A key point in natural wine is to avoid adding stuff to the wine during the process of making it. Many winemakers told me that they did not add anything to their wine. In other words, if they had an ingredients label, it would just say grapes (with no or very little sulfites). But this is by far the exception in the wine industry, as most winemakers tinker with their grape juice at different stages in the process. So what is that stuff? Those additives?
I looked it up at the US Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, and I found two relevant lists:
- Materials authorized for the treatment of wine and juice (62 items).
- Materials authorized for the treatment of distilling material (11 items).
A copy of each of those very long lists (valid on April 1 2010) are below.
Sec. 24.246 Materials authorized for the treatment of wine and juice.
| Materials | Use |
| Acacia (gum arabic) | To clarify and to stabilize wine. |
| Acetaldehyde | For color stabilization of juice prior to concentration. |
| Activated carbon | – To assist precipitation during fermentation. – To clarify and to purify wine. – To remove color in wine and/or |
| Albumen (egg white) | Fining agent for wine. |
| Alumino-silicates (hydrated) e.g.,
Bentonite (Wyoming clay) and Kaolin: |
To clarify and to stabilize wine or juice. |
| Ammonium phosphate
(mono- and di basic): |
Yeast nutrient in wine production and to start secondary fermentation in the production of sparkling wines. |
| Ascorbic acid iso-ascorbic
acid (erythorbic acid): |
To prevent oxidation of color and flavor components of juice and wine. |
| Calcium carbonate (with or without calcium salts of tartaric an malic acids): |
– To reduce the excess natural acids in high acid wine, and in juice prior to or during fermentation. – A fining agent for cold |
| Calcium pantothenate: | Yeast nutrient to facilitate fermentation of apple wine. |
| Calcium sulfate (gypsum): | To lower pH in sherry wine. |
| Carbon dioxide (including food grade dry ice): |
To stabilize and to preserve wine. |
| Casein, potassium salt of casein: | To clarify wine. |
| Citric acid: | – To correct natural acid deficiencies in wine. – To stabilize wine other than |
| Copper sulfate: | To remove hydrogen sulfide and/or mercaptans from wine. |
| Defoaming agents (polyoxyethylene 40 monostearate, silicon dioxide, dimethylpoly-siloxane, sorbitan monostearate, glyceryl mono-oleate and glyceryl dioleate): |
To control foaming, fermentation adjunct. |
| Dimethyl dicarbonate | To sterilize and to stabilize wine, dealcoholized wine, and low alcohol wine. |
| Enzymatic activity: | |
| Carbohydrase (alpha-Amylase): | To convert starches to fermentable carbohydrates. |
| Carbohydrase (beta-Amylase): | To convert starches to fermentable carbohydrates. |
| Carbohydrase (Glucoamylase, Amylogluco-sidase): |
To convert starches to fermentable carbohydrates. |
| Carbohydrase (pectinase, cellulase, hemicellulase): |
To facilitate separation of juice from the fruit. |
| Catalase: | To clarify and to stabilize wine. |
| Cellulase: | To clarify and to stabilize wine and to facilitate separation of the juice from the fruit. |
| Cellulase (beta-glucanase): | To clarify and filter wine. |
| Glucose oxidase: | To clarify and to stabilize wine. |
| Lysozyme: | To stabilize wines from malolactic acid bacterial degradation. |
| Pectinase: | To clarify and to stabilize wine and to facilitate separation of juice from the fruit. |
| Protease (general): | To reduce or to remove heat labile proteins. |
| Protease (Bromelin): | To reduce or to remove heat labile proteins. |
| Protease (Ficin): | To reduce or to remove heat labile proteins. |
| Protease (Papain): | To reduce or to remove heat labile proteins. |
| Protease (Pepsin): | To reduce or to remove heat labile proteins. |
| Protease (Trypsin): | To reduce or to remove heat labile proteins. |
