The nations’ battle against various food types is a well-documented, treacherous & fickle one – from the lowly potato to a truffled foie gras amuse-bouche, no corner of fridge or cupboard is left unturned. The one consolation being there are many a Dietician Lieutenant General jostling behind their current leader, waiting to wage war on the new enemy in vogue.
Carbohydrates, being in most of what we eat, have withstood the ravages of war, but under the same breath, are no stranger to being in enemy corner. By the simple equation, Carbs = Energy x not enough exercise/a little bit greedy = fat, they sit pretty as a rather easy (& logical, I’ll grant) target. Quack indeed.
Whilst it is easy to consider our food consumption in terms of basic groups & types, it is only relatively recently that drinks, namely alcoholic, have come to our attention. And whilst of course it’s a case of everything in moderation, comparing tipples yields some interesting results, especially for the carb-conscious amongst us.
This great infographic from Wine Folly does exactly that. The GOOD news is that our humble grape fares remarkably well, dominating the bottom of the graph. Obviously the more residual sugar, the higher carb content – a glass of Sauternes or Tawny Port comes in only 5g less than a sweet liqueur & is over 6x a glass of dry red or white – that said, we tend to (or should!) drink these in smaller quantity. & they are ever so delicious.
More good news lies in how we eat with wine. It tends to slow us down, ergo we eat less. Throw that in with its high vitamin C content & links to lowering cholesterol, I think the battlefield is ripe for a new, wine-enthusiast leader.
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