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Bubbly & the Beach

Written By: Romany Reagan on Monday, June 9, 2008

Prioritizing this summer so you can have it all!

Summer is upon us! The weather has been so schizophrenic here in New York that it has thrown me into a sort of state of denial about the advancing months (yes, I'll blame the weather) -- until suddenly here I sit, eyeing last year's tiny summer wardrobe with dread. As my slightly larger body curses winter's debauchery my mind plots my escape from oversized shirts back into undersized dresses. However, what does that entail? I bought myself a gym membership (go stimulus check!) and a new pair of inspiration-inspiring running shoes, but what caused the problem in the first place? Was it all that feel-sorry-for-myself Chinese I ate when I couldn't go home for the holidays? Was it stuffing myself into my apartment instead of braving the cold? Was it... the wine? "No, no, no, no." I can hear my mind immediately roadblock the concept. The possibility seemed too horrific to consider. Take away movie night, take away my Metrocard, heck, take away DINNER, but you are not touching my wine. However, denial doesn't bring Summer '07 back, so it's time to face some cold hard facts.

I found quite a few tables and reference guides on the calories in wine, however I was frustrated to find they varied! Some wines, like Chardonnay, were consistent across the board, but others varied by as much as 40 calories depending on whom you wanted to rely! So after sitting here all morning, I've averaged out everything I could find and here are my results:

Varietial / Calories per 4 oz.
Beaujolais / 95
Bordeaux, red / 95
Burgundy, red / 95
Burgundy, white / 90
Cabernet Sauvignon / 95
Chablis / 90
Champagne, dry / 100
Champagne, pink / 90
Chardonnay / 85
Chianti / 95
Liebfraumilch / 85
Madeira / 160
Marsala / 80
Merlot / 95
Mosell / 105
Muscatel / 140
Port, ruby / 200
Port, white / 195
Riesling / 95
Rhone / 95
Rose / 95
Sangria / 120
Sauterne / 110
Sauvignon Blanc / 80
Tokay / 165
Zinfandel, red / 90
Zinfandel, white / 85

One thing to bear in mind is I don't know a single soul who only drinks 4oz of wine, so make sure you're multiplying by the appropriate number of servings to find your actual consumption. Measure out half a cup of wine (4oz) into your usual glass, make a note of where the line hits and try to always pour to that mark. It's a better way of keeping track (especially when you have people over!) then busting out your measuring cup every time. The 30-calorie difference between Sauterne and Sauvignon Blanc may not seem like much, but if you find yourself having four glasses - - that's 120 calories. The slight differences add up.

The relief from all this hard news is all you have to do is make up for it by eating less. No one (least of all me) would suggest giving up wine, or even really cutting back on wine. I for one would rather not have dessert than give up wine with dinner. Next time you're out with friends, skip the tiramisu and you've already accommodated it. Yeah, they'll have cocoa-powdered bliss on their faces, but you'll have a size 4 exit walk from the table. Priorities people.

On a regular basis, simply not eating dessert will not make up for your wine calories, the other half of that is upping your activity level. You don't have to go weekend warrior and join a gym either, little tweaks can have a lot of impact. Just like how wine calories can sneak up little by little, activities can do the same, whittle by whittle. Walk to the wine bar instead of driving or hailing a cab. If you live in a city where it's reasonable, take the subway or trolley instead of hailing a cab. It's summer! Be outside, walk -- whatever you do, DON'T HAIL THAT CAB! Replace one of your dinner activities for the week with dancing. Not eating that heavy meal + shaken your booty = Beach Body, well, or at least the avoidance of Tragic Beach Embarrassment.

My advice: buy some cute walking shoes at a store like Aerosoles, where you can get hidden grandma-like orthopedics, and WALK. I mean walk everywhere. When your feet are comfy, you can skip cabs no problem, it's actually pleasurable, and calorically it makes all the difference. The goal is not denying yourself wine, but accommodating it.

To make yourself feel even better about retaining wine in your life, here are some comparison facts:


  • Wine has on average less than 100 calories per serving vs. beer's 140.

  • A vodka or gin and tonic has 280 calories.

  • A frozen daiquiri has upwards of 800 calories.

  • And, for good measure, a 40oz of Colt 45 has 550 calories.



Feel better already?

A side note for nights when you're feeling more vodka than Merlot: Tonic "Water" is NOT sparkling water -- that is seltzer. Tonic is sugar water. Diet tonic water is tragic and will make you swear allegiance to regular tonic until you die. I've found squeezing a few fresh lime wedges into a vodka seltzer eases the transition away from tonic quite nicely, and like anything, once I got used to it, I find tonic sticky and undrinkable. Also, seltzer with fresh lime is much more refreshing on a hot summer day.

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