what is vegan wine

Vegan wine is wine that is made without the use of animal products or production methods involving animal products. The production of wine often includes a process called fining, in which fining agents are added to wine to remove proteins, yeast, and other suspended organic particles, and later filtered out. Fining agents can be either animal, carbon, or other vegan and vegetarian alternative fining agents such as bentonite, a clay mineral, and polyvinylpolypyrrolidone. Vegan wines are made without animal products, so winemakers either leave the particles to sink naturally to the bottom of the wine, or use non-animal fining products usually bentonite, a form of clay or pea protein. Other animal products used in wine production may include beeswax (used to seal bottles) and agglomerated corks (which use milk-based glues) . It can be difficult to tell if a wine is vegan by looking at the label alone, as regulations in the EU and US do not currently require wineries to list fining agents on labels. However, more wine retailers and producers have started to help consumers make a choice by highlighting which of their wines are vegan friendly.