Do we have to give up wine if we want to shed a few pounds? No!
Click on the arrow above to watch the video …
On CTV’s The Social, we put this notion to the test with a fun quiz show format on calories and wine.
How many answers can you get right?
Three of the wines we’ll taste are marketed as “diet wines” with just 70-80 calories: SkinnyGrape, SkinnyGirl and one other, plus two ringers.
Two wines are not diet wines, but are naturally low in calories. The names of two wines give them away, but can you guess which is the third diet wine?
Can you guess which wine they liked best? The answer is at the bottom …
All three of the diet wines have ingredient labeling on the back, which is not required by law, but subject of a recent debate.
Should wines have ingredient labeling like food does?
Diet only refers to the number of calories (not carbohydrates).
Diet also doesn’t mean cheap (although these wines are inexpensive) or poorly made.
Diet wines are generally less full-bodied because they’re lower in alcohol as that’s mainly how winemakers reduce calories.
A recent report indicated that a plain glazed donut had fewer calories (180) th
an a glass of wine.
However, that glass was 175 ml which is a third of a bottle and well above the recommended 125 ml or 4.5 oz pour. Though those of us who love those big Riedel glasses don’t stop at 4.5 oz ;)
It’s fairly dramatic when you measure just how much wine is 125 ml, especially when poured in a big glass. Take a look at the video.
So it all depends on whether you get 4, 5 or 6 glasses of wine from a full bottle at 750 ml. Personally, I get three generous glasses ;)
Haven’t had your fill?
Here’s my article on Bridget Jones and the wine diet …
Take the Quiz
Answers will be posted at the bottom of this blog after the show airs …
Which has the most calories?
– an 8-oz glass of whole milk
– a 12-ounce glass of beer
– a 5-oz glass of wine 
How many calories are in an average 5 oz glass of wine?
– 100
– 125
– 200
What contributes calories to wine?
– left-over sugar from the grapes that’s not fermented into alcohol
– alcohol itself
– both
Which of the following is an illegal method for winemakers to use to reduce the calories in wine?
– pick grapes before they’re ripe
– over water the vines just before harvest
– use a spinning cone to whip out some of the alcohol from the wine
– add water to the wine to reduce alcoholic content
Which famous movie character was always drinking chardonnay while on a diet?
– Carrie Bradshaw in the movie version of Sex in the City
– Bridget Jones in the movie Bridget Jones
– Sarah Connor in The Terminator
Alcohol has fewer calories per gram than:
– fat
– sugar
– protein
– all of the above
Which wine would have the most calories?
– a 6-oz glass of slightly sweet German Riesling, with 7% alcohol
– a dry 6-oz Australian shiraz with 15%
– a sweet 2-oz glass of port with 19%
According to several studies, regular, moderate wine drinkers versus abstainers tend overall to be:
– slimmer
– heavier
– no different
Wines We Tasted
Skinnygirl White Wine
Skinnygrape Pinot Grigio
Vinyasa White
Frescobaldi Castello di Pomino Bianco
Remy Pannier Sèvre et Maine sur lie Muscadet
More Diet Wines from:
Quiz Answers are Bolded
Which has the most calories?
– an 8-oz glass of whole milk 160
– a 12-ounce glass of beer 150
– a 5-oz glass of wine 125
How many calories are in an average 5 oz glass of wine?
– 100
– 125
– 200
What contributes calories to wine?
– left-over sugar from the grapes that’s not fermented into alcohol
– alcohol itself
– both
Which of the following is an illegal method for winemakers to use to reduce the calories in wine?
– pick grapes before they’re ripe
– over water the vines just before harvest
– use a spinning cone to whip out some of the alcohol from the wine
– add water to the wine to reduce alcoholic content
Which famous movie character was always drinking chardonnay while on a diet?
– Carrie Bradshaw in the movie version of Sex in the City
– Bridget Jones in the movie Bridget Jones Diary
– Sarah Connor in The Terminator
Alcohol has fewer calories per gram than:
– fat
– sugar
– protein
– all of the above
Alcohol is one of the densest micro-nutrients: only fat has more calories per gram.
Which wine would have the most calories?
– a 6-oz glass of slightly sweet German Riesling, with 7% alcohol
– a dry 6-oz Australian shiraz with 15%
– a sweet 2-oz glass of port with 19%
According to several studies, regular, moderate wine drinkers versus abstainers tend overall to be:
– slimmer
– heavier
– no different
Which wine did the hosts universally like best?
