Light Strike: Wine's Not-So-Secret Scandal

Light strike is probably the biggest wine fault you've never heard of. Bigger than cork, bigger than oxidation or anything else.

That pretty-looking bottle of rosé perched on the bright supermarket shelf in a clear glass bottle? Probably knackered. If it's been exposed to light for a while, it may end up smelling of boiled cabbage, drains, or wet dog. At the very least, its character will almost certainly have been degraded from what its winemaker intended. And that's not what you're paying your hard-earned money for.

It's nothing less than daylight robbery. In this episode, we explain what light strike is, how fast it happens, and which wines are most at risk. We hear from experts, including the co-author of an illuminating recent research paper, and rage against the fact that the problem seems shockingly prevalent, but so little is being done.

We even carry out our very own applied research experiment (featuring bottles, funnels, argon gas and a blindfold) which gives unequivocal results. We call for wholesale change - from producers, distributors, retailers - and give clear advice on what we normal wine drinkers should do about all this (barricades, tyre burning and civil unrest are proposed...but not necessarily endorsed).

In this episode we hear from  Panagiotis Arapitsas, Deepika Koushik, Liz Gabay MW, Brad Greatrix and Tom Stevenson. Our thanks to them - and to you for tuning in. 

We love to hear from you so please do get in touch! Send us a voice message via Speakpipe or you can find more info, together with all details from this episode including on the wines, on our website: Show notes for Wine Blast S5 E14 - Light Strike: Wine's Not-So-Secret Scandal.

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