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+--- Thread: sulfites (/thread-3198.html)
- Aton - 03-16-1999
I am looking for sulfite free wines. Does anyone know where I can find them either via the internet or in Columbus, Ohio?
- Thomas - 03-16-1999
We tackled this one not long ago.
There are no sulfite free wines. There are scant few wines to which no sulfites are added, but fermentaion of wine, cheese, yogurt and bread naturally produces sulfites, as does your body every day.
Why do you want sulfite free wines? If you think you are allergic to wine because of sulfites you are likely mistaken, and when we know your reason we will enlighten you instead of scare you with so-called facts.
- n144mann - 03-16-1999
To read the prior discussions on this subject,simply go to the box in the upper right corner of the wine and health folder and choose topics from last year instead of last 20 days. If you have more questions after doing that, feel free to ask.
[This message has been edited by n144mann (edited 03-16-99).]
- Chuck Smith - 03-21-1999
Amity Winery in Oregon produces an organic,
SULFITE-FREE wine called Eco-Wine. Check
your local wineshop to check availabilty.
Chuck Smith
- Thomas - 03-22-1999
I don't know how Amity fermented the grapes for their SULFITE-FREE wine, but I assume they mean NO SULFITES ADDED.
- Dick Peterson - 03-24-1999
I don't know why anyone would want to drink sulfite free wine. I've tasted several and without exception they were badly oxidized, usually microbial, spoiled liquids without any appeal at all. No fruit, most tasted like vegetable soup; just dead wines.
It's true that most yeasts produce greater or lesser amounts of SO2 during the fermentation. This has the effect of preserving the flavor from oxidation and from bacterial attack. But most of the commercial yeasts in use today don't produce enough to make the wine keep on its own, so winemakers have to add a few parts per million during and after the fermentation.
SO2 slowly disappears from wine because it is oxidized by air a little easier than wine flavors are. So in being oxidized itself to innocuous sulfate, SO2 preserves wine flavor by keeping the oxygen away. I, too, don't believe that anyone REALLY is allergic to ingested SO2. A very miniscule percentage of brittle asthmatics apparently are quite sensitive to INHALED SO2. But the human system is very good at metabolizing the piddling amount of dissolved SO2 (a very few ppm) that occurs in a bottle of wine.
- Thomas - 03-24-1999
Again, Dick has said what we have said before. This idea that SO2 causes allergic reactions and headaches is a lot like the Ritalin (sp) craze. It seems, as the press and the medical profession find something to hype, people quickly buy into the hype, without doing a little research on their own.
- Bucko - 03-24-1999
Ding, ding, Round Two:
Okay, time to step in and Spank Foodie for his hype comment. ;-) Sulfites can and do cause life-threatening reactions, primarily respiratory, in a very rare subset of people. Note that I say RARE. There have been documented deaths in at least three cases when people ate from sulfited salad bars. From what I can dig out of the literature, the ppm would have been many times higher than what is found in wine.
Secondly, sulfites do NOT cause headaches, as Foodie alluded to. I have researched this subject extensively. Histamines cause headaches. If people say they are allergic to sulfites and cannot drink wine because they get a headache, then they are misinformed. Taking a non-sedating antihistamine e.g. Allegra or Claritin usually prevents these symptoms in sensitive people, and does not add to CNS depression. Ask your Family doc for an Rx if you are one of these unfortunates.
BattlingBucko
- Bucko - 03-24-1999
Clarification: rereading my note makes it seem that I am saying Foodie said sulfites cause headaches - not what I meant, just the opposite. Put down the Chef's knife Foodie.....
Bucko
- n144mann - 03-24-1999
Bucko, for those who don't know you may also want to clear up the headache anti-histamine thing. Headache caused by allergy not to sulfites, but to yeasts,etc in the wine. I know you have discussed it before, but not everyone reads back postings.
[This message has been edited by n144mann (edited 03-24-99).]
- Bucko - 03-24-1999
Dang women just won't let us get away with ANYTHING! ;-) You are right, of course.
Wine has a ton of compounds in it, including histamines, especially found in red wines. Headaches, stuffy nose, runny nose, flushing, sneezing, itchy palate and teary eyes are all classic signs of histamine sensitivity.
That will be $68 - pay at the cyberscreen.....
Bucko
- Thomas - 03-24-1999
Bucko,
I put down the chef's knife, but I am holding close to me the container of arsenic I shall slowly dispense in your everyday glass, um, bottle of wine.
C'mon, do three deaths out of, what, billions of glasses of wine make for a health problem? Somebody takes an overdose of sulfites at a salad bar (the practice of adding sulfites to salad bars, I think is now illegal) the news gets it, the antis get it, the government gets it and all of a sudden we have sulfite "problem". All I am saying is people need to take responsibility for their health and find out for themselves what is and what isn't going to kill them -- and wine will not be on the kill list, sulfites notwithstanding.
- Bucko - 03-24-1999
Man, you are preaching to the choir! It makes me go crazy at all of the nonsense that takes place in this country. My favorite is the lady who sued McDonalds because see spilled coffee in her crotch! Liability insurance in this country has skyrocketed. Don't get me started.
AFA the arsenic, forget it, the wife has already beaten you to the draw...... <gasp>
- n144mann - 03-24-1999
Drat, the wife beat me to it! [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb/frown.gif[/img]
Guess I don't have to pay the $68 bucks!! [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img]
Nancy
[This message has been edited by n144mann (edited 03-25-99).]
- Aton - 03-25-1999
Foodie, Bucko et al..I don't get headaches from wine.
I have had allergic reactions from ingesting sulfites. They adversely affected my liver. In keeping with the idea that people should do research and investigate the medical world's hype of the day, I am cautiously investigating. I agree 100% that the small amounts of sulfites found in wines shouldn't trigger any problems. If there is a like type alternative that doesn't have sulfites, didn't suffer from the lacking, I would try that alternative. If "sulfite-free" wines taste dead, I'll not waste my time.
- Bucko - 03-25-1999
The ONLY connection with sulfites and liver that I have ever heard of is sulfite oxidase deficiency - a very rare genetic disorder. Something sounds funny here.
Bucko
- Aton - 03-25-1999
Perhaps you are right...Sulfa was the drug to which I had a reaction...my doctor then informed me that sulfa, sulfite, or any compound with sulfa is what I needed to avoid. Hence, my concerns about wine.
It is good news to know that I have been overly cautious and may now return to the good life!
- Bucko - 03-25-1999
Now it makes more sense. A LOT of people are sensitive to Sulfa antibiotics e.g. Bactrim and Septra. The drug can cause cholestasis, which would elevate liver enzymes. It is more prevalent in the Mediterranean nationalities, who have a higher incidence of G6PD deficiency. All of this for a miniscule amount of sulfites in wine......
Bucko
- Aton - 03-25-1999
I hear you, Bucko. Time to move on.....