Vegan Wine: What Is It? How To Find It?
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We’ve covered this topic before, but it comes up often enough that it’s worth discussing again:
vegan wine.
Wine makers often use animal products during production to “fine” the wine to remove bad flavors or unsightly elements.
The fining agent acts as a magnet and collects the unwanted matter in the wines.
Some non-vegan fining agents are:
- - blood,
- - egg whites,
- - egg albumin,
- - casein (milk protein),
- - gelatin (derived from bones),
- - isinglass (derived from fish),
- - chitin/chitosan (derived from the shells of crabs or lobsters).
Vegan wines either don’t use fining agents at all (like Red Truck wines) or they use vegan fining agents.
Some vegan fining agents are:
- + bentonite clay,
- + diatomaceous earth,
- + carbon,
- + kaolin.
How to find vegan wines:
- Look for the word “vegan” on the wine bottle,
- Look for the word “unfiltered” on the wine bottle,
- Browse the Barnivore wine section,
- Check out the Vegans From Mars wine guide,
- Search the Organic Wine Company listing for “vegan,”
- Call or email the wine company and ask.
Frey’s organic wines are all vegan ( http://www.freywine.com/vegan-wine.html ). They’re the only mainstream wine I’ve been able to somewhat regularly find at everyday liquor stores. Other mainstream, supposedly vegan wines seem to have lots of sketchy information about specific vintages that makes me nervous.
Otherwise, we found one particular liquor store that actually has a vegan section (!) with numerous explicitly vegan options. (It’s at Broadway and Table Mesa in Boulder, CO if anyone’s nearby.)
I don’t think Frey’s wines are available in Canada, at least not here in Quebec, unless someone informs me otherwise. If anyone can recommend good vegan wines that are also available in Canada, it would be approciated. Thank you.
We own a small winery in the North Okanagan of British Columbia that produces wine with no contact with animal products. It’s currently named Hunting Hawk Vineyards but that will change to Edge of the Earth Vineyards by Oct. 15, 2009.
Animal products are not really necessary in the production of good wine. This is an easy thing for us to do and if it helps vegans and vegetarians enjoy our products we hope they’ll look us up.
Russ and Marni Niles
soon Edge of the Earth Vineyards
Spallumcheen, B.C.
russniles@telus.net
250-546-2164
For U.S. residents, if you want upscale vegan, so to speak, try a tiny little family-owned winery in Anderson Valley, CA: Foursight Wines. Great Pinots, Sauvignon Blancs and Semillon all from their vineyard and they are 100% vegan for all the wines. They’re too small to distribute widely but you can order online and have it shipped: http://www.foursightwines.com.