merlot bloody merlot

Try something made from Sangiovese.

I cannot address the compounds in Merlot, or most other wines, for that matter

- Calling Mark Lipton!

However, I experience similar problems with Pinot Noir. I love many examples of that varietal, from Burg clones, to those of CA and WA/OR. However, with the same general quantity of PN, as most other wines, reds & whites, I awake with a headache. I hate it, as I love PN's. I just try and schedule my day a tad later, if I know I'm doing a PN-tasting, or heading to a favorite FR restaurant, where the Burgs are likely to flow.

Now, my wife suffers GI problems with most reds, except (as UC stated) Sangiovese, and Zinfandel. Why this is, is beyond my comprehension. I'm just offering these antecdotal ruminations to show that you have company, though maybe not with regards to Merlot. OTOH, I probably do fewer Merlots, than many other red varietals.

Hunt

I get headaches with wines at times but never seems to be a particular wine that does it. Reds more so than whites. I used to think it was sulfites but someone else here pointed out that its whites that should have higher sulfites.

Easy to solve. Don't drink Merlot! To me it's a rather non-descript wine lacking much complexity or depth. Theres also a glut of crap Merlot at least in the USA market because its more or less become a entry level wine. I have found a few Merlots that are truly great but its a rarity. In those cases the winemaker broke from the traditional Merlot style. Its a grape that needs to go back to whats its good for. Blending!

Perhaps, you are head over heels in love with Merlot and you drink more of it than you usually do with other wines.

Karen

A lot of people seem to get headaches from red wine. There are a lot of articles on the web about it.

Here is one:

Try taking an aspirin before drinking your merlot, see if it helps.