For the wine enthusiast there is no better day than being out and about, visiting local wineries and participating in a wine tasting. What better way to discover new flavours, varieties and wine styles? But how much alchohol do you consume with a wine tasting? Here, we will look at how you may be able to find out. Keep in mind this article is not advice, nor is it any sort of legal or medical information. Please use it as a guide and do your own research.
In New Zealand a ‘Standard Drink’ is one that contains 10 grams (about 12.5ml) of pure alcohol. The standard drinks measure is a simple way for you to work out how much alcohol you are drinking. This is determined by the knowledge that the body can process and eliminate10 grams of alcohol per hour. It does not speed up or slow down, it is a constant rate.
All beverages are labelled with their per cent alcohol by volume (i.e. 5%), and the number of standard drinks in that container. (i.e. 1.3 standard drinks). It is important to note that a drink serving size is often more than one ‘standard drink’.
Examples of ‘Standard Drink’ Calculations
- A 150ml glass of 12.5% alcohol wine = 1.48 standard drinks.
- A tasting nip (30ml) of 12.5% alcohol wine = 0.3 standard drinks.
Current legal limits
- Drivers under 20 years – Zero alcohol.
- Drivers over 20 years – The legal driving limit in NZ is 0.05% BAC, which translates to 0.05 grams of alcohol per 100ml of blood. Or it will be seen in 250 micrograms (mcg) of alcohol per litre of breath.
Alcohol Consumption In Terms Of ‘Standard Drinks’
One standard drink will most likely raise your BAC level by 0.02%. The general rule of thumb would therefore be that two “Standard Drinks” within one hour will raise your Blood Alcohol Concentration to 0.04%, which will put you on the cusp of the drink driving level. One “Standard Drink” per hour thereafter will maintain that level.
To do a quick calculation of whether you are over 0.05% BAC simply take the number of hours since your first drink and add 1 to it. This is the number of “Standard Drinks” that you could have in that period. Then calculate the number of “Standard Drinks” that you actually had, and compare the two results.
A wine tasting in terms of standard drinks
You visit a local winery and they are offering a tasting of six wines from their range. Each tasting pour is around 30ml – which is enough to smell the aromas and take two good sips to try the wine. Not all the wines sampled have the same alcohol level, but we can take an average here. The first wine was 11.5%, with the next three being 12.5%, the fifth was 14%, and the last was an 18% port. In all you tasted six wines of 30ml each. That amounts to a total of 180ml at an average of 13.5% or the equivalent of 1.92 standard drinks.
Now, that whole wine tasting took one hour. You wander along to the second winery and do the same. After two and a quarter hours you have consumed 3.8 standard drinks. The rule would be that in the past two hours you can discount two standard drinks. This leaves you with a balance of 1.8 standard drinks.
You decide to visit a third winery. Another 45 minutes pass with another 1.92 standard drinks being consumed. This is now three hours since you started. You have consumed 5.75 standard drinks. You discount 3, leaving 2.75 standard drinks still in your system. This would mean that you will need to wait awhile before operating machinery, or call a taxi.
Options
There are several options you can do to enjoy a wine tasting and still drive home afterwards:
1. SPIT. At each wine tasting there will be a spitoon. It is not there just to dispose of wines that do not please your pallette. It is there so you do not drink the alcohol. You can get the pleasure of the wine – the aroma and the taste – by sipping a small amount, rolling it around you tongue and then spitting it out.
2. SHARE. If you have a partner with you, you can share a tasting. Thus reducing your alcohol intake. All though, there are some people you just cannot share wine with!
3. BE GALLANT. Do the honourable thing if you are a group and be the designated driver for the day.
Please note: On Yer Bike Hawke’s Bay Ltd. does not endorse drink driving or the excessive consumption of alcohol. Blood alcohol calculations and standard drink calculations are to be used as a guide only. It is your responsibility to monitor and regulate your alcohol consumption.
Resouces:
