As we continue our practice to becoming better vegans, it is time to face an
unfortunately reality. NOT ALL WINE IS VEGAN!
This came as a surprise to James and I as we began to look deeper into our practice. We love our vino, but we recently found out that our wine of choice, Turning Leaf Cabernet is not vegan. So very sad.
I decided to go on a quest to find an inexpensive, good tasting vegan wine. Much research will need to be done. But for the good of our practice, animals and our readers, we are up to the task.
First, lets talk about why wine is NOT vegan. If you want to be technical, the wine you wind up drinking has no animal product in it, but it is the process that we will look at.
The majority of people are unaware that wine, although made from grapes, may have been made using animal-derived products.
Whether or not a wine is vegan or vegetarian friendly does not have to appear on the wine label, as there are no laws in place mandating what is written on the labels.
According to PETA, during the winemaking process, the liquid is filtered through substances called “fining agents.” This process is used to remove protein, yeast, cloudiness, “off” flavors and colorings, and other organic particles.
Animals included in the winemaking process:
Popular animal-derived fining agents used in the production of wine include:
Blood and bone marrow, casein (milk protein)
Chitin (fiber from crustacean shells)
Egg albumen (derived from egg whites)
Fish oil, gelatin (protein from boiling animal parts)
Isinglass (gelatin from fish bladder membranes).
Eater.com adds,” fining agents have typically been derived from albumen from egg whites, milk protein called casein, fish oil and bladders, chitin from crustacean shells, and even gelatin — a protein obtained by boiling the skin, bones and tissues of cows, pigs, or chickens.”
Thankfully, there are several common fining agents that are animal-friendly and used to
make vegan wine. Carbon, bentonite clay, limestone, kaolin clay, plant casein, silica gel, and vegetable plaques are all suitable alternatives. You can check your local organic or health food stores, local organic winemakers, and co-op’s, and most regular wine/liquor stores will order vegan wines upon request.
To ensure that your wine is vegan, here is a list of wines we found:
Some popular vegan-friendly wines:
Charles Shaw (red wines only)
Frey Vineyards
Red Truck Wines
Yellowtail (red wines only; not white or rosé)
Sutter Home
Girasole Vineyards
Newman’s Own- Chardonnay and Cabernet- % GOES TO CHARITY!!
Bogle
FatCat
Our Daily Bread
We will be performing TASTE TESTING research on these wines in the near future, so stay tuned.
Also you can always go to : http://www.barnivore.com/wine This site will also guide you through other vegan alcohols, just pop in a name and find out if your choice is vegan.
If you prefer beer, here is a list for you to make sure that your beer is vegan.
Please consider adding your favorites to this list. Visit us at the bit.ly/practicingvegan, click on the Your Ideas link and add your choices. Or comment below!
Thanks for reading and have a blessed day.
CHEERS!
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