Tests Reveal Popular Wine Brands That Are Full Of Deadly Arsenic

You might think you’re getting a good deal when you grab a cheap bottle of wine off of the shelf. Hey, it’s the kind of wine you like to drink and it’ll do the trick just the same, right? The problem is, that cheap bottle of wine might contain a heavy metal that is killing you from the inside out.

If you’re a wine drinker, or you have friends and family members who enjoy a nice glass of wine, you’ll want to keep reading. It turns out that several popular wine brands are full of deadly arsenic, and there’s research to prove it.

Chronic levels of arsenic, including low levels and organic arsenic, can accumulate in the body over time, inhibiting the body’s natural detox process. This causes other heavy metals to accumulate in the body as well. Any type of arsenic is a carcinogenic, but especially inorganic arsenic, which is the kind of arsenic typically found in cheap wines.

Arsenic can also appear in ground water. The EPA set a limit of 10 parts arsenic to 1 billion parts water for drinking water. A ccording to a recent class action lawsuit filed in March 2015, several wines contain 500% or more arsenic than the amount allowed in drinking water.

Several winery representatives from the 28 wineries in the suit claim that allowing more arsenic in wine makes sense, because “people drink more water than wine… and water is the only beverage with an arsenic baseline that is monitored by the government.”

The wines were tested by Kevin Hicks, a former wine distributor who started a wine testing lab in Denver, known as BeverageGrades. Of the 1,300 California wines tested, around 1/4 of the bottles showed arsenic levels higher than the EPA’s allowable water level. The cheaper the wines, the higher the arsenic levels.

If you buy your wine from a health food store, that doesn’t mean you’re safe from high arsenic levels. Trader Joe’s Charles Shaw or “Two-Buck Chuck” made the list. Read below to see what other wines made the dangerous list.

Wines With High Arsenic Levels To Avoid

Acronym GR8RW Red Blend 2011
Almaden Heritage White Zinfandel, Moscato, Chardonnay, Mountain Burgundy, Rhine and Chablis
Arrow Creek Coastal Series Cabernet Sauvignon 2011
Bandit Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay
Bay Bridge Chardonnay
Beringer White Merlot 2011, White Zinfandel 2011, Red Moscato and Refreshingly Sweet Moscato
Charles Shaw White Zinfandel 2012
Colores del sol Malbec 2010
Glen Ellen by Concannon’s Glen Ellen Reserve Pinot Grigio 2012 and Merlot 2010
Concannon Selected Vinyards Pinot Noir 2011
Cook Spumante
Corbett Canyon Pinot Grigio and Cabernet Sauvignon
Cupcake Malbec 2011
Fetzer Moscato 2010 and Pinot Grigio 2011
Fisheye Pinot Grigio 2012
Flipflop Pinot Grigio 2012, Moscato and Cabernet Sauvignon
Foxhorn White Zinfdandel
Franzia Vitner Select White Grenache, White Zinfande, White Merlot and Burgundy
Hawkstone Rex Goliath’s Moscato
Korbel Sweet Rose Sparkling Wine and Extra Dry Sparkling Wine
Menage a Trois Pinot Grigio 2011, Moscato 2010, White Blend 2011, Chardonnay 2011, Rose 2011, Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 and California Red Wine 2011
Mogen David Concord and Blackberry Wine
Oak Leaf White Zinfandeal
Pomelo Sauvignon Blanc 2011
R Collection by Raymond’s Chardonnay 2012
Richards Wild Irish Rose Red Wine
Seaglass Sauvignon Blanc 2012
Simply Naked Moscato 2011
Smoking Loon Viognier 2011
Sutter Home Sauvignon Blanc 2010, Gewurztraminer 2011, Pink Moscato, Pinot Grigio 2011, Moscato, Chenin Blanc 2011, Home Sweet Red 2010, Riesling 2011, White Merlot 2011, Merlot 2011, White Zinfandel 2011, White Zinfandel 2012 and Zinfandel 2010
Trapiche Malbec 2012
Tribuno Sweet Vermouth
Vendange Merlot and White Zinfandel
Wine Cube Moscato, Pink Moscato 2011, Pinot Grigio 2011, Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay 2011, Chardonnay, Red Sangria, Sauvignon Blanc 2011 and Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz 2011