Most Wines Aren't Vegan & It's Causing You Hangovers
Most wines aren’t vegan? How is it causing me hangovers? Well, allow me to elaborate… My Mom suffers from a few auto-immune disorders and food allergies. One of the allergens she suffers from the most is egg. I had no idea how many things contained egg until she developed this allergy. To give a few examples, we went to PF Changs once, and they had to custom make her a dish because not one single dish didn’t have eggs in the sauce, breading, etc. She’s accidentally eaten mayo, glazed bread (most breads don’t have eggs except for the glaze), and custard like things.
When she accidentally consumes even a tiny particle of egg, she’ll wake up completely swollen the next day and it usually takes her 12-15 days to fully recover.
One thing that my Mom and I both enjoy is a good glass of wine, as many women do. I’ve noticed over time that my ability to handle more than a couple glasses of wine usually results in a more sluggish next morning… More than three large glasses, and it's a sluggish next full day.
For a couple years, my Mom would speculate that different foods must’ve been contaminated with egg because she kept having reactions. Although I do agree that not all restaurants are as cautious as they should be, I was even having a hard time with understanding the frequency of the contaminations happening. We were being visited by the chef sometimes, and she was still having reactions.
One day, my Mom was at a winery and she tells the person serving the wine tasting about her general food allergies, and they ask if she’s allergic to eggs, fish, or shellfish. She immediately says “eggs, why?” The server proceeds to tell her about wine fining with egg whites, fish guts or shellfish. Apparently, a good portion of wine producers add one of these to their wine making process to enhance the taste of the wine… and how “most wines aren’t vegan!”
The amount of wine producers doing this is so prominent, that I would guess it’s anywhere from 20% to over 50% depending on the region of the world. I don’t know the actual data, but it’s very hard to get any winemaker that’s not vegan to outwardly say what ingredient they fine their wine with. Legally, they aren’t required to by the FDA or any other food quality administration that I’m aware of. So, this is how most wines aren’t vegan and they get away with it. You can read more about wine clarification and stabilization here.
I’ve developed a mild shellfish allergy in the last few years, and I’ve started to notice that some wines that I know aren’t vegan do cause worse hangovers for me. I do eat less meat than the average American, but I’m not Vegan. I don’t agree with it being legal to lead with having animal products in something that people generally think is only fermented fruit. I think that’s unethical.
I know wine making is often a tradition passed down from families, especially old world wines, but we now live in a modern world. I’m not saying we need to have anyone change their practices if they’re rooted in history and the foundations of the winery. I just think we need to have something on the label that states what’s actually in what we’re drinking, so we can be educated consumers. Food allergies can be very harsh on the body and not knowing that wines aren’t vegan has been hard for some.
I think there’s this assumption that wine is just alcohol, and alcohol is a frivolous consumption and therefore shouldn’t be treated like food. In good times or bad, people have always drank wine. It’s a part of the experience of a good meal. Wine needs to be treated with the thought and care in labeling that our food gets. We should all know that most wines aren’t vegan!
If you’re getting hangovers that are more intense than you think they should be. If some wines bother you more than others. If you have food allergies. If you’re a vegan…. Just know that a lot of the wines you’re drinking have shellfish, fish, and egg products in them. Call your wineries and ask “do you fine your wines?” and “what do you fine your wines with?” Also contact the FDA to request they make wines add fining products to their labels. Mostly, spread the word and tell your friends that most wines aren’t vegan so people are in the know.
