If you’re in the UK, or even anywhere else within the EU, you’ll have no doubt noticed the small sentence on your wine’s label which says “Contains Sulphites”. Many people worry about such declarations, as they assume it means someone’s been dabbling with the chemistry set and you’re about to sit down to a glass of bubbling E numbers haphazardly mixed with grape juice. Clearly, this is not the case. If you’ve been keeping an eye out, you’ll notice that this declaration is made on all bottles of wine which you can buy. So, let’s try and answer some common questions.
Firstly, what exactly are sulphites? Sulphites are any compound which contains the chemical Sulphur dioxide. The statement on the label has been mandatory since November 2005, when new regulations necessitated the declaration of any additives to wine. The vague declaration is not, in itself, a particularly useful guide to what’s going on, however. There are maximum levels, yet the declaration doesn’t tell you whether your wine contains a bare minimum or the very maximum.
Secondly, why are they in my wine? To put it simply, they are a preservative. I’m not talking microwave meal/ freezer food preservative, however. Sulphites allow wine to age, and wines with absolutely no added sulphites would be unlikely to age more than even a few months. Even in wine where no preservatives have been added at all, sulphur is still present to the tune of 10mg per litre as it is a natural by-product of the fermentation process. Sulphur dioxide serves as an anti-microbial agent which helps to limit the growth of potentially ruinous yeasts and bacteria in wine. It is also an antioxidant which prevents browning by preserving the colour of the grape skins in the wine. White wine generally contains larger amounts of added Sulphur Dioxide as it does not contain as many anti-oxidants from the grape skins as red does.
Sulphites have been a recognised additive in wine since at least 1487, when the first recorded decree permitting their usage was issued by the Prussian Royal state. At this moment, Sulphur Dioxide was being added to wine in small quantities to permit it to travel for trade or supplies in exploration. Indeed, the practice had been inherited from the Romans, who first developed the trick of burning sulphur candles inside wine barrels before filling them, which was taken up by British and Dutch merchants in turn.
Thirdly, do I have a choice? Broadly, the answer is no. When working at wine shops in the past, I have had people ask for Suplhite-free wine and insist that they’d had it before. To be honest, they’ve probably been mis-sold in another shop, with a sales assistant happily telling them exactly what they want to hear in order to get them to the till then out the door. As made clear in the answer to the last question, Sulphites are a natural by-product of the fermentation process which distinguishes wine from grape juice. You cannot drink wine which is totally free from Sulphites. Some Biodynamic and Organic producers commit themselves to using an absolute minimum of additives and this often means lower levels of Sulphur dioxide. If you’re dead set on trying to avoid them, you’d be best to go for organic or biodynamic red wines.
A very tiny minority of people are sensitive to Sulphites, as with just about any other substance on earth. It can give people migraines and skin conditions and even worsen Asthma. As someone who is asthmatic, I can attest this has never bothered me. If you are affected, laying off the wine is sadly the only realistic answer. The very lowest quality of wine may also contain an excess of Sulphites, added recklessly to ensure a long shelf-life for bargain basement wines. If you smell something like a burnt match when you open a bottle of wine, it’s probably had a little too much added. However, the use of Stelvin closures now means that this smell can be more common with white wines with no fault, as a perfect air seal prevents any gradual dissipation of excess Sulphur dioxide during transit. If it clears after opening, taste the wine as usual and determine any faults from the glass, not the bottle. As always, drink better and smarter and you’re less likely to run into problems.
Basically, there’s no need to panic. Sulphites appear in all wines and you should only worry if you’re drinking industrially cheap wine or are one of the tiny minority with a dietary sensitivity. Best get drinking up!
