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Counting Carbs With Wine
The recent health claims that wines have antioxidants in them that may block free radicals, prevent heart disease, cancer, and other conditions associated with aging seems to have some validity. Polyphenol, catechin, and cholesterol-reducing resveratrol are found predominately in red wines in various degrees. One suggestion as to why some of these antioxidants are present in red wines is that grapes that have been distressed during their growth will exhibit the highest level of antioxidants. Red-skinned grapes seem to have better growing success in less temperate climates but exhibit the effects of stressful weather conditions in the form of higher levels of resveratrol. Before all you wine enthusiasts start shouting, "I told you so!" let me point out that many of the same antioxidant benefits can also be found in dark beers, too.
What low-carbohydrate dieters are most concerned about with wine, however, is its carbohydrate count, loosely a function of the wine's residual sugar content. Although residual sugar levels are often made available by vintners and are a good indication as to the possible dryness or sweetness of a wine (the higher the number, the sweeter the wine), we can't, unfortunately, extrapolate the carbohydrate count of the wine from this figure without a full lab analysis.
Some wine-related Web sites say that there are no carbohydrates in dry wine, a glaring example of people who have no idea of the mechanics of fermentation. The process of converting sugars to alcohol and carbon dioxide during fermentation is limited by the attenuation of the yeast or the manipulation of the fermentation by the vintner. In order for a wine to have no carbohydrates in it, it would have to be pure alcohol, in other words, distilled. Of course at that point, the liquid would no longer be wine, but brandy or cognac. All-and I repeat-all wines, including dry wines, have some residual sugar left behind after the fermentation process ends. Residual sugar equals carbohydrates. If it were possible to use fermentation to convert a sugary liquid into a drink that was free of carbohydrates, the process of distillation would be a meaningless procedure. Only after distillation, when the resultant liquid is transformed into ethyl alcohol (ethanol), will a once-fermented liquid truly become carbohydrate-free.
You might notice while shopping for wine that some fruit-blended wines actually carry a nutritional analysis statement on them. For any wine with an alcohol content of less than 7% by volume, the Food and Drug Administration actually has jurisdiction over the nutritional labeling of the product. However, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) has jurisdiction over the mandated government warnings that are also found on the labels of these wines and of all alcohol-based products. This is one of the few times that the FDA gets involved in the realm of spirited beverages with the TTB. You'll also find nutritional information on ciders under 7%.
What kind of a margin of error does the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau allow in the measurement of carbohydrates in wine? From the TTB ruling: Statements of carbohydrates and fat contents [on wine labels or advertising materials] are acceptable provided the actual carbohydrate or fat contents, as determined by ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the former alcohol trade regulatory agency) lab analysis, are within a reasonable range below, but in no case more than 20% above, the labeled amount.
If you're on a low-carbohydrate diet and enjoy the occasional pressings from "the noble grape," the following list of wines with their carbohydrate counts should help you keep your daily carb intake in check:
Barton & Guestier
Cabernet Sauvignon ('02) 5 oz 1.70 g
Chardonnay ('02) 5 oz 1.10 g
French Tom Cabernet Sauvignon ('02) 5 oz 1.30 g
French Tom Chardonnay ('02) 5 oz 1.10 g
French Tom Merlot ('01) 5 oz 1.40 g
Ecco Domani
Cabernet Sauvignon ('01) 5 oz 4.00 g
Chianti ('01) 5 oz 3.60 g
Merlot ('01) 5 oz 4.05 g
Pinot Bianco ('96) 5 oz 3.50 g
Pinot Grigio ('02) 5 oz 3.15 g
For more information on the carbohydrate count of more than 1000 worldwide brands of beer, 400 wines, 60 liqueurs, and distilled products, go to www.lcbartender.com.
© Bob Skilnik, 2004
Bob Skilnik is a Chicagoland freelance writer who has written for the Chicago Tribune, the Collector Magazine, the American Breweriana Association's Journal and the National Association Breweriana Advertising's Breweriana Collector on the subjects of beer, brewery history and breweriana. He is a 1991 graduate of the Chicago-based Siebel Institute of Technology, the oldest brewing school in the United States, with a degree in Brewing Technology.
His interests in beer and brewing were cultivated while serving as a German translator in West Germany for the United States Army. Skilnik is the Associate Editor for the ABA Journal and The Tap newspaper, and a member of the Society of Midland Authors and the Culinary Historians of Chicago. He has appeared in the Chicagoland area on Media One's television program, The Buzz, WTTW's Chicago Tonight with Bob Sirott and Phil Ponce, Chicago's Public Radio station, WBEZ , Springfield, IL's WUIS Radio and the WOR Morning Show with Ed Walsh in New York. Skilnik's national television appearances have been on the Cold Pizza morning show on ESPN2 and Fox News Live.
Skilnik's latest effort is The Low-Carb Bartender, published by Adams Media. This reference book of hundreds of beers, wines, liquors, and liqueurs with their carbohydrate counts and a collection of over two hundred low carb mixed-drink recipes will be available in bookstores in November, 2004.
Overcoming Red Wine Spills
Red wine spills can be a disaster whether they occur in your home or onboard your $43 million executive jet as members of our corporate flight attendant web community are quick to point out. Taking care of a spill is another thing, but we have discovered two "tried and true" solutions to the problem. Please read on to find out what we discovered:
Rare Varietals Cure Wine Boredom
The future of the Australian wine industry will be shaped by a group of innovative grapegrowers and winemakers who are busily experimenting with new varieties in new regions.
Wine Tasting -- The Traditional Way
Wine tasting is properly known as 'Wine Degustation'. It is the art of being able to note the various differences between difference types of wine, and even the various differences between the vintages of the same type of wine.
