Wine additives such as extracts of dried fish bladders and animal pancreases should be listed on bottle labels to discourage their use, according to France’s first female Master of Wine, reports The Telegraph.
Isabelle Legeron said few wine drinkers realise what goes into their favourite vintage, even if they are aware of the use of preservatives such as sulphites, which are shown on labels. She called for all ingredients to be listed.
Many wine buffs, she said, are “really careful in what they consume, and yet they don’t know the bottle they are about to pop open for their birthday is made with a fish derivative, known as fish leather. It’s routinely used in white and sparkling wines. It’s a binding agent.”
“People today pay a lot of attention to what they eat so why not to what they drink?” she asked. “We’re still in the dark ages when it comes to the wine industry.”
Ms Legeron, 45, launched “Raw Wine”, a “natural” wine fair to showcase wines with fewer additives. She has held shows in London, Berlin and New York.
“If you taste wine with professionals, even the professional may not know how the wine is made,” she told Forbes magazine.
One of 369 international experts holding the highly regarded Masters of Wine certification, she wields influence in the industry and has hosted a TV show, “That Crazy French Woman”.