Wait!!! Wine is not vegan?
Here's
all you need to know about how to discern the difference between vegan wine and
regular wine, whether you're flexitarian, vegetarian, vegan, or just trying to
accommodate guests.
Fining
Process
Wine is vegan only in a limited
portion of the production process. Grape harvesting, pressing, and fermenting
are all considered vegan-friendly practices. Only one stage of the process,
termed 'fining,' involves animal products on occasion.
The term "fining" refers to the process of removing contaminants from wine in order to make it clearer and more stable. Please bear with us while we get a bit technical. Egg whites, gelatine, or a milk derivative are traditionally added to the wine. This binds to soluble contaminants (tannins, proteins, and phenols), which you can't filter out. The fining agent, as well as the contaminants, are then removed from the wine.
Vegan
wine may be prepared in one of two ways: with a vegan-friendly fining agent
like clay, or by allowing the wine to develop (ferment) for a bit longer and
skipping the fining process entirely.
Taste
Test
Vegan items, such as vegan bacon,
have been reported to have a distinct flavor from normal bacon. Is this true,
though, for wine?
Vegan
items are thought to taste worse than conventional ones, which is a frequent
misperception. Although this may be true in a few cases (for example, some
vegan hams), it is not true in the case of vegan wine.
Nobody
should have to settle for a bad-tasting wine merely to be cruelty-free or
healthy, and the good news is that you don't have to.
Vegan
wine tastes exactly like ordinary wine since the animal products used in the
fining process are filtered out or evaporated, and have no effect on the wine's
overall flavor.
The
only difference between it and conventional wine is the sort of fining agents
employed - and regardless of whether the fining agents contain fish bladder
gelatin or clay mineral, the overall product will taste the same.
In
fact, you've probably consumed vegan wine without even recognizing it because
many vintners and winemakers don't publicize the fact that their wine is vegan
on the label.
However,
if you choose a wine that hasn't been finned, you could perceive a slight difference.
Unfined
wine often contains bolder and more complex tastes that are better suited to
more experienced palates.
Rumour
has it
It has been said to reduce
inflammation, blood clotting, and enhance heart health when used in moderation.
To have bright, young skin and a healthy heart, one can drink vegan wine. If
ever there was a reason to pour a glass of vegan wine, it would be now.
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