Have you ever wondered how much alcohol is in a glass of red, rose or white wine? Or have you ever checked calories in wine? We have researched that out for you.
But before you will see the answers lets check what is actually wine and how it is made.
How is the wine made?
- Harvesting grapes – If you want to produce wine you have to harvest the grapes first. Harvesting can be done mechanically or by hand. Harvesting is happening annually.
- Extracting juices – Once the grapes are harvested they are then crushed and destemmed. The skin is getting broken and the juices start to run. At this point, the fermentation starts as the sugars from the juices are getting in contact with the natural yeasts from the grape skin. Also, to keep the fermentation going the cultured yeast can be added.
- Fermentation – During fermentation, the yeasts are fed on sugars and multiplying in the must. Carbon dioxide and alcohol are produced.
- Pressing – At this step the pressure to the grapes or pomace is applied. The juices are separated from the grape skins. When producing red wines, the must is pressed after the fermentation. During white wine pr
o duction the liquid is separated from the must before the fermentation. - Filtration – The filtration is about two things – clarification and microbial stabilization. The must (or young wine) is clarified from all the particles and the microbes are stabilized. Clarification can be done naturally as well. You just need to leave the wine sit for about 1 month.
- Aging (maturation of the wine) – During this process, the wine is usually kept in French or American oak barrels for several months or years. Besides the oak barrels, the wine can be kept in stainless steel tanks as well.
- Bottling – The last stage of wine production is bottling. At this point, some sulfite can be added for more clarification and stopping the wine from the unwanted fermentation in the bottle.
So how much alcohol is in wine?
To understand that we have to take a closer look at the creation of the alcohol in the wine.
The temperature during the fermentation vary, it is 22°-25°C for red wines and 15°-18°C for white wines. It actually affects the final taste of the wine and the speed of the fermentation.
Also, the alcohol level is influenced by the number of sugars present in the must. To create a wine with 12% alcohol concentration, you will need 24% of sugars present in the must (from 1g of sugar approx. 0,5g alcohol is produced).
The sugar density is calculated with a special hydrometer called saccharometer. If the sugar level is below the desired number, additional sugar can be added.
Last but not least, to produce wine with more than 12% of alcohol concentration cultured yeasts has to be added. Some of the yeasts can produce wines with up to 18% of alcohol concentration. But to create a wine with more alcohol in it requires adding more sugar during the production.
The alcohol content in white and red wines.
White wines:
- Moscato d’asti – 5-6,5%
- German Riesling – 7-8,5%
- American, Ausralian Riesling – 10,5-12%
- Pinot Grigio – 12-13%
- Chardonnay – 13,5-14,5%
- Muscat – 15%
Red wines:
- Majority of red wines contains between 12-15% of alcohol
- Lambrusco – 11,5-12,5%
- Pinot Noir, Red Bordeaux – 13-14%
- French Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Sangiovese – 13,5-15%
- Shiraz, American Syrah – 14-15%
- Grenache – 14-15,5%
- Sherry, Port, Madeira – 17-21%
Calories in wine – how many calories are in the wine?
From the production of the wine, it is pretty clear that wine contains sugars. Thus it contains calories. But how many calories it actually has? Which type of wine contains the most of the calories? And how much calories does a 750ml bottle has?
The rosé wine contains the lowest amount of calories from the three types. One 100ml glass of rosé wine contains between 70-90 calories. A 750ml bottle of rosé wine contains between 525 and 675 calories.
A 100ml glass of white wine contains between 73-83 calories. Meaning, that a 750ml bottle of white wine contains from 547,5 up to 622,5 calories.
And what about the red wines? The red wine is actually the most calorific. A 100ml glass of red wine contains from 75 to 85 calories. So a 750ml bottle of red wine has between 562,5 and 637,5 calories.
And what about the wine and diet? Do calories in wine matter?
In case you wonder if you can be on a diet and drink wine the answer is yes. Drinking dry red wine, for example, lowers the blood sugar.
And last but not least, let’s clarify one thing. Drinking wine will not make you gaining weight. But the food you will eat once you drunk will. So remember, when you drink too much wine try to eat some low-calorie food as well. Remember calories in wine also counts to your daily calorie intake.
*Data were taken from https://winefolly.com/tutorial/alcohol-content-in-wine/ and https://winefolly.com/update/calories-in-wine/
