Almost weekly I get customers whom come through and make comments similar to this:

“We just returned from a trip to Europe and the wine was different than the wine in the U.S. No hangovers, headaches, stuffiness – we could drink considerably more wine than we can in the U.S. with absolutely no side effects! We were told by some friends that there are no sulfites added to French wine (though the U.S. makes them add them to any French wine imported into the U.S.) Is that true?”

Well, no, actually it’s not. Sulfites are a natural, organic preservative that humans have been using in wine and other foods for several thousand years. The only difference between France and the U.S. is that the U.S. requires a warning label, and warning labels create the unfortunate impression that where there’s a warning, there must be something dangerous afoot.

And in fact there is, but that danger threatens only a relative handful of individuals – sulfite-sensitive asthmatics – for whom any exposure to sulfites could trigger potentially fatal respiratory problems. But sulfite-sensitive adults already know what they must avoid – a list that includes wine, fruit juice, sausages, salad bars and many other foodstuffs that routinely use sulfiting in production.

If you get a headache or a stuffy nose after drinking wine, you may be allergic to something – very likely the histamines in some red wines, or in the case of hangovers, simple over-indulgence. But it’s not the sulfites.

So why do so many travelers (me, too!) report being able to enjoy a little harmless over-indulgence on vacation without the recriminations that would surely ensue at home? My guess, frankly, is that it’s mostly psychological. We’re traveling, we’re relaxed, we’re having a great time, and we shrug off minor irritations that would seem more bothersome on a working day. Whatever the explanation of this happy consequence, I can say one thing with certainty: It doesn’t have anything to do with sulfites in the wine. To repeat: The only difference between the wines we drink in France (or Italy, or anywhere else in Europe) and the wines we enjoy at home is the warning label.

Now to the labeling, “organic sulfite free,” terminology that requires a little explanation. Under relatively recent federal regulations governing organic labeling, a wine made with organic vineyard practices but using sulfites as a natural preservative must be labeled “Made with organically grown grapes.” To qualify for the label “organic sulfite free,” it must have no sulfites added during production; however, it may contain up to 10 parts per million naturally occurring sulfites, a small dose that occurs as a byproduct of fermentation. In short, “sulfite-free” isn’t, really, although the sulfites are at such a low level that even sensitive individuals shouldn’t be able to detect them.

-Special Thanks to R Garr for this information-

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