grow the business, just as it will take time for organic wines to become a larger part of the market.

But, he said, "The longer we promote them and everybody's turning toward producing organic wines, I think they have a hell of a future."

By Mark Harrington

mark.harrington@newsday.comMHarringtonNews

Mark Harrington, a Newsday reporter since 1999, covers energy, wineries, Indian affairs and fisheries.