Does white wine have sulfites?

by Recent Studies




Riesling label contains sulfites

Even white wine has sulfites


Unless the wine was treated with hydrogen peroxide (and thus ruined), the quick answer is yes.

All wines have sulfite in them.  In fact, white wine usually has more sulfites than red wine.  Sulfites are created naturally during the fermentation process.  After a wine has fermented it usually contains somewhere between 2 and 10 parts per million (ppm).

White wines are typically sweeter than red wines.  To stop the wine from fermenting the residual sugars, potassium metabisulfite is added to the wine to halt the fermentation.  This is why white wines typically have more sulfites than red wines

Most wines have additional sulfite added to protect the wine.  It doesn’t matter which country the wine is from, almost all wines have sulfites around 80 ppm.  Only the United States and Australia are required to note that sulfites were added.

Here's a bottle of Asti, and yes it contains sulfites

Wine is a food product, and without sulfites wine would not last long.  Organic wines without sulfite added have this problem, and do not last long on the shelves.  Sulfites act as a preservative to protect the wine from molds, oxidation, and spoiling.

There is no scientific link between sulfites and headaches, although many blame sulfites to cause red wine headaches (RWH).

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DJ Spiess

DJ Spiess

Beer buddy

I live in Denver, Colorado. This blog is everything about beer, wine, cider, mead and other spirits.
I am a avid homebrewer and winemaker. I’ve been making my own beer and wine for many years. I started making beer when I was in college (mostly because the drinking age in the United States is 21). My first few beers were horrible. The beers are much better now, and I often supply my neighborhood with free beer! It is a great hobby!