You probably stumbled across this blog wondering, is wine keto?
Not to mention whether or not wine compliments your overall keto diet. All this wonderment is the aftermath. Before jumping into that, let's get you motivated to read the entire blog and clear out all the theatrics.
Imagine this; you are about to get married in a year and to look sharp and be the highlight of all the wedding pictures, you decided to opt for a strict keto diet. Everything was going smoothly until one day; you saw a friend take a bite of his caramel covered Crème Brûlée. And suddenly, all hell broke loose. Sounds familiar?
Agreed, irrespective of the endgame, following a strict diet for a substantial amount of time can be infuriating, and you would often fall off track.
Nothing to be ashamed about. It's a well-known fact that our taste buds demand satisfaction every now and then. After all, not everyone has the stomach to resist a freshly baked fudge brownie.
So what to do? Keep reading till the end of the blog to find out what lies behind the question, is wine keto?
What is Wine?
The textbook answer is wine is a beverage enriched with alcohol and is made from fermented grapes.
However, the actual answer is rather simplistic. Wine is a pleasurable drink and has a gentle touch of sophistication attached to it. There is no doubt about it.
Unlike Jesus, no one has the ability to turn water into wine which is precisely why, in a short amount of time, you will find wine being sold in jewellery shops, thanks to inflation.
Getting into the technicalities, not just grapes but wine can also be made from other fruits too, such as apples and plums. However, what you should look out for is if the label on your wine bottle only reads wine, then it is most definitely made from grapes.
Endorsing wine consumption is a subjective debate, but it can be consumed in a few fun ways.
Depending on the type of wine you are drinking, you can ecstatically pair it with different types of food. For example, red wine goes nicely with dishes full of bold meat, such as steak. White wine has a solid chemistry with low-density meat such as chicken and fish, and bitter wine partners the best with fat.
All in all, it is recommended to choose the wine depending on the sauce used in the dish rather than the meat. If done successfully, only then you will know the full might of wine.
Is Wine Keto?
So far, you have managed to resist baked goods and junk foods; but when it comes to wine, the temptation is stronger than ever.
No, wine is not considered keto. However, you can still chug on a nice glass of wine while strictly following a keto-based diet. This is due to the fact that wine is not rich in carbohydrates. When you consume wine whilst remaining under ketosis, your liver puts everything on hold and starts to digest the alcohol.
What this suggests is while digesting alcohol, your liver puts all other nutrients on hold and solely focuses on processing the wine. Therefore, while wine might not revert all the effects of ketosis, it will surely delay the process temporarily.
However, you must know that not all types of wine, or any alcoholic beverage, can aid this cause. As you must have guessed, only low-carb drinks are compatible with ketosis.
For example, if you are on a keto-diet, frequent consumption of beer would erase your progress altogether.
Nevertheless, when talking about wine, your first priority should be dry wines. Look for the “brut” label on the wine bottle; you are good to go. Here are a few types of wine you can consume whilst strictly remaining in ketosis.
- Chardonnay
- Italian Pinot Grigio
- Pinot blanc
- Pinot Noir
Although, there is a catch. It is vital to note down a few things whilst consuming wine under ketosis. Keep in mind that your alcohol consumption should be followed with moderation. Overdoing it can temper your ketosis progress regardless of the type of wine you consume.
Speaking in numbers, men should not have more than 2 glasses of wine while women should not exceed one glass a day limit. Keep in mind that the standard serving size of wine is 5 ounces.
Wine: Nutritional Profile
While wine might be an immense drink, you should always keep in mind that it is an alcoholic beverage, and overconsumption might have a negative effect on your liver. That said, let us go through the nutritional facts about wine.
There are several different constituents in wine aside from the basics; grapes, sugar, and of course, alcohol. Some of these constituents include:
- Calcium
- Iron
- Potassium
- Carbohydrates
- Phosphorous
However, you must know that the amount of these constituents differs from wine to wine. For instance, the amount of iron in red wine is almost double compared to what you may find in white wine. But that's not what you are here for. Since you are on a keto diet, you are only interested in the number of calories and carbohydrates you consume in each glass you drink.
As you must know, calories in wine mainly come from its alcoholic contents. 1 gram of alcohol contains 7 calories. Calories in wine found from other sources are secondary as 1 gram of sugar contains 4 calories, almost half if compared to alcohol.
Therefore, you should always keep your calorie intake under moderation and always keep a look out for ABV% of the wine bottle you might purchase. It couldn't be any simpler. The higher the percentage of ABV, the higher the calories. If the ABV percentage is around 10 to 12%, you can expect to consume around 110 calories per 5 ounces of wine.
Now you must be wondering why there aren't any nutritional facts printed on the label of a wine bottle.
This is due to several reasons. Firstly, in the United States, the FDA does not regulate alcohol. Since 1933, alcohol falls under TTB (Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau), which does not mandate imprinting nutrition facts on a wine bottle.
