sulphur dioxide limit

English · EU limit for SO2 in sparkling wine

The EU caps total sulphur dioxide at 185 mg/L for quality sparkling wines and 235 mg/L for other sparkling wines; a wine labelled crémant may contain at most 150 mg/L.1,2

Sulphur dioxide is added in small amounts, for example at must settling, as an antiseptic and antioxidant.3 The limit depends on the category: the 185 mg/L ceiling covers all categories of quality sparkling wine, while plain sparkling wine may reach 235 mg/L.1 The stricter 150 mg/L figure is one of the conditions of the term crémant; German crémant and Crémant de Luxembourg apply the same maximum.2,4,5 The unit is explained under mg/L. All categories: EU categories.

See also

EU categories of sparkling wineMethodscrémantGlossarymg/L (SO2)Glossaryquality sparkling wineGlossary

Sources

  1. EUR-Lex. Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/934 (oenological practices), Articles 7-8 and Annex I (2019-03-12)
  2. legislation.gov.uk (copy of EU OJ text). Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33, Article 53 (terms referring to certain production methods), original version as adopted (2018-10-17)
  3. Comité Champagne (champagne.fr). Settling
  4. Regierungspräsidium Darmstadt, Dezernat Weinbau. Info-Blatt Sekt (Stand 01.12.2022) (2022-12-01)
  5. GOV.UK (Defra). Crémant de Luxembourg: protected food and drink names register (2021-03-10)

Facts checked on 2026-10-19