How Vegan Wine is Made

Last time we learned that wine makers use clarifying agents in the ‘fining’ process to remove small natural particles that exist in wines. These particles includes microscopic protein particles from grape skins, seeds and dead yeast. And, the most common agents used in clarify or fining a wine are gelatin (an animal protein), albumin (egg whites), casein (animal milk protein) and isinglass (fish bladder). While these agents do a very good job of clinging to particles and then being removed from the wine, they disqualify a wine from being considered vegan.

So, what does someone who is a vegan do? Well, as the market for vegan wines grows, wine makers are learning to make wines without the use of animal products.

Wine makers can choose to either leave the particles in the tank or barrel and allow them to sink naturally to the bottom (a slower, more costly, but completely natural method), or use non-animal based fining products.

Today many winemakers use clay-based fining agents such as betonite, an unusual form of clay, or carbon (activated charcoal). There is even a man-made plastic substance called poly vinyl poly pyrrolidone (PVPP) that is an effective synthetic water-soluble polymer fining agent. There are even vegetable-based gelatins, and other protein fining agents that are being derived from peas and potatoes.

So, vegans, don’t despair. There are wine makers looking out for you. Now, you need to look out for them. Check the label. If it’s vegan, they want you to know and will prominently feature it on the label. Cheers!

Ever Wonder What "Unfined" Means on a Wine Label?

I recently opened a bottle of red wine, poured myself a glass and took a first sip only be greeted by a bunch of sediment in my mouth. This was a Sangiovese that I hadn’t even thought about filtering first. But, I then noticed on the front of the bottle’s label the words “Unfinded and Unfiltered.” Ah ha! That explained the small bits in my first sip.

The process for making red wine begins with fermenting the grapes with the skins, seeds and sometimes the stems present. The skins are what gives a red wine its color. But, at some point, the skins, seeds and stems are separated from the fermented juice. Then, the wine is aged. And, just before the wine is bottled, it may go through one of several processes to remove any remaining sediment.

The processes for removing sediment from wine include racking, fining or filtering. Racking allows for the natural settling of the sediment to the bottom of the barrels. Then, the wine is pumped out of the top of the barrel leaving the ‘bottom of the barrel’ remains. Filtering can also be used to remove sediment but too much filtering can remove important particles that yield a wine’s aromas and flavors. The fining process also removes sediment from wine but it’s done by adding coagulants to the wine. These coagulants immediately bind to the sediment particles and under the force of gravity, fall to the bottom of the vessel. Fining agents can include egg whites, gelatin or a milk protein called casein. In all cases, these fining agents do not remain in the wine, do not leave any residual flavor and are removed with the sediment.

So, as you’ve guessed by now, a bottle of wine that is ‘Unfined’ or ‘Unfiltered’ is going to have sediment in it. And, once again reminds me that I need to read the label and use my own filter so that I can enjoy my first glass of wine from a bottle without sediment. Cheers!

What to Do About Sediment in Wine

Have you ever gotten to that last sip of a glass of wine only to get a mouth-full of sediment? Instead of savoring that last sip, you end up spitting it out. An unpleasant way to finish.  And that's what recently happened to me as shown in the photo. But it doesn't have to go that way.

As discussed last time, lees (dead yeast cells and bits of grape seeds and solids) are natural in the wine making process and often desirable to be left in the wine during fermenting or aging.  This process is most common in red wines. Some wine makers will then filter out these solids (fining or racking), but others prefer to leave them in the wine as it's bottled to continue to add flavor.

There are several ways to avoid getting a mouth full of these particles in your glass of wine.

The first way is try to keep the solids in the bottle and not in your glass. If the bottle has been standing still and upright for a couple of days, the solids will have naturally fallen to the bottom of the bottle. As long as you are careful to not stir them up while opening the bottle and are gently tipping the bottle while pouring, the sediment should stay in the bottom of the bottle. But why take the risk.

The most dependable way is to do your own filtering before serving. There are several inexpensive devices on the market for doing this. The best one is a combination filter/aerator funnel. You simply hold this funnel above your decanter (or any other suitable container) and pour the wine through.  It has a micro-fine filter built-in that traps all those undesirable particles while allowing all the wine to pass through. As the wine exits the funnel, it gets aerated (exposed to air) which will usually help a young red wine. You'll then find all those undesirable particles trapped in the bottom of the funnel.  Not lurking in your wine glass.

While sediment is not harmful if consumed, it does significantly detract from a nice glass of wine.  So, filter and forget! Cheers!

Is there an Egg in Your Wine?

It may sound like an odd question; an egg in wine?  Winemakers use many different products to fix flaws and flavors. But it usually difficult to know which ones have gone into your glass.

There’s no law requiring bottles to be labeled with
these ingredients, and it seems that most winemakers don't want to disclose that information.

Among the things used in wine making are animal products including isinglass which is derived from fish bladders, casein which comes from milk protein, gelatin and egg whites. So, in fact, there may have been egg in your wine before it was bottled.

Egg whites are just one of the products used in the process called 'fining' of red wines. Adding a solution of egg whites and water to the wine as it ages initiates a process that removes solid particles by binding to loose particles in the wine and causing them to settle out so that sediment can be easily removed before the wine is bottled. The fining agents are typically undetectable in the final product, with only trace amounts remaining.

The result is a stable, clear and pleasant-looking glass of wine instead of something that would otherwise be cloudy-looking.

Here's to raising a clean and clear glass of red wine. Cheers!