Wine Might Not Be Vegetarian: Fish in Wine?

Next time you open that bottle of Chardonay or Pinot Noir, you might be drinking fish. Yep, thats right, there are many wines that are made with fish. Just like beer. It's something that many in the wine world have known about for years, but it is only hitting the mainstream news outlets. People are finding out that wine is made with fish guts.

What? Fish guts you say? Yes.

The process in wine is called Fining. That is the step where the sediment from the wine is captured by something: egg protein, egg, milk casein, or fish guts. The sediment from the wine is then captured into this protein and it sinks to the bottom of the barrel. The wine can then be taken from the top. This "top" wine is clear and is much more visually desirable.

The winemakers will tell you that it is fine and healthy to drink. They will even tell you that it is not going to impart a taste. But the vigilant vegetarian or vegan will understand that they are drinking something that was processed with animal products. In some cases a fish was killed in order to make their wine. This is not something that you should be proud of.

Read more about it here. Your Wine may have fish in it.