Is Wine Gluten Free?
Posted by Mike in MiscAug 8th, 2009 | 15 responses
I’ve heard: “Unbleached flour paste is used to assure a leak-proof seal on the heads.”
Wine is one of those things celiacs have always assumed to be gluten free… BUT is it really?
First, I have NEVER heard, even from the most sensitive people, that wine has ever bothered(gluten style) anyone.
Here are two links to descriptions on how wine barrels are made. You will notice they use a flour paste to create a leak-proof seal:
- http://www.stavin.com/barrelsystems/insert.htm
- http://www.mastergardenproducts.com/howbarrelsmade.htm
On the contrary….
“I’m a winemaker who’s married to a wonderful women who has Celiac. So i know first hand the concerns Celiacs have about food and beverages. I know from my background that if gluten was to get into wine that it is very unlikely from barrels. All high grade barrels are split and are never sealed with any paste, just metal rings and hammers. But I was uncertain of gluten in fermentation products, filter pads, composite corks and fining agents. so out of curiosity I had two of my wines, one with cork the other screw cap, both tested for Gluten and they both came back with no detectable amounts of gluten or less than 1ppm. We understand, here at Willowbrook Cellars, that there are still many concerns when it comes to gluten and wine and that is why we decided to get these wines tested.” -Joe Otos from Willowbrook Cellars
My Conclusion: GLUTEN FREE
I’m going to stick with the overall consensus that wine IS gluten free. I’d like to hear form more manufacturers. I’ve never heard of anyone getting “gluten” sick from wine. The barrels are traditionally used over and over again for many decades. Plus, the paste(if used at all) is only used on the top seal of the barrel and would contaminate on such a low level, if at all. I have also heard that only some barrel manufacturers have this practice.
I’m not going to spend a nice day at a winery, an evening with friends, or a night with a cigar worrying about a few parts per million POSSIBLY contaminating my glass of wine.
15 Responses to “Is Wine Gluten Free?”
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Interesting post and thanks for sharing! Over the years, I get an occasional glutening seemingly related to wine. I have always assumed it was a yeast issue, meaning that the starter for the yeast used for fermentation was grain based. This may present another option.
For me, it’s rare and hard to pin down, so it’s not like I have stopped drinking wine
i have kept hearing this rumor and no wine makers say they use this supposed paste (the rumor is also with there being a lining in the barrels)
also logically i dont see how flour paste would even seal since it is against a liquid and wouldnt the liquid thin it out?
also the wood should seal from the wine expanding it, but if there is said paste from how it is described i think there is minimal to no contact with it at all. i cant help but think it is a rare thing to do since the whiskey barrels are not sealed with anything other than craftsmanship
i just dont buy it, now spirits made from the grains sure i wont drink those but that is a huge difference
-matt
I’m a winemaker who’s married to a wonderful women who has Celiac. So i know first hand the concerns Celiacs have about food and beverages. I kow from my background that if gluten was to get into wine that it is very unlikely from barrels. All high grade barrels are split and are never sealed with any paste, just metal rings and hammers. But I was uncertain of gluten in fermentation products, filter pads, composite corks and fining agents. so out of curiosity I had two of my wines, one with cork the other screw cap, both tested for Gluten and they both came back with no detectable amounts of gluten or less than 1ppm. We understand, here at Willowbrook Cellars, that there are still many concerns when it comes to gluten and wine and that is why we decided to get these wines tested.
All Kendall-Jackson wines are gluten-free. All barrels used for fermentation or aging are gluten-free.
Wine is gluten free. Such a mention on the label of a bottle of wine is just another marketing trick… Thank you Joe Otos for clearing up that doubt!
Cheers!
Christine
I did question this as a kit that my husband purchased to make wine stated on the package it was gluten free. But, how come, non of the other kits had this and the wine did not affect me? I do believe the “marketing trick” comment. I was very curious and found these statements very helpful. Will definitely continue drinking my wine.
Cheers.