An Idiots Guide To Wine Tasting
Have you ever seen those stiff upper-lipped types doing a spot of the old wine tasting malarkey? You know the form ? sip, swill, spit. Yuck! Well this information has been written to help you understand the form should you ever find yourself in a situation where you need to know what to do. And don't go thinking "I'll never have to do any wine-tasting" because you just don't know that for sure and the last thing you want is to be caught unaware.
Tasting Wine
Wine Tasting Component I: Look
The Ten Most Important Wine Label Terms
For the average wine consumer, there is a plethora of intimidation associated with wine buying. This is a feeling that is most often associated with not understanding wine labels. New world wines tend to make it easier - wines bottled in Australia, South America and the United States are often more direct in their presentation of the type of wine and the name of the vineyard. On the other hand, old world wine labels like those from France, Italy, Spain and Germany carry with them loads of classifications, harvest-types, town names, vineyard titles and producer idiosyncrasies - all in a foreign language. While these labels embody the wonderfully classic aesthetic associated with a good looking wine label, they almost always cause a cocking of the head for the average wine buyer.
Wine and Your Health
During the 1990s, a physician voiced on a national TV show that drinking red wine reduces heart disease. It made all the headlines. He cited the relatively lower levels of the disease in France despite their ever so famously high fat diets. Since that program, it seems that red wine health effects have been on the forefront of the wine consumer´s mind.
Alchoholism, A Major Diesease?
Alcoholism can be given a lot of definitions and all of them stress the fact that there is a terrible disease that involves addiction to spirits. Apart from the physical dependence on alcohol, there are other psychological, genetic and social factors that may play a role in the development of alcoholism. Many social, economic and public health problems are determined by this very serious disease.
Beer and The Commodities Market
Most branded products and agricultural products are not commodities. However we will see the future as Cargill, Petroseed, Genetseed will have patented superior seeds which grow into corn, mustard seed, wheat, and other agricultural products which will have a brand name. There will be certain types of specialty corn which can be used for biofuels and will need to be separated from the regular corn as a separate commodity. Hops and Barley work the same way.
France Car Hire
Here is a quick summary of the different French wine regions you can visit with some idea of what you'll be tasting and the airports where you can conveniently pick up a rental car.
An Introduction to Wine
What is wine?
Sauvignon Blanc Wine
Sauvignon Blanc wine is crisp, high in acidity and light- to medium-bodied, and Sauvignon Blanc wine is recognizable for its grassy, herbaceous flavor and aroma. When grown in warmer climates the flavors are more fruity, melon-like. The grape is important in California, New Zealand and Northeastern Italy, but it really shines in France's Loire Valley and Bordeaux regions.
Start Your Wine Cellar The Right Way
One of the great joys of wine is to be able to select a bottle from your own cellar, perhaps one that you've been storing for some years, draw the cork and enjoy it with friends. You can marvel at the changes brought on by maturity and, as a bonus, you can brag about the price you paid and congratulate yourself on picking up such a bargain!However, wine is an ever-changing thing and how it is stored will directly affect how quickly and how well it ages!Storing wine is very simple ?It requires a constant temperature, humidity, darkness, stillness and a well-ventilated and clean environment.
White Zinfandel Wine
White Zinfandel wine is a blush wine made in California from early-picked Zinfandel grapes. The red grapes are quickly separated from their skins during crushing and fermentation so that the resulting White Zinfandel wine is very light pink; thus White Zinfandel wines have far less color, alcohol and flavors than normally fermented Zinfandels.
Chablis Wine
Chablis is thought to have originated in northern Spain and grows well in a 'Mediterranean' climate. As a result, it is widely grown in many of the countries that border the Mediterranean Sea including France, Italy, Spain, and Algeria. Chablis is the most widely planted grape in France. It has also found a home in almost every other wine producing country around the world.
Tequila
It was once a ritual usually performed by a man. He would put some salt where the bottom of the thumb met his wrist. After licking the salt, he would take a swig of tequila from a shot glass and then bite into a piece of lime. Ladies were not too fond of this and always drank their tequila mixed into a cocktail. Tequila is listed as a spirit and distilled from the sugar sap of the blue agave plant then fermenting it and producing a liquor with a distinctive taste. Tequila was sold exclusively in Mexico until the nineteen-nineties when sipping it became trendy in the Southwestern region of the United States. The price of tequila varies from the modest to the more expensive depending upon the quality of the producer. Now with the demands of authenticity, the premium brands are truly appreciated world-wide.
Australia Is More Than Jacobs Creek
The Jacobs Creek Brand of wines have taken the world by storm. And so they should. They are excellent Australian wines which are consistently good. They have clearly won the battle for everyday wines at their particular price range.
Carignane Wine
The Carignane grape variety is one of the most widely planted grapes in the world. It's popularity stems from the high crop yeilds that it produces as well as the characteristics that it can bring to a wine. Wine made from Carignane usually has red-fruit characteristics, deep violet and purple color, strong tannin structure and high levels of alcohol content. It is sometimes peppery like Syrah. These characteristics have made it very popular as a blending agent in the vast quantities of local table wines (jug wines) that are consumed around the world. It often provides the 'backbone' of these wines and is blended with other grape varieties that bring additonal flavor characteristics.
What is Corked Wine?
Keeping a wine bottle sealed is probably the most important factor when it comes to maintaining a good wine.
Barbera Wine
Barbera is a wine grape variety from Monferrato in Piemonte, Italy. Babera produces an intense red wine with deep color, low tannins and high acid and is used in California to provide "backbone" for so-called "jug wines".