What's In This Wine, Anyway?

Happy Monday and welcome back to My Wine News. Today I'd like to discuss an article in Gourmet Magazine that I read over the weekend. The topic: wines and what goes into them. Most of us would believe that's a simple process. Wine is made from grapes, aged in barrels, then bottled for enjoyment. Unfortunately, many vintners today are using an ever-growing list of additives to ensure they get the same taste from their wines year after year, harvest after harvest.

Both New Zealand and Australia require wine makers to list any added ingredients on their bottles labels so that any potential allergens can be avoided by appropriate consumers. So what are the potential allergens that wineries are putting into wines? The list is big and getting bigger, but common additives include egg whites (gross), sugar and milk products.

Currently, the US doesn't require vintners here or elsewhere to label the ingredients that go into their wine. However, some vineyards are choosing to place a list of ingredients onto their labels without having to be asked. With recent legislation requiring calorie counts in all restaurants, including fast food joints like McDonald's and Burger King, we can be certain that an ingredient list and calorie count on wine bottles will be coming to a country near you in the not-so-distant-future.