What’s Really in Your Wine?

All wine is NOT created equal.

The difference between a beautifully crafted,
high-quality wine and a mass-produced, cheap wine isn’t just about taste—it’s
about what goes into every stage of production. If you care about your health
and what you drink, it’s time to understand how amazing wine is made compared
to the chemical-laden bottles filling supermarket shelves.

Vineyard
Practices: Nature vs. Chemicals

High-Quality
Wine:

✅ Grown in nutrient-rich, healthy soil
using sustainable or organic practices

✅ Low-intervention farming—no synthetic
pesticides or herbicides

✅ Hand-harvested or carefully machine picked grapes at peak ripeness.

Cheap
Wine:

❌ Grapes grown with heavy chemical sprays,
herbicides, and artificial fertilizers

❌ Agressive high speed Machine-harvested—leading to leaves,
stems, and even pests ending up in the mix

❌ Mass production prioritizes yield over
quality, resulting in diluted flavors

Why
does this matter? Grapes treated with chemicals absorb these toxins, which can
carry over into the wine you drink.

The Art vs. The Shortcut

High-Quality
Wine:

✅ Natural fermentation using native
yeasts or expertly selected —allowing for authentic expression of the grape and terroir

✅ Longer fermentation times for better
complexity and structure

✅ No added artificial flavors or sweeteners

Cheap
Wine:

❌ Industrial yeasts selected for fast,
uniform fermentation

❌ Sugar, fining agents, sulphates and other
additives to force consistency

❌ High-speed production strips wine of its
natural character

This is why mass-produced wines often taste the same—they’re engineered, not crafted.

Additives & Preservatives:

The Dirty Secret of Cheap Wine

Here’s where things get really concerning. Cheap wines are loaded with additives that
winemakers don’t have to disclose on the label.

High-Quality
Wine:

✅ Minimal sulfites (only what’s necessary
for stability)

✅ No artificial coloring, sweeteners, or
flavor enhancing agents

✅ Naturally balanced acidity from proper
winemaking techniques

Cheap

Wine:

❌ High sulfite levels to preserve
poor-quality grapes

❌ Mega Purple—a synthetic coloring agent used to make wine look richer

❌ Added sugar, acids, and even oak chips to
mimic natural aging

If you’ve ever had a headache or felt sluggish after drinking cheap wine, it’s
likely because of these hidden chemicals.

Aging & Bottling: Patience vs. Profit-Driven Production

High-Quality
Wine:

✅ Aged in real quality oak barrels

✅ Bottled with minimal intervention to
preserve purity and freshness

✅ No artificial processes to speed up aging

Cheap Wine:

❌ Artificial oak flavoring from wood chips
and chemical extracts

❌ Stabilized with excessive filtration, fining and stabilising agents stripping natural flavors and aromas

❌ Mass-bottled for fast turnover, with no
attention to aging quality

The Bottom Line: Drink Better, Live Better

When you choose a high-quality wine like Smoke Eaters, you’re drinking a product
made with care, integrity, and respect for both your health and the winemaking
tradition. Cheap, mass-produced wine might be convenient, but the long-term
effects—both on your body and your palate—aren’t worth it.

Want to taste the difference? Shop our collection of handcrafted, low-intervention wines.

Cheap wine is like fast food—it’s easy, but it’s not good for you. The next time you
pour a glass, ask yourself: Is this wine supporting my health, or is it just a
cocktail of chemicals? When you drink better, you feel better—and at Smoke
Eaters, we’re here to make sure you enjoy every sip.

We can ship Australia wide and you can contact us directly for international shipping quotes.