Soft, ductile precious metal (lat. aurum) that does not oxidise with oxygen. According to Greek mythology, everything that the Assyrian king Midas (around 738-696 BC) touched immediately turned into gold; the same was true of wine. Even in Roman antiquity, it was customary to add the finest gold leaf to food and drink. It was said to have an aphrodisiac effect. In India, it is still customary today to decorate the rice at a feast with gold or silver leaf. In this way, the host proves how valuable his guests are to him. In restaurants, gold leaf is sprinkled on risotto and used to decorate lamb and other dishes. In this form and quantity, it is guaranteed harmless, food-safe and also safe to eat. Gold leaf is wafer-thin and is already swirled up by a breath.
Gold in winemaking
Scientists at Flinders University and the AWRI (Australian Wine Research Institute) developed a method to remove unwanted sulphur aromas from wine. These cause the wine defect Böckser (sulphur boil). Nanoparticles of gold were used for this purpose, which bind to the sulphur compounds in the wine. In the experiments, up to 45% of the free hydrogen sulphide could be removed from the wine. The nanoparticles were also effective in removing more complex sulphur compounds such as ethanethiol. The method is more effective than the traditional treatment with copper sulphate and, in contrast, also has no negative impact on taste. There is potential for use in filtration equipment, aeration equipment, decanting equipment, packaging materials or closures.
Addition of gold leaf in alcoholic beverages
There are producers who add finest gold leaf to alcoholic be verages such as spirits or sparkling wines for purely marketing purposes. One of these is the Austrian sparkling wine producer Inführ in the town of Klosterneuburg in Lower Austria. A 23-carat gold leaf is added to the sparkling wine brand "Österreich Gold".
Grape variety
There is also a new variety called Gold.
