Iâve been around British Columbia wine country over the last couple of days, and Iâve found myself taking note of the many myths about wine that one overhears around tasting rooms and in restaurants. Today, letâs put three of these to rest.
Nope, they donât put peaches in the wine.
This one is more common than youâd think. I can understand how a novice can mistake someone waxing on about a wine being full of apples and pears as speaking literally, but those elements arenât actually in the wine. We use descriptors of other foods and such as a common way to communicate a wineâs character, but those flavour notes are simply characteristics a grape variety or, say, an influence of oak can bring. Donât worry, they didnât actually put leather in your Syrah!
Sulphite-Free Wine
Iâve actually heard people say they prefer French wines because they donât have sulphites in them. First off, thatâs untrue right out of the gates. Itâs pretty much impossible for a wine to not have at least traces of sulphites in them. When you combine your fresh-pressed grape juice with yeast, the way all wine is made, youâre going to have a trio of by-products. The first one is alcohol. Hooray! The second is carbon dioxide, which blows off into the atmosphere. The third one is sulphur dioxide, sulphites, which also blows off but there will always be a hint of it in your wine. Granted most wineries will add sulphites as well, theyâre used to maintain a wineâs stability in the bottle, but I promise you â there were already some there in the first place.
Itâs rude to spit.
When touring around wine country, those spit buckets are around tasting rooms for a reason! You may be thinking youâre only having a couple sips here and there, but they definitely add up. After a good slurp of wine to discern its flavour and character, even the pros spit. You wonât be offending the winemaker or staff, theyâd much prefer you spit than to have to be carried out of the tasting room! Nervous about your technique? Practice at your bathroom sink with water.
