My year of wine: 'No sulphites' bottles are actually no damn good

19 August 2014 - 02:00 By Jackie May
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Some people swear it is the sulphur dioxide in wine - a preservative - that makes them feel dreadful in the morning.

I do not know if that is true, but, tired of hangovers, I tried a few bottles of "no added sulphites" wine this weekend.

The exercise started on Friday night with a bottle of 2013 Waverley Hills Cabernet Sauvignon. After drinking a glass or two of no-name sauvignon blanc, it reminded me of the berry juice Ribena. The next day, I felt as awful as the wine tasted. But I cannot blame Waverley Hills, it could have been the sauvignon blanc.

The next day, I opened a bottle of 2012 Jordan Merlot. No added sulphur, medium-bodied and wooded, according to the label. I was struck by a mulberry aroma. Not as awful as the previous day's bottle, it was too sweet and had no structure. Is this what a flabby wine tastes like?

Determined not to give up, I then bought an expensive bottle of 2012 Radford Dale Nudity, a "no added sulphites" Syrah.

It had more body than the previous two bottles, but still too sweet .

Is it worth bothering with these wines? Some of my friends say yes.

But for those of us, me included, who like to blame SO2 for the dreadful droogbek in the morning, it is an unfair accusation. Only about 1% of us are allergic to sulphurs. And if you are allergic to it you would know about it: You would be on a strict diet and would not be eating dried fruit or drinking fruit juice or consuming a wide range of other foods.

And even if you think it is not your friend, sulphur is a winemaker's. Since the Romans made wine, Melanie Wagner writes, sulphur dioxide has served as both an antioxidant and an antibiotic, keeping the wine fresh from barrel to bottle.

Unless you're one of the 1%, it is not the sulphur you're allergic to, but the alcohol. Drink less. Drink better. Or do not drink. Whatever. But do not blame SO2.

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