Why do some wines and not others attract fruit flies?
Asked by
Dog (
25152
)
November 14th, 2009
When my friends and I last went camping each of us brought a variety of different bottles of wine to try.
Each evening we opened a different bottle and some nights the wine seemed to lure fruit flies while other nights nary a fly was to be seen.
The flies did not seem to have a preference as far as white or red nor were they elitists or snobs as they chose to haunt wine from both low and high price ranges.
Any ideas on what it was that attracted them?
By the way any guess is welcome- even if in humor.
:)
Observing members:
0
Composing members:
0
9 Answers
was it the sweet wines that attracted them, or the dry wines? Seems sweet wines would be more ‘fruity’ and therefore, more likely to attract fruit flies. This would help in figuring out what was going on with those pesky fruit flies.
by the way, my favorite wine is pinot grigio, what is your favorite?
@Psychedelic_Zebra (resisting the urge to humorously reply with “anything with a cork” :) )
I tend toward the reds- Merlot and Cabernet are my staples along with paper-thin slices of fine gouda. However lately I have ventured over to Prosecco and find it very nice as well.
Regarding the camping one night the wine of choice for our insect guests was very dry.
That’s odd, your insect guests might have Mediterranean origins.
I should have been more observant really. In college we studied the eye differences and I wonder if the fruit flies with the red eyes were attracted to red and white to white. ~Hey… If I write this up I might get a government grant to study this!
I would bet a dollar that it has to do with the amount of CO2 in the bottle. I believe that fruit flies are attracted to it and it is heavier than air so some would be stuck in the bottle.
insects in your wine can be a good thing, say, if your diet is low in protein.
Otherwise, they can drive you buggy. Or drive you to drink with your eyes closed.
What I find especially annoying about those little buggers (besides having them swimming in my wine, of course) is how they like the yeasty smell of bread & get inside the wrapper while I’m not looking.
Interesting! I think @johnpowell and @ccrow are onto something here. Doesn’t yeast produce the CO2 ?
Answer this question 
This question is in the General Section. Responses must be helpful and on-topic.
Composing members:
0
