Infographic: How Many Calories Are You Drinking?

This isn't something we ever normally talk about on Vinspire - but I did think this was an issue worth raising.

When it comes to drinks knowledge, the people that read Vinspire tend to know a fair bit more than the average person - about the different styles/types of drinks available, about how these drinks are made, and about the best ways to enjoy their favourites.

So I'm guessing if we know what goes into our drinks, we'll have a fair idea about what we're putting into our body, and that includes alcohol's calories and sugar. Right?

Well, I'm not too sure. I mean, I've been an avid wine lover for ten years now, but it's only been in the last few years that I've really got to grips with the calorie content in wine, and I was shocked by how high it is.

I've recently been on a bit of a health kick - nothing too drastic, just making sure I'm eating a balanced and healthy diet, getting my 5-a-day, drinking more water and doing more exercise, and that's meant I've had to keep track of what I drink too.

Being on a diet really makes the calories in booze hit home: did you know that if you have just one regular (175ml) glass of 13% wine with your dinner, you're adding 159 calories?

And if you go to a restaurant with a friend and share a bottle of wine (something we all do occasionally, I'm sure) then you're both adding 360 calories to your meal?

A gin and slimline tonic is just 63 calories by comparison (if you have 25ml gin and 100ml slimline tonic) and a 330ml bottle of beer is 112 calories.

It really helps to see it in an easy to understand format, so I've created a little infographic for you, using calorie information from this DrinkAware Calorie and Unit Calculator (and Tesco for the mixer information):

Feel free to share it! 

And if you want more information, have a look at this wine calorie infographic from Wine Folly:

Lastly, for some fun food comparisons, have a look at the DrinkAware calorie infographic:

Were you as clueless about this as I was until recently? Would you change your drinking habits to reduce your calorie intake? Let me know in the comments (and please do feel free to share to infographic I created above.)