Berta
while it is partly a marketing trick it also (when done honestly) makes it much easier for us to find foods. granted benifiber puts gluten free on their package yet on their site says that celiacs and gluten intolerant people probably shouldnt use it still… right
-matt
I know some of these post are quite old, but I’m going to put this on here anyway. I’ve been doing a bit of research and found taht some wine company’s add barley malt afterwards to enhance the flavour of wines. Also in some cases such as with cider barley enzymes are added to speed up the fermentation process, Although in many cases the gluten will content will be below the 0.02% codex standard some people still react, the same as some people react to rum and whiskey for the same reason. The only problem is that if its under 0.02% they can state that its gluten free. Hopefully when the new guidelines come in 2012, us more sensitive types will have a clearer choice.
Hope this isn’t too waffly and helps. Please bear in mind that some Coeliacs can tolerate the codex standard in food.
@Kat
Great information! Do you have a source on that? I have not been able to find one. Hopefully we can get some wine manufacturers to chime in about that. Good point that “gluten free” does not always mean 100% GF. Where do you live, outside the USA?
Confused im on a strict gluten free diet can ceoliacs drink wine or not? Yes r no. all this maybe stuff is just a waste of time. either we can or we cant!!
J, the general consensus is it is fine. if you are really worried about it contact the maker of what ever wine you buy to check to be sure.
of course though there is always the other view and some mis information out there, just like with distilled spirits and white vinegar
-matt
kat as to your statement about Barley malt, that is not only false but very illegal in the U.S. The BATF regulates what is approved for use in wine. If a winery wanted color or sweetness why would they use Malt when they are surrounded by grape juice and grape coloring agents. What ever source you found that on does not seem to have their facts right. As to Barley Enzymes, yes enzymes are used but are isolated from their source. Wineries would not want to add any other flavoring agents other than grapes and oak. I’ve tested roughly 20 different wines I’ve made. i chose ones that had different products, enzymes, yeast, nutrients, fining agents and types of corks inn them and they all came back with no traceable amount of gluten. I take this subject very seriously due to my wife being a Celiac and ultra sensitive to the slightest amount of cross contamination. So it something that I look at the products out there and do my due diligence. And as of today I haven’t found a product that has gluten, but feel free to ask to the suppliers of these wine products. Scott Labs in Pataluma and Vinquiry in Windsor CA carry most of what’s out there.
@ Joe
Thank you so much for clearing this up!
Can you post a link to where we can get some of your wine? I’d like to try some. Are you on Winelibrary?
WINE IS GLUTEN FREE
My two main brands are Owl Ridge and Willowbrook. I don’t believe they are the wine library, but I know they are Angelbecks in Montclair NJ. Good luck with your search and if I come across anything about gluten in wine or any product used in the wine industry I’ll make sure to post it.
Hello, all.
The possibility of gluten contamination in wines is a tricky one, for sure, and I would love to believe that all wines are gluten free. The problem I have with believing that is based on a couple things, both of which are purely logical objections: One, just because something is “standard across the industry” doesn’t mean it is going to always be true or that just because Joe Otos tested a couple wines (bless you for doing that) doesn’t mean that all the other wines out there are also gluten free.
It’s also true that some celiacs get sick from trace amounts of gluten that are considered safe by current standards.
The second main objection I have is the idea that “since I’ve never heard of anyone getting sick from wine, the idea lacks credibility.” Another flaw in logic. I personally have talked to at least a dozen celiacs, myself among them, who have been very ill after drinking wine. At first I assumed it was the tannins or sulfite content, but I had been drinking wine for years and only some wines made me feel ill. The results didn’t necessarily seem related to the tanning or sulfite content, however. I have been incredibly ill from drinking less than a teaspoon of wine in the exact same way as from ingesting small amounts of gluten. So far, the only other things that have made me that sick were gluten, annatto, and Sauza tequila (and I’m still not sure what it is in the Sauza to make me ill, as I’m fine with Jose Cuervo).
I’m not going to jump to the conclusion that those wines necessarily contained gluten, but neither am I ready to rule it out. So far, the arguments against wine containing gluten aren’t strong enough to make it worth my getting sick. And it’s not at all unusual for people with celiac disease to be sensitive to other things, such as annatto and MSG. If all winemakers would be as conscientious about what’s in their wines as Joe, I’d feel better about trying it again. For now, the risk of a reaction isn’t worth it.