Why Do Sulphites Get Added To Wine

Same reason they get added to packaged salads, shrimp, dried fruit, fruit juice, salad dressings, etc., etc., etc. :-|

It is an antioxydant (there, that should set people off buying wines for health reasons...) :-)))

Also to kill microorganisms at various key points in winemaking, e.g. prior to innoculation with cultured yeasts for fermentation, and prior to bottling to prevent fermentation in the bottle.

Lucan Salem wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@foodbanter.com:

If someone claims to be selling a "sulfite-free" wine they are lying to you. There are plently of wines with no added sulfites, but sulfites are a natural by-product of fermentation. A wine may have no sulfites added to it, but it is not free of sulfites.

Fred.