../articles/veg drinking
evil spirits, or just something fishy?
It is so sad to think about it; like an old friend double-crossing you. How can it be? --how can there be milk in my beer, fish in my wine, meat in my rum?
Brewmasters, winemakers, and distillers may include animal ingredients in their products directly, or they may use them in the processing and filtration.
For example: fish meat is in most wine!
While making beer, wine, and spirits; dairy, honey, and other animal products (including, in one case, a whole chicken dropped in the tank) could be ingredients in the final recipe.
When clarifying the drinks prior to bottling, companies can use things like isinglass, gelatin, egg whites, and sea shells, among other things. These products grab onto the impurities and make it easier to catch them in the filters. Sometimes other products such as dairy and honey are used for flavor and texture.
- Albumin - made from eggs or dried blood
- Casein / caseinate - from milk
- Charcoal - may be made from bone
- Colorings - sometimes from insects
- Glyceryl monostearate - an anti-foaming agent and sometimes an animal derivative
- Isinglass - made from the swim bladders of fish
- Lactose - milk sugar
- Gelatin - derived from bones, skins and tendons
- Pepsin - a heading agent that is sometimes made from pork
While there are many animal-free alternatives, the aforementioned have become standard practice, and often use animal products firmly out of tradition. Determining which varieties are vegan-friendly can be a nuisance, since alcohol companies are not required to label bottles with fining information, or or list certain ingredients.
In the U.S., for instance, the only disclosures required on alcoholic beverages is the use of FD&C yellow no. 5, saccharin, sulfites, or aspartame. There are also regulations regarding the use of the term "low carbohydrate." Nations in the European Union see requirements to identify potentially allergenic substances, but not much more.
Generally speaking, animal products aren't widely used for brewing beer in the U.S. Many traditionally brewed British or British-style beers, however, do use animal products, most notably isinglass for clarifying.
In Canada, nutrition fact labeling is not required for products containing more than 0.5% alcohol by volume, unless a claim is made regarding nutritional or energy benefits.
Australia has recently added new requirements for listing potential allergens. Among the substances that must be disclosed are additives or processing aids containing eggs or egg products, casein, milk or milk products, fish or fish products, and nuts.
German beers by law must comply with the Reinheitsgebot established in the 16th century. It actually forbids the use of any ingredients other than water, grain, hops, and yeast. Belgian beers are generally made in much the same way as German beers.
Therefore, when researching the "veganosity" of these products, one must often call or email the company and wait for a response. Barnivore.com, for example, has pre-made letters you can copy -already translated into english, spanish, and french! Some may even produce the same beverage in both ways, for example, a beer on-tap may be vegan, but it's bottled counterpart may not.
Just a few to get you started:
BEERS:
Schlafly Beers = VEGAN
Anheuser Busch = VEGAN
Boulevard Beers = VEGAN
Miller Beers = VEGAN
Samuel Smiths = VEGAN
Guiness = NOT VEGAN
Becks = VEGAN
Heineken = VEGAN
Newcastle = NOT VEGAN
Bass = NOT VEGAN
Chimay = VEGAN
St. Peters = NOT VEGAN
Samual Adams = VEGAN
Samuel Adams Cask Conditioned = NOT VEGAN
WINES:
Carmel Winery = VEGAN+כשר
Stone Hill Winery = NOT VEGAN
Mondavi = NOT VEGAN
Black Opal = NOT VEGAN
Rosemount = NOT VEGAN
Fetzer White Wines = VEGAN
Fetzer Red Wines = NOT VEGAN
Ernest & Julio Gallo = NOT VEGAN
Franzia = NOT VEGAN
Hip Chicks = VEGAN
Bella Vineyards = NOT VEGAN
Carlo Rossi = NOT VEGAN
Arbor Mist = NOT VEGAN
Blue Nun = NOT VEGAN
Red Truck = VEGAN
White Truck = VEGAN
Pink Truck = VEGAN
SPIRITS:
Absolut Vodka = VEGAN
Bacardi = VEGAN
Smirnoff = VEGAN
Captain Morgan Rum = VEGAN
Baileys Irish Cream = NOT VEGAN
Jagermeister = VEGAN
Jack Daniels = VEGAN
Jim Beam = VEGAN
Sake One = NOT VEGAN
Goldschlager = VEGAN
Gekkeikan Sake = NOT VEGAN
the following three sites contain extensive lists of beers, wines, and spirits.
barnivore.com
veggiewines.co.uk
enchant.me.uk
For more info :
wikipedia:isinglass
wikipedia:clarification
wikipedia:vegetarianism and beer
