From: utzoo!decvax!harpo!npoiv!hou5f!hou5b!hou5c!hou5e!hou5a!jhc Newsgroups: net.cooks Title: 60 Mins preservative revealed Article-I.D.: hou5a.314 Posted: Sun Mar 20 18:13:23 1983 Received: Wed Mar 23 20:25:37 1983 The preservative mentioned on 60 Minutes as being the possible cause of asthmatic attacks in ceratin people allergic to it is.... Sodium Bisulphite The Na ion isn't important (unless you're on a low....) This stuff, as Sodium MetaBisulphite (NaHSO3, complexed (hence the 'meta')) has been used for centuries for sterilizing/fumigating wine bottles. In all probability, it still is. That's REAL wine, not that Californian muck. It's SOP for use (especially for red wine) in France and Italy, and for anyone who is bottling their own wine into re-used bottles. Jonathan Clark ABI Holmdel [houx*|lime]!hou5a!jhc