How many calories are in a glass of wine?
A 125 ml glass of dry wine has about 80 to 100 kcal, a 175 ml glass 115 to 135 kcal. A dry white at 12 % vol gives about 84 kcal per 125 ml, a dry red at 13.5 % vol about 94 kcal. A sweet wine at 100 g/l of sugar reaches about 140 kcal per 125 ml.
Colour does not matter much. What moves the figure is the alcohol, and for sweet wines the sugar. A high-alcohol dry red can carry more calories than a light off-dry white.
What is the EU formula for the energy value of wine?
Multiply each nutrient in grams per 100 ml by its factor from annex XIV of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011: alcohol 29 kJ / 7 kcal, carbohydrates 17 kJ / 4 kcal, organic acids 13 kJ / 3 kcal, polyols such as glycerol 10 kJ / 2.4 kcal. Then add the results.
- Alcohol in grams per 100 ml = strength in % vol × 0.789 (the density of ethanol).
- Sugar in grams per 100 ml = residual sugar in g/l ÷ 10.
- Energy in kJ = alcohol g × 29 + sugar g × 17 (+ organic acids g × 13 + glycerol g × 10 if you include them).
- Energy in kcal = alcohol g × 7 + sugar g × 4 (+ organic acids g × 3 + glycerol g × 2.4).
- Round to the nearest whole number for the label.
Can you show a worked example?
Take a dry red at 13.5 % vol with 2 g/l of residual sugar. Alcohol: 13.5 × 0.789 = 10.65 g per 100 ml, so 309 kJ and 74.6 kcal. Sugar: 0.2 g, so 3.4 kJ and 0.8 kcal. Total: 312 kJ / 75 kcal per 100 ml.
| Step | kJ | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Alcohol: 10.65 g × 29 kJ / × 7 kcal | 308.9 | 74.6 |
| Sugar: 0.2 g × 17 kJ / × 4 kcal | 3.4 | 0.8 |
| Total per 100 ml | 312.3 | 75.4 |
| On the label | 312 kJ | 75 kcal |
Our free calculator does these steps for you.
Should I include acidity and glycerol?
You may. Organic acids and polyols carry energy under annex XIV of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011. Including them adds roughly 5 to 15 kJ per 100 ml for most wines. Many wineries use alcohol and sugar only; what matters is to use one method consistently and to keep your calculation on file.
A wine with 6 g/l of total acidity adds 0.6 g × 13 = 7.8 kJ per 100 ml. Glycerol at 8 g/l adds 0.8 g × 10 = 8 kJ. On a 312 kJ wine, together they move the result by about 5 %.
How do I write the energy value on the label?
Per 100 ml, in both kJ and kcal. When the full nutrition declaration is provided through a QR code, the label may show the energy value alone with the symbol “E”, for example “E (100 ml) = 312 kJ / 75 kcal” (Regulation (EU) 2021/2117).
The same figure appears at the top of the full nutrition table on the e-label page, followed by fat, saturates, carbohydrate, sugars, protein and salt, most of them at zero for wine. See our wine nutrition label example.
Do I need a laboratory analysis for each wine?
Not necessarily. Declared values are averages and may come from your own analysis, from a calculation based on known values, or from generally established data (Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, art. 31(4)). Your routine analysis of alcohol and residual sugar is enough for most wines.
Recalculate at each vintage when the alcohol or the sugar changes. A difference of 0.5 % vol changes the result by about 11 kJ (3 kcal) per 100 ml, which is enough to make the old label wrong.
What are the most common calculation mistakes?
Mixing g/l and g per 100 ml, forgetting the density of ethanol, and using last year's analysis. Each one gives a value that looks plausible and is wrong.
- Using 13.5 g of alcohol instead of 10.65 g: forgetting the 0.789 density adds about 83 kJ per 100 ml.
- Entering residual sugar in g/l without dividing by 10: a dry wine suddenly gains 30 kJ.
- Keeping the previous vintage's value after a change of 0.5 % vol or more.
- Printing kcal only: the label needs both kJ and kcal.
- Rounding each step instead of rounding the final result.
What about sweet, fortified and dealcoholised wines?
The formula is the same; only the inputs change. Sugar weighs more in sweet wines: 150 g/l adds about 255 kJ (60 kcal) per 100 ml. Fortified wines at 18 to 20 % vol start above 400 kJ from alcohol alone. Dealcoholised wines get most of their energy from sugar.
How many calories do common wine styles have?
Calculated on alcohol and sugar only, per 100 ml and per 125 ml glass. Use these figures as a guide, not on a label: the value printed must come from your own wine.
| Style | Alcohol / sugar | Per 100 ml | Per 125 ml glass |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dry white | 12 % vol / 2 g/l | 278 kJ / 67 kcal | 84 kcal |
| Rosé | 12.5 % vol / 4 g/l | 293 kJ / 71 kcal | 88 kcal |
| Dry red | 13.5 % vol / 2 g/l | 312 kJ / 75 kcal | 94 kcal |
| Brut sparkling | 12 % vol / 8 g/l | 288 kJ / 70 kcal | 87 kcal |
| Sweet white | 13 % vol / 100 g/l | 468 kJ / 112 kcal | 140 kcal |
Questions from winemakers
Is the calorie count mandatory on wine labels in the EU?
Yes, for wines produced from 8 December 2023. The energy value must be printed on the label even when the full nutrition declaration is online.
Which wine has the fewest calories?
Dry wines with low alcohol. A dry white at 11 % vol has about 62 kcal per 100 ml; a sweet or fortified wine can have twice as much.
Do sulphites or tannins add calories?
No measurable amount. Energy in wine comes from alcohol, sugar, organic acids and glycerol.
Sources
Selection criteria: we cite official texts first (EUR-Lex, national law portals), then named surveys with their publisher.
- Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 (EUR-Lex)
- Regulation (EU) 2021/2117 (EUR-Lex)
- Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 (EUR-Lex)
Updated on November 2, 2026 by the WineLex team