Secondly, in some countries, alcohol is immunised from some labelling laws. In most of the European Union countries, if an alcoholic beverage has an ABV percentage of higher than 1.2%, the manufacturers are exempt from labelling the nutrition facts. Unless the nutrition content is sulphite, the manufacturers do not need to declare it.
Winemaking is considered an art and is followed by several different practices around the globe. Labelling nutrition facts on wine is not an everyday cup of tea. To carry out such a task would require so much more effort than it is worth.
The wine itself is an extremely distinctive product and is produced from different raw materials. When the grape is harvested, the winemaker themselves are not aware of the characteristics and final compositions of the wine.
Lastly, the alcohol components in wine are not standardised. This means that there isn't an absolute number of alcohol found in wine. Ultimately, you will find the same wine with different ABV percentages on the market.
Why is Wine a Good Option for Low-Carb Diets?
As mentioned earlier, wine is a low-carb alcoholic beverage, and since keto diets are all about carbohydrate control, it only makes sense to pair wine with a low-carb diet. You wouldn't want your months of hard work to revert just because of a slight slip-up.
Moreover, wine makes tedious diets more satisfying. As wine is known for its taste and textures, you could only be eating plain bread but make it much more soothing with every sip of wine.
Keto Wine Cocktail Recipes
The best thing about wine (or any alcoholic beverage, for that matter) is you can make several new types of drinks with it, fit for any occasion.
So, if you have a thing for martinis, then surely you will like what we have in store for you.
- Keto Wine Punch
Before getting into the recipe, you should know what a wine punch is. It's simply just an alcoholic beverage made from red or white wine and mixed with fruit or fruit juice. There are several different recipes to make the best wine punch, but the one listed below surely tops the list.
Ingredients
- 1 bottle of red wine
- 0.25 cup of brandy
- 4 tablespoons of granulated stevia to taste
- 0.25 tsp of orange extract
- Juice from 2 lemons completely squished
For Serving
- Frozen or fresh cranberries
- Sliced oranges
- Ice cubes
How to make
First of all, you need to find a nice pitcher to combine all of the ingredients listed above. Once you're done with that, adequately cover the top with plastic wrap and store it in a refrigerator for approximately 2 hours. What this ultimately does is the plastic wrap keeps all the moisture in and maintains freshness till the drink is served.
Once the drink is chilled, pour it into a glass and serve it with sliced oranges, cranberries, and of course, ice.
- Keto Sparkling Wine Sangria
Who doesn't like sangrias, right? And what's better than being able to enjoy this full-filling beverage while remaining in ketosis? So, the following is a step-by-step guide on how you can make the best wine sangria for a keto diet.
Ingredients
- 1 bottle of chilled sparkling wine or cava
- 0.25 cup of brandy
- Half cup of sliced strawberries
- 1 sliced lime
- Half sliced orange
- 0.25 teaspoon of orange extract
- 12 drops of liquid stevia
How to make
Similar to the wine punch, for the sangria, you also need a pitcher to mix the orange extract, brandy, and liquid stevia. Once done with this, the next step is to add all the fruits, i.e. oranges, lime, and strawberries.
Now, stir up the mixture properly to combine all the ingredients. Cover the pitcher with plastic wrap and store it in the refrigerator for one-hour minimum.
Once it's chilled, top the mixture with sparkling wine and serve it to all your loved ones with ice.
Health Benefits of Wine
By now, we have covered that as long as the wine is consumed in moderation, it will not affect your ketosis progress. However, what you might not know are the health benefits that come along with wine.
It might not be the paracetamol you were hoping for, but it is safe to call it a heart-healthy drink. The alcohol present in wine, along with a few other substances known as antioxidants, can aid in preventing coronary artery diseases that eventually lead to heart attacks.
So, you must be wondering how exactly red wine is healthy for the human heart. To be completely honest, it's not. However, the polyphenols found in the antioxidants of red wine help with the alignment of blood vessels in the heart.
A polyphenol known as resveratrol has long been known for its health benefits to the heart.
Resveratrol
This substance might help prevent any damage to blood vessels and reduce bad cholesterol and blood clots.
Nevertheless, the studies conducted on resveratrol so far are rather ambivalent. Some studies suggest that it can further the cause mentioned above. But others suggest that there is no benefit of resveratrol in preventing heart diseases.
Wrapping Up
There is a lot more information on the benefits of wine to the heart. Some might be useful; some might be completely bogus. Even so, it is safe to call it a pleasant drink as long as it's consumed under moderation.
By now, you probably have the answer to your question, is wine keto? But, never forget to keep a light hand on it irrespective of your diet regime. After all, wine contains alcohol, and it will affect your liver if not taken properly care.
If you'd like to learn more about keto friendly drinks, click on one of the links below: