loody Red Wine Not Kosher

So you thought wine was a pure, vegetable product! Not so. Vegetarians, vegans, and followers of religious dietary laws will be distressed at news reports confirming that blood is still being used in the production of wine. Early in June French authorities seized 80,000 litres of wine and 200 kilograms of powdered ox blood that had been used, illegally, to clarify wine at 14 Rhone Valley wineries.

The European Union banned wine-related usage of bovine blood in 1997 due to the risk of transmission of mad cow disease (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) to humans, where it is manifested as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

The wines confiscated were not vin ordinaire. Twenty five per cent carried the sought-after AOC classification, the remainder rated the lesser VDQS appellation. The tainted wine will be destroyed and, presumably, the manufacturers prosecuted but it is not known how much blood-treated wine was exported between 1997 and 1999. In the history of world winemaking blood has frequently been used as a fining agent in a process that removes protein haze from newly made wines. But, according to the Australian Food Standards Code, blood is not an approved wine additive in Australia. Other animal by-products are however, permitted in Australian wines. They include egg white, milk casein, gelatine (made from boiled down cattle hooves), and isinglass (made from fish bladders). Unfortunately for purist vegetarians traces of these substances may remain in finished wine. Consumers who wish to avoid such wines should seek out the few organic winemakers who as a matter of principle shun the use of animal products altogether.

Nowadays a clay-based material known as bentonite is the preferred fining agent for most commercial winemaking. but bottle labels do not list fining agents nor is there any legal requirement to include such information.

French paradox - hit or myth?

In 1995 "60 Minutes" ran a program called The French Paradox where they investigated France's comparatively low incidence of death from heart disease and questioned how a country famous for its diet of rich foods could maintain its population in good cardiovascular health.

The "60 Minutes" expert crew alleged that this low mortality rate was due to the fact that France was a world leader in wine consumption and that wine, particularly red, counteracted the adverse effects of "bad" cholesterol. Great news for red wine drinkers: just eat like the French, drink a few glasses of red every day and Voila! avoid the risk of heart attack. Suddenly red wine was promoted as a health drink almost on a par with orange juice, sales rocketed and winemakers were delighted. It couldn't last. In the May 29 issue of the The British Medical Journal authors Law and Wald argued that the low incidence of heart disease in France could be accounted for by factors other than wine consumption. As well as citing significant underreporting by French doctors of deaths from heart disease, they offered a time lag theory of to explain the paradox.

"We propose that the difference is due to the time lag between increases in consumption of animal fat and serum cholesterol concentrations and the resulting increase in mortality from heart disease - similar to the recognised time lag between smoking and lung cancer. Consumption of animal fat and serum cholesterol concentrations increased only recently in France but did so decades ago in Britain." Their article also asserted that although there is evidence of a correlation between alcohol consumption and lower heart disease this occurs with consumption of all types of alcoholic drinks, not just wine.

Acknowledging the Law and Wald hypothesis at the European Society of Cardiology conference in Barcelona last week, Dr Michel de Lorgeril further pointed out that French men have one of the highest alcohol-related premature death rates in Europe, including death caused by cirrhosis of the liver and gastrointestinal cancer. And to put the final nail in the paradoxical coffin (so to speak) he added, "French men have a lower average life span than others in Europe."

The French paradox is apparently no more. What to do? Drink alcohol in moderation, eat less fatty foods, exercise regularly.and hope for the best.

Tastings

Raimat Merlot 1994

From Spain's north-eastern Catalonia region comes this plummy merlot. The nose has hints of spice and tobacco, the palate is full and very dry. Fruit is developed, tannins are big and assertive, the finish exhibits notes of liquorice and a slight earthiness. A wine for meat eaters, barbecued t-bone will suit. Rating: 88/100. Cellar: to 2008. Price: about $24.

Mouton Cadet Bordeaux Blanc 1997

Second label dry white - semillon, sauvignon blanc and muscadelle - from the chateau of Baron Philippe de Rothschild. Pleasing but faint perfume of warm floral ripeness touched with a hint of pear juice and almond. Dry and delicate, its flavour continues the pear theme combined with hints of fresh apples. A lighter white suitable to accompany finger food. Rating: 85/100. Cellar: to three years. Price: about $18.

© Martin Field