Do you really know what’s in the wine you’re guzzling?

Have you ever stopped to wonder what is actually in the glass of wineyou’re drinking? Do you think it’s just grapes? Think again. There’s often a lot more that gets put in – you just don’t know about it.

However, that’s all changing in the EU this week, and maybe it will put pressure on our government to think about doing the same here. Up until 8 December, the legal requirements for labelling in the EU have been the same as here in the UK, focusing primarily on the producer, region and country of origin, year of production, and alcohol content.

Whilst almost all food and drink sold in the UK comes with a full list of ingredients and additives, wine has been exempt from this apart from requiring a statement to the effect that it “contains sulphites”. Producers selling wine in the EU will now have to list nutritional content, energy value – yes, wine does have calories – and, most importantly, ingredients.

We have a romanticised version of wine in our head, and sadly, it is far from the reality of most of the wines consumed in the UK. The image of the winemaker lovingly harvesting their grapes by hand, pressing them by foot in a dark, cool cellar and ageing them in beautiful oak barrels ready for our consumption couldn’t be farther from the truth. Large-scale commercial wine production is a highly mechanised, industrial-agricultural process, and now bottles sold on the continent will have an ingredients list to prove it. Think flavourings, additives, enzymes, and other such substances.

I think this could be a revelatory and exciting time for casual wine drinkers to learn about the common additives that winemakers use. Maybe this doesn’t interest you, but at a time when people are increasingly checking the label and interested in how processed the food they consume actually is, maybe it’s time we paid attention to what’s in our wine, too.

It has long been an irritation to me that the only mention of ingredients listed on a bottle of wine has been “contains sulphites”. These two simple words began being included on pretty much every bottle of wine sold internationally thanks to neo-prohibitionist teetotaller Senator Strom Thurmond of South Carolina. Thurmond, in an attempt to discourage alcohol consumption, achieved a Senate ruling mandating sulphite warnings on all bottles sold in the US. It’s important to clarify that the goal wasn’t to inform people about sulphite-related health concerns – rather, it was a fear-based strategy to deter alcohol consumption.

Sulphur is a naturally occurring chemical found in lots of things, including wine. What the “contains sulphites” labelling refers to is added sulphur dioxide – specifically in potassium metabisulphite, ammonium or potassium sorbate – which is used as an antioxidant and preservative (ie a chemical used to stop your wine spoiling). Some people are sensitive to sulphites, including severe asthmatics. But if you’re having a reaction to wine, it could be in response to the histamines, sugar, tannin, alcohol or, more likely, the myriad of other more sinister ingredients added to a wine to make it taste better.

Bad grapes make bad wine, but this is often heavily manipulated to make it taste better. Does it need to be sweeter? Add sugar. Does the wine need a zesty fresh lift? Add tartaric acid. Looking for that delicious smooth, deep plum-coloured red? No problem. Just add “mega purple” – a deeply concentrated industrial colourant and hyper-sweetener. Want a refined, buttery, vanilla finish? Just pour in oak essence and a heap of oak chips. Yum. And of course, you’ll want your wine to be crystal clear, so add some isinglass (dried fish bladder) for clarification.

This is just the tip of the iceberg – over 80 different additives are allowed in the production of wine. Yet consumers are always shocked when I discuss this at tastings or with friends, because the assumption that wine is an entirely natural, unmanipulated product is so prevalent.

Following our EU neighbours with the introduction of ingredients on wine labels would be a positive step for consumers who have been kept in the dark for so long. It would help us all to make better decisions about the wine we drink. If you want to avoid wines that have been heaped with nasties, it always pays to seek advice, look to the small producers, and avoid the multinational brands.

As consumers, we should all be concerned about our consumption, both for our own health and that of the planet. Awareness of production processes and ingredients will hopefully have the impact of greater transparency, leading to more sustainable production practices.

And remember, the more a wine has been messed with, the more it will mess with you – trust me, I’m an expert.