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Most Bottles Of Wine Contain More Alcohol Than Label States, Study Suggests

Most Bottles Of Wine Contain More Alcohol Than Label States, Study Suggests

 

The Huffington Post UK

By Natasha Hinde

December 31, 2015

Wine-lovers could have drunk more than they bargained for over the holiday season, as a new study has lifted the lid on the accuracy of wine labels.

And guess what? A lot of wines are actually more alcoholic than their labels let on.

A study of over 100,000 bottles of wine by researchers at the University of California, Davis found that 60% of bottles had more alcohol content than stated on the label.

This might seem like you’re getting more bang for your buck, however researchers say it is particularly dangerous as it can put drinkers over the driving limit and could affect their health in the long-run.

Researchers studied 127,406 samples of wine from across the world, including 80,421 types of red wine and 46,985 types of white wine.

They found that the alcohol content of 60% of the bottles was, on average, 0.42% higher than what was stated on the label.

The study, which was published in the Journal of Wine Economics, said: “Errors of this magnitude could lead consumers to underestimate the amount of alcohol they have consumed in ways that could have some consequences for their health and driving safety.”

It also suggested that in some cases, these discrepancies could be much larger.

Spanish and Chilean wines were the worst offenders for being more alcoholic than their label stated.

Researchers said wine manufacturers are aware of the inaccuracy but said they alter the alcohol percentage to meet customers’ expectations of how strong a bottle of alcohol should be, the Telegraph reported.