While they enjoyed the Niagara diet wine from Vinyasa, they absolutely loved the Remi Pannier Muscadet, not marketed as a diet wine, but naturally low in calories …. and delicious!
In fact, they liked it so much that they kept drinking it in the segments that followed ours, keeping the glasses close them them ;)
Can You Lose Weight While Drinking Wine?
Jess: Welcome back! On New Year’s Eve, Lainey and I decided to lose a little weight.
Lainey: 15 lbs. to be exact.
Jess: That’s right, 15 big whopping lbs. and like most people trying to lose weight, I started
counting calories and that’s when I realized just how many calories are in a glass of wine.
Lainey: But cutting out wine entirely isn’t realistic, so we’ve decided to look into diet or low calorie options. Here to help us is the editor of Canada’s largest wine review site Natalie MacLean. Welcome back!
Cynthia: Thanks for being here, Natalie. Be honest, would you ever bring a bottle of diet wine to a dinner party?
Natalie: Unless it was a reunion of my weight loss club and they’re serving skin-less chicken and raw carrots, no. At the dinner party you want to indulge, you want to count friends, not calories.
Cynthia: Alright, good.
Melissa: “You want to count friends, not calories.” Okay, so Natalie you’re going to put us to the test. You’re going to see how much we know about calories, how much we know about wines. It turns out that they put Cynthia and I together on the team (the winning team) and also competing with Jess and Lainey. Each one of us, on each team, is going to approach the podium. Natalie, I understand you have a question for us, there are 3 possible answers and you will list them for us to pick from. Once you’re done reading all the answers, that’s when we buzz in with our guess and then we’re going to switch.
Cynthia: And here’s the kicker, which we don’t know how we feel about. Only the winning team gets to join Natalie for the actual wine tasting.
Lainey: What? So the stakes are high.
Cynthia: Okay, shall we get started? Everyone ready?
Melissa: Yes, let’s go.
Natalie: Alright, are you ready ladies? Question 1, which of the following has the most calories?
Is it an 8-oz glass of whole milk, a 12-oz glass of beer or a 5-oz glass of wine? Mel?
Melissa: I’m going to say a milk.
Natalie: Right on! Alright!
Melissa: Yes, okay your turn.
Natalie: That’s a good healthy start.
Melissa: Okay, so how many? Did you have the calories or we don’t need to know about that?
Natalie: 160 versus 125 for the wine.
Melissa: Okay.
Jess: Good work.
Natalie: Yes, alright. Okay, so question 2, what contributes the most calories to wine? Is it alcohol itself, leftover sugar from unfermented grapes or both? Lainey?
Lainey: Sugar from grapes.
Natalie: I’m sorry Lainey. Okay?
Natalie: Cynthia?
Cynthia: Both.
Natalie: Both.
Melissa: Yes!
Jess: You know what, I’m so proud of you no matter what. You’re doing great.
Natalie: Okay, good team spirit. Alright, question 3, alcohol has fewer calories/gram than protein, fat or sugar? Mel?
Melissa: I am going to go with fat.
Natalie: You’re right.
Melissa: Yes!
Jess: Wow!
Lainey: You win!
Jess: Wow!
Melissa: But we can just keep going.
Lainey: They took us out, 3-nothing.
Jess: She’s just so fast.
Melissa: Okay, 3-nothing.
Lainey: Okay, we’ll just keep going though. We’ll keep going to the nutritional value.
Natalie: Alright, we still have time to regain here. Which of the following is an illegal method for winemakers to reduce the calories in wine? Is it add water to the wine to reduce the alcohol content, a spinning cone to whip-out some of that alcohol from the wine or over-water the vines just before harvest?
Jess: Give it a try.
Natalie: Lainey?
Lainey: The first one, adding water.
Natalie: Adding water to wine, yes it’s the reverse ‘Cana Miracle’ method but yes you’re right. its illegal.
Jess: So proud.
Natalie: Alright.
Lainey: You don’t have to patronize me Jessica.
Jess: I’m not, I’m so proud of you.
Natalie: Okay, there will be drinks for everyone afterwards, actually.
Lainey: Really?
Natalie: Not so much. Question 5, which of the glasses of wine would have the most calories? Is it a 6-oz glass of slightly sweet German Riesling with 7% alcohol or a 6-oz glass of completely dry Australian Shiraz with 15% alcohol or a 2-oz glass of sweet Port 19% alcohol? Jess?
