Meticulous calculations by the Comité Champagne have revealed the exact number of calories contained in a glass of champagne. However, new EU labeling rules will require wines to list ingredients and provide nutritional information from December 8, 2023.
Wines produced and labeled before this date may be sold without such information until stocks run out, according to the draft regulation. France has requested a different approach for champagne production, citing the unique nature of blending, secondary fermentation and the aging process. Consequently, France recommends applying the new regulation only to wines produced after the December 8, 2023 deadline.
The list of wine ingredients must include raw materials, sugar, concentrated grape must, expedition liqueur and other additives used. The order must be from highest to lowest weight. In addition, the nutritional declaration must indicate the energy value in kilocalories and kilojoules per 100 ml of wine, as well as the quantity of fats, saturated fatty acids, carbohydrates, sugars, proteins and salt in the same quantity. The energy value is calculated using two formulas.
(kcal/100 ml) = (𝑇𝐴𝑉 × 0.79 × 7) + ([𝑠𝑢𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑠] × 4) + ([𝑝𝑜𝑙𝑦𝑜𝑙𝑠] × 2.4) + ([𝑎𝑐𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑟𝑔𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑠] × 3)(kJ/100 ml) = (𝑇𝐴𝑉 × 0.79 × 29) + ([𝑠𝑢𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑠] × 17) + ([𝑝𝑜𝑙𝑦𝑜𝑙𝑠] × 10) + ([𝑎𝑐𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑟𝑔𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑠] × 13).
A somewhat complex formula, but not an approximation. Here's an example: for a 12% vol. champagne with 8 g/L sugar, 5 g/L polyols and 5 g/L organic acids: (12 × 0.79 × 7) + (0.8 × 4) + (0.5 × 2.4) + (0.5 × 3) = 72 kcal/100 ml and (12 × 0.79 × 29) + (0.8 × 17) + (0.5 × 10) + (0.5 × 13) = 300 kJ/100 ml.
72 calories is the equivalent of a hard-boiled egg or 100g of salsify, but the pleasure may not be the same! And as you'd expect, if the dosage is below 8 g/L, it's obviously less.