French ready to put wine in gas tanks
The worldwide glut of wine has become so huge that for the first time in history, France is distilling some of its higher-rated wines into fuel. France has periodically turned oceans of lowly table wines into vinegar and ethanol. But bottles of quality French wine have been piling up on supermarket shelves and in vineyard cellars across the country, to the point that some of it is now cheaper than bottled water.
Earlier this eyar, France asked the European Union to approve the distillation of 150 million liters of the country’s Appellation d’Origine Controlée wine. By the end of the year, 100 million liters - enough for 133 million bottles - will have been turned into crystal-clear ethanol.
The ethanol is sold to oil refineries, which use it as an additive that they mix into their gasoline.
Source: New York Times (free registration required).
