I definitely agree with you on the "drinking wine in Europe" argument, I had to write an entire article about that topic to point people at -

http://www.wineintro.com/basics/health/headaches.html

However, I do know a few people who are legitimately sensitive to sulfites and can prove it by eating sulfite-high food and having a reaction. It could be that people from certain ethnic backgrounds are more sensitive than people from other ethnic backgrounds, so that I happen to know people who are allergic but other people never run into an allergic person ...

I am not suggesting that some people do not react to some wines, but there are a number of factors, especially histamines, that are more likely to be the cause.

Its known that people who are asthmatics can be affected by sulfites, and that about 1% of people with asthma are at serious risk from sulfites, which is why they warning is on the label.

But they will not have reached drinking age without knowing it and they should not be drinking wine at all. Beacause ALL wines contain sulfites, even though the levels permitted in wines is much lower than on other food stuffs.

There is no medical evidence that sulfites cause headaches.

I have just been printing out some fact sheets about wines for upcoming tastings and some have the lab results which include sulfite levels.

Here's one
Free SO2 48mg/L
Total SO2 99mg/L
Another

Free SO2 50mg/L
Total SO2 130mg/L

There's the thing about free and bound SO2 but I'd have to go and refresh myself with the text books before going any further.

I am not allergic to sulfites, added or not. I am health conscious and I enjoy nutrition, so for me buying organic NSA wines isn't about not having an allergic reaction, it's about taking my love of wine to a MORE nutritional level and by that feeling better about it. Wine itself has 'naturally' occuring sulfites in it, however, to make wine last for decades they have 'synthetic' sulfites added to them. USDA will not label a product as organic that has any sulfites added, because it is a synthetic addition and therefore NOT natural.

I copied and pasted this from the Frey Organic wine website:

Organic Wine: Under 10 ppm naturally occurring sulfite
Biodynamic Wine: 100 ppm added sulfite
“Made with Organic Grapes” wine: 150 ppm added sulfite
All other wine: 350 ppm added sulfite

As I said before I don't have allergic reactions to the sulfites in wine synthetic or naturally occuring, but for me it is peace of mind and feeling good about drinking wine with 10 ppm naturally occuring sulfites as opposed to 350 ppm added 'synthetic' sulfites.

When I dine out I am limited to the wines that are offered and I won't refuse them, but when I am buying for myself to enjoy at home, I feel better knowing that I have invested in a 'healthier' product. I am not concerned in keeping wine for aging....so a 1-2 month limit is perfect for me and they would probably last a bit longer than that (unopened) anyway.

For those who think organic wines with NSA may not be as yummy as conventional wines...they taste the same, if not better. I opened a bottle of red wine over the weekend and it was delish!!!


Good day!!!

Peter -

I definitely understand what you are saying about many people not being allergic to sulfites. I don't agree that people who are sensitive should simply avoid all wines completely

I have several friends who are sensitive to sulfites. They have problems with sulfite rich food. They can have a wine from the same winery, one made with sulfites and one without, and they have far less problems with the sulfite-free wine. Sure there are a few natural sulfites in the "sulfite-free" wine but they love the wine and enjoy it anyway.

It's like me and cats. I have 2 cats. I am allergic to cats! If they nuzzle on my chest for an hour my face gets red and hot. So I simply shower after I play with them. I would never listen if someone said to me "you are allergic to cats - so therefore never have cats"

Kysongbird - I definitely agree with you about drink-quick wines. They can make the same wine with or without added sulfites and if they have a clean winery operation the wine can be just as delicious in the end.

So if you drink drink-quick wines you're all set!

However, most winemakers feel a wine won't last 4 or 5 years unless it has some sulfites added to it. So if you enjoy the flavor of an aged wine, then you are sort of stuck with sulfites. Just like if you want to eat a meat that hasn't freshly been killed, then you have to preserve or freeze it to keep it fresh. Otherwise it will spoil.

So it's one of those tradeoffs.

I agree completely with you on the general theory of "as few preservatives as possible". For example many studies have been done about the harm of preservatives in luncheon meat. So I try to stay away from hot dogs and other luncheon meats that have preservatives. I love fresh tuna, fresh steak. So I will eat meat - but I try to eat non-preservative-filled meat.

Eating lamb with their cute little eyes is another matter

OK so here's a general question then.

If a wine is definitely meant to be drink soon - say a white zinfandel - why would you WANT to add sulfites to it? It isn't supposed to be on the shelves for years. If the winery has a clean process, and can do it without sulfites, why add sulfites?

This is sort of the "why is there corn syrup in ketchup" argument to me. So much of our food has junk in it in modern times just because it's easier. It makes it hard to find just normal ketchup or maple syrup any more!

I would rather have a wine without preservatives.

Hi this is my first post, looking forward to being part of the wine intro group. Now about sulphites. I was surprised about the high values given in previous posts. We have a winery here in Portugal making red wines. Our sulphite levels into the bottle are not more than 30 mg/litre (30 ppm). this will reduce in time to about 25- 27 mg/L in the bottle which is still enough for conservation. Red wines should not have more than 35mg/litre at bottling Whites may have to have double this to combat refermentation due to more residual sugar, Usually you can smell sulphites at more than 50mg/L in reds and the wine gets a tinny flavour
The sulphites are added after the alcoholic and malolactic fermentations to prevent bacterial and yeast activity during the time the wine matures (up to two years in stainless steel vats or partly in oak barrels), not really for keeping for the few months on the shelf of the winery store.
We have soem wine here "Jaen" (Mencia) which has very low sulphites in the bottle ( under 20mg/L) and low acidity but it is still very OK. Most is already sold so I am happy about that. I do not think it will keep another year, in fact we did not think it would keep until now. It won an award at the Prowein 2009 for wines from temperate climates with low alc 85 Parker points! we were very surprised, but also happy. sorry this is not a plug, the wine has all been sold or drunk!
I would not think that sulphite levels of under 30ppm will cause allergic reations but i am not sure about this, dried fruit has much more.

All the best

Chris Price
Vinhos Cortém

I don't know what is meant by 'sensitive to sulfites' to sulfites, and I don't know how your friends know that they are.

But if someone has a bad reaction to sulphites then they should avoid wines because all wines contain sulphites and always have.

Welcome, Chris, to the discussion.

As you say, sulphites have been used since time immemorial as a sterilizer in winemaking to clean barrels and kill bacteria.