What's In Your Wine ?

Wine consumption in the UK is hitting record levels. The health benefits of the occasional glass of red wine are widely-acknowledged and it is generally assumed to be a straightforward product of grapes. But in this investigation, journalist Jane Moore reveals that a great deal of what we now consume is enhanced or sweetened or flavoured or added to, creating a drink that one critic describes as no better than, "an alcoholic cola".

Californian wine producer Randall Grahm, who now lists all the ingredients going into his wine, believes that the consumer can easily be misled about what goes into a bottle. The flavour of a beautifully oaky chardonnay for example may not have come from spending months in oak barrel. He says: "Many of the low end wines just routinely have oak chips...you wouldn't believe how oaky these wines are and they have never seen a barrel".

Jane Moore investigates the recent scandals in Italy, France and South Africa which have tarnished the image of the industry. She examines an adulteration fraud in Italy involving millions of bottles of wine, which are alleged to have contained ingredients which pose a significant threat to consumer health. French producers of Beaujolais have been accused of planning to add tonnes of extra sugar to some of the region's wines to boost alcohol levels. South African producers have been caught using an artificial flavouring in an award-winning wine and the Appellation D'Origine Controlle (AOC) system, long-established by French producers as a benchmark of regional quality, has been severely criticised for misleading consumers.

Nor is it easy to be sure what is good value for money. Master of Wine Jancis Robinson, tells Dispatches that the high price of some champagnes are more down to successful branding that to the quality of the wine in the bottle. She recently taste-tested 80 brands of non-vintage champagne and concluded: "From my point of view, perhaps about 30 per cent of all champagne is worth the money. "

Jane Moore conducts her own taste test of a leading brand of champagne versus a sparkling wine costing a third as much - with surprising results.

She also visits the vineyards of Champagne, and discovers that for decades, rubbish from Paris was dumped on the soil as a fertiliser. The organic matter may have decayed, but razor blades, syringes, batteries and fragments of plastic bin bags can still be seen littering the landscape in some areas. Jane says: "I love champagne...but I will try not to think about this when I am next drinking a glass, because it's really quite disgusting. It might not bother the farmer that it looks like this but as somebody who consumes champagne, I have to say I am quite bothered by it."

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