PEAKLIFE

With the vegan lifestyle taking over the world, who knew even wines could be vegan? Surprised much? Here’s what you need to know about this French staple going cruelty-free by Sujata Patil, Wine Business Head, Monika Enterprises.

The rise in the number of people turning vegan is growing at an exponential rate. Turning vegan is a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose. These lifestyle changes have led to massive changes in the food and clothing industries to accommodate this new liege of eco-warriors. Vegan leather, vegan milk, vegan textiles are often spotted on brand labels, and the newest entrant to the vegan label is vegan wines! Yes, you read that right, wines are now vegan!

Wine is simply understood as fermented grape juice, how is it NOT already a vegan product?

While wine is technically vegan already, the wine making process often involves the usage of egg whites, which makes the end product non suitable for vegan consumption. Now, to understand what eggs do or how they are used in the wine-making process, it is pertinent to understand that eggs have several different functions in different kinds of recipes.

In the wine-making process, it is used as a coagulant. The egg whites are used only to attract all the residual products like pulp, proteins, tannins, grape skin, etc. After this process is completed, the egg whites collect at the bottom and are completely removed from the wine. This is the process of clarification that yields us the ‘clear wines’ that are majorly sold in the market.

The vegan filtration alternative for the egg-whites is bentonite or kieselguhr. It is an absorbent clay that attracts the protein and other particles and helps in the clarification process of the wine – allowing vegans to consume the clear wine absolutely guilt-free!

INTRODUCING VEGAN WINES IN INDIA

With the surge of vegans in India, many importers and delegates have developed an interest in the product. Monika Enterprises, a leading importer and distributor take pride in holding a delectable range of vegan wines like El Goru, Goru el Blanco and Fuerza.

Some of their premium selections include the classic French range of Terroir Daronton Cote du Rhone, Terroir Daronton Vacqueyras, Terroir Daronton Chateauneuf du Pape. They also carry an exclusive range of Australian wines like Outback Jack, Outback Jack Shiraz Cabernet, Outback Jack Shiraz, and Outback Jack Cabernet Merlot as well as Metal Label Durif and Metal Label Black Shiraz.

Disclaimer: The article is authored by Sujata Patil, Wine Business Head of Monika Enterprises. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author’s and do not represent those of PEAKLIFE.