'Natural' Wines for the Wine Allergic

Filed in archive Food Allergies on December 30, 2007

When people show allergy symptoms after drinking wine, it is usually an allergic reaction to preservatives and additives used in the clarification process, such as albumin and lysozyme (egg proteins) or casein (milk protein). But with more and more people showing food allergies and increasingly stricter labeling regulations in food including wine, are we going to see wine makers go back to producing wines without such additives?

According to Professor Attilio Scienza from the University of Milan (and one of the top Italian experts in the field),

"It could be helpful for a return to purity, because wine can be made without a lot of additives. Today, enological technology progresses by proposing substances and various actions - antioxidants, stabilizers, etc. - but if the primary material is good and if the right maturation and fermentation periods are respected, then there is a lot less need for additives. This is why, I think, the market will be divided in two in the future: on the one hand, wines with very little or no added substances, and on the other, those that are less expensive but with more additives".

As usual, quality comes with a price.