| Urease: | To reduce levels of naturally occurring urea in wine to help prevent the formation of ethyl carbamate. |
| Ethyl maltol: | To stabilize wine. |
| Ferrocyanide compounds (sequestered complexes): |
To remove trace metal from wine and to remove objectionable levels of sulfide and mercaptans from wine. |
| Ferrous sulfate: | To clarify and to stabilize wine. |
| Fumaric acid: | – To correct natural acid deficiencies in grape wine. – To stabilize wine. |
| Gelatin (food grade): | To clarify juice or wine. |
| Granular cork: | To smooth wine. |
| Isinglass: | To clarify wine. |
| Lactic acid: | To correct natural acid deficiencies in grape wine. |
| Malic acid: | To correct natural acid deficiencies in juice or wine. |
| Malo-lactic bacteria: | To stabilize grape wine. |
| Maltol: | To stabilize wine. |
| Milk products (pasteurized whole, skim, or half-and-half): |
– Fining agent for grape wine or sherry. – To remove off flavors in wine. |
| Nitrogen gas: | To maintain pressure during filtering and bottling or canning of wine and to prevent oxidation of wine. |
| Oak chips or particles, uncharred and untreated: |
To smooth wine. |
| Oxygen and compressed air: | May be used in juice and wine. |
| Polyvinyl-polypyr-rolidone (PVPP): | To clarify and to stabilize wine and to remove color from red or black wine or juice. |
| Potassium bitartrate: | To stabilize grape wine. |
| Potassium carbonate and/or potassium bicarbonate |
To reduce excess natural acidity in wine, and in juice prior to or during fermentation. |
| Potassium citrate: | pH control agent and sequestrant in treatment of citrus wines. |
| Potassium meta-bisulfite: | To sterilize and to preserve wine. |
| Silica gel (colloidal silicon dioxide): |
To clarify wine or juice. |
| Sorbic acid and potassium salt of sorbic acid: |
To sterilize and to preserve wine; to inhibit mold growth and secondary fermentation. |
| Soy flour (defatted): | Yeast nutrient to facilitate fermentation of wine. |
| Sulfur dioxide: | To sterilize and to preserve wine. |
| Tannin: | – To adjust tannin content in apple juice or in apple wine. – To clarify or to adjust tannin |
| Tartaric acid: | To correct natural acid deficiencies in grape juice/ wine and to reduce the pH of grape juice/wine where ameliorating material is used in the production of grape wine. |
| Thiamine hydrochloride: | Yeast nutrient to facilitate fermentation of wine. |
| Yeast, autolyzed: | Yeast nutrient to facilitate fermentation in the production of grape or fruit wine. |
| Yeast, cell wall/membranes of autolyzed yeast: |
To facilitate fermentation of juice/wine. |
Sec. 24.247 Materials authorized for the treatment of distilling material.
| Materials | Use |
| Ammonium phosphate (mono- and di basic) | Yeast nutrient in distilling material. |
| Benzoic acid, potassium and sodium salts of benzoic acid | To prevent fermentation of the sugar in wine being accumulated as distilling material. |
| Enzyme activity: | |
| Carbohydrase (alpha- Amylase) | To convert starches to fermentable carbohydrates. |
| Carbohydrase (beta- Amylase) | To convent starches to fermentable carbohydrates. |
| Carbohydrase (Glucoamylase, Amylogluco-sidase) |
To convent starches to fermentable carbohydrates. |
| Copper sulfate | To eliminate hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans. |
| Hydrogen peroxide | To reduce the bisulfite aldehyde complex in distilling material. |
| Potassium permanganate | Oxidizing agent. |
| Sodium hydroxide | Acid neutralizing agent. |
| Sulfuric acid | To effect favorable yeast development in distilling material; to prevent fermentation of the sugar in wine being accumulated as distilling material; to lower pH to 2.5 in order to prevent putrefaction and/or ethyl acetate development. |
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