Many people have attributed the headaches they may get accompanying wine consumption with the presence of sulfites. My mom, for example, claimed that she never got headaches while drinking wine on a European vacation because those wines, unlike American wines, did not contain sulfites. She reiterated this hypothesis about South African wines after I recounted to her my new found fountain of youth and lack of hangover headaches after imbibing chenin blanc. Not only did the reading disbunk the idea that certain wines contain no sulfites, but it emphasized the necessity of sulphur dioxide in the wine making process.
I found a great article in the WSJ addressing this issue: http://www.wsj.com/articles/wine-headache-chances-are-its-not-the-sulfites-1426250886. The summary findings on why many of us get headaches:
- too many glasses of wine
- high sugar content
- dehydration
- allergies to proteins or histamines in wine
I guess this is just another reason to start tracking which wines you like and which ones you still like the day after, regardless of sulfites.
Interesting discussion, Tori, and thanks for getting this going. Outside of the sulfites debate, I'm interested in learning more about organic wines. I've been to many vineyards and have posed this question. Many say that the majority of their process is organic (i.e. they do not use pesticides or chemical fertilizers in the growing process, so their grapes are organic), but they do add sulfites during the final stages in order to prevent bacteria growth, discoloration etc. From the perspective of the consumer, what is driving the purchasing decision? Is it more important that the grapes are organic or that there are no sulfites added? If sulfites are naturally occurring in the wine process, should chemical-conscious consumers focus their energy on organic vs. sulfites?
ReplyDeleteWe'll cover organic and biodynamic wines in the course as well!
ReplyDeleteI want to follow up on Kaitlyn's topic of organic wines. I am also curious what drives consumers to buy organic wines (and how many customers really care if they're buying organic wines or not). When I've shopped for wines, I've never noticed a difference in price between organic and non-organic wines. This is very different from the market for other organic goods. I know organic wines are more expensive to make in part because the certification is expensive, but is that price being passed onto the consumer? If it's not being passed onto the consumer, what kind of price signaling does that send and how does that affect consumer demand? I think many people think organic produce is better in part because it is more expensive (price/quality signals). If organic wines are better for the environment and ourselves, are wineries doing everyone a disservice by not using price signaling to indicate that organic wines are better?
ReplyDelete