Jess: The middle one, the Shiraz.
Natalie: The Shiraz has the most calories, you’re right.
Lainey: How do you know that?
Melissa: Okay.
Cynthia: How do you know that?
Jess: Because the more alcohol presumably, the more alcohol the wine has, the higher the calorie.
Natalie: Exactly, it does.
Melissa: Listen, while we’re counting numbers I just want to say that me and Cynthia won.
Lainey: What did you just say?
Melissa: We won!
Lainey: Did you just say “Me and Cynthia won?” grammar Mel?
Melissa: Because it says right there.
Lainey: Grammar, Mel just said, “Me and Cynthia won.”
Oh! No.
Natalie: Okay, go!
Cynthia: Let’s do this.
Natalie, Cynthia & Melissa: Okay.
Cynthia: You can try to shame her Lainey but really it doesn’t matter because we’re going to drink it now.
Lainey: We’ll just be here being skinny without the calories.
Cynthia: Okay, let’s not go there.
Melissa: Yes, for tasting.
Natalie: That’s right.
Cynthia: Is this what the tasting looks like?
Natalie: Sadly, yes and we often over serve, over pour ourselves but one serving of wine is already poured for you. It’s a hundred and twenty-five (125) mils, so go ahead and pour yours.
Melissa: How many ounces (oz.) is that more or less?
Natalie: About four-and-a-half – five ounces (oz.)
Melissa: Yes.
Natalie: Can you see, especially when you got a big glass like we like to use these days, it doesn’t look like much.
Cynthia: That didn’t looks like I thought.
Melissa: That’s called an under pour.
Natalie: Yes, exactly. Looking through the glass thinly, so give it a try.
Melissa: Yes Ma’am.
Natalie: Alright.
Cynthia: Am I holding this right? I know you taught us this before.
Natalie: Exactly, you’ve learned well.
Cynthia: Okay, alright.
Natalie: You’ve learned well.
Melissa: This smells delicious.
Natalie: Yes, good.
Lainey: I’m glad. What did you get there?
Natalie: So this is Vinyasa.
Melissa: Oh! Lainey and Jess this is amazing.
Cynthia: It is.
Lainey: You know what though; Jess is doing squats because we’re getting super skinny over here while you guys are consuming calories. So have fun with that.
Cynthia: Okay, Have fun working out.
Natalie: So this is Vinyasa, Canada’s only VQA low cal wine. We have 70 calories/glass. It’s named after the yoga so we’re moving on beyond hot yoga to tipsy yoga, I guess. And now we’re going to try the glass beside it, what we have here is a Remi Pannier Muscadet from the Loire Valley. I want you to give that a try and let me know.
Melissa: It’s on a diet as well?
Natalie: It’s not but it is low calorie. It’s naturally low calorie. It’s just not marketed that way because it is low in alcohol.
Cynthia: Oh I loved that.
Natalie: You do, do you?
Cynthia: Oh it’s so nice Lainey and Jess.
Natalie: It is.
Lainey: Calories.
Cynthia: Very low calories.
Natalie: … seafood, shellfish, salads; you can imagine.
Cynthia: It has a really nice citrusy feel to it.
Natalie: Exactly.
Cynthia: It’s just making me feel really warm in this cold day, which I wouldn’t expect from a white wine.
Melissa: It’s true.
Cynthia: Right.
Natalie: This one is what you’re looking for when you’re looking for low cal. It doesn’t have to be marketed that way but it has to be from a cool region. Luckily Canada is a cool region. So a lot of our wines are lower in calories. Not all diet wines are white but you’ll find lots of them are because white grapes like Pinot Grigio or Riesling are picked early in the season and that means lower sugar converts to less alcohol. Alcohol has most of the calories in wine.
Melissa: Okay, That is the question then. Can you have both low cal but not have to sacrifice alcohol level? So it’s lower alcohol level?
Natalie: There are many methods but generally they’re lowering the alcohol to reduce the number of calories but it doesn’t mean they’re lowering the flavour.
Melissa: I hear that little pitter patter.
Cynthia: Okay.
Lainey: They’re six glasses.
Melissa: There are six glasses.
Cynthia: Natalie, thank you so much.
Natalie: Cheers!
Melissa: Cheers!
Jess: Cheers!
Lainey: Cheers!
Cynthia: Cheers to you guys! Cheers to the loser!
Posted with permission of CTV.
