June 26, 2015Conrad (The Wine Wankers)

Red wine stain remover vs white wine

wine wankers chateau spill red wine stain removerI recently received some samples of Chateau Spill, a specially formulated red wine stain remover from the USA. These guys claim that their product will remove red wine spills and stains without leaving a “hangover” ie, residue mess. Apparently Wired Magazine have stated that Chateau Spill is “inarguably the best” at removing red wine stains.

First impression… what an awesome label, great marketing!

Now, I could have ended up just testing the product and writing a product review but that’s kinda lazy (although I do quite enjoy being lazy at times). I posted out to social media that I had received the product and thankfully a few people came back with things along the lines of “you can just use white wine to get rid of red wine spills”. Ahhh, so there’s the blog post…. stain remover vs white wine!

wine wankers chateau spill red wine stain remover 1wine wankers chateau spill red wine stain remover vs white wine

So I did four tests (spills) onto a cotton towel so that I was using something in between clothes and carpet. The first two tests were conducted on fresh wet spills using Chateau Spill and white wine to try and remove the spills. The subsequent two tests were after the wine had settled for over half an hour.

And the results? …

Well I can’t say that Chateau Spill is “inarguably the best” at removing red wine stains because I haven’t tried many other similar removers but I can say it works pretty well. I had to give both stains a good rub’n with a wet cloth, and on both sides of the towel because the red wine had penetrated right through, but Chateau Spill did the job well and left no obvious residue (but see bottom section of post). Interestingly, the drier of the spills came off easier but I wouldn’t wait around for the spill to totally dry.

And what about white wine? Well I can tell you that a Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc Semillon, that is way too good to use for this test, lightens the stain but still leaves behind a red residue mark. So I wouldn’t rely on this style of white wine to remove your red wine spill, I’d just sit there and drink it while crying over the lost red wine.

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In the image above there are four spill areas and the shot is while all four are still wet, just so you can clearly see where the stains were. Number 1 is spill then immediate stain remover. Number 2 is spill then immediate white wine. Number 3 is spill, wait over half an hour, then stain remover. Number 4 is spill, wait, then white wine. Note that using a wet cloth, quite wet, was an important part of the process and the bottom two spills are wetter because of they were done later.

Below is the dry towel. The left side, ie Chateau Spill, dried leaving no dark residue but I still think there’s some slight shadowing although that’s possibly due to the water and rubbing. The right side, ie white wine, clearly wasn’t successful.

wine wankers chateau spill red wine stain remover vs white wine 5

So what did I learn? Most importantly, spilling wine makes me sad. Please, don’t spill wine, it is precious! And spilling wine on purpose is just nuts, unless they deserve it of course! 😉

Author: Conrad

45 comments

  2. Conrad, I have successfully removed red wine from material by pouring boiling water through it when the stain is fresh. It depends on the material of course, as to whether you can subject it to boiling water, but it works because that is also the remedy for fruit stains (blueberry, raspberry, etc.). If it is on a rug or furniture, I still pour the boiling water on it slowly and then blot (not rub) repeatedly with a clean cloth to remove the water.

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  3. Hilarious! I too think all spills are punishable by wine death – no wine for a week!!! Thanks for being a test subject, I will pass and make sure to keep my wine in glass (either one) or my body!

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  8. Spilling wine is a cardinal sin. However, it does happen – occasionally – and usually in the middle of some or other gathering when one’s trying to impress…. When it does, I’m not going to waste white wine on it – ever. I use either large quantities of salt (not coarse, but fine) to soak it up or soda water (which we always have) if it’s dry. If that leaves a residual stain, I then use another proprietary stain remover – either liquid or powder (doesn’t matter which one) – and the carpet is as good as new. It does work – 30-odd years of practice…. No need for fancy marketing or labelling or to have a special product that you might rarely use, cluttering up the cupboard. Rather use the space for wine….

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  9. When you spill red or white wine, use lemon juice to remove the stain immediately! Works for me every time. Grapefruit juice works too! Then rinse the stained area with cold water. If no lemon juice is available & you are dining at a restaurant or someone’s home, rub the red or white wine stain with a piece of ice to help prevent the stain from setting into the fabric. Hope this helps!

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  10. Club Soda (which is just a brand of carbonated water) will also remove red wine stains and most other deep stains. You have to use it right away – and liberally – and let it sit for five minutes. Mop it up with a cloth and you’re done. 🙂 But spilling red wine – what a shame!

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  11. Interesting product and test, Conrad – but I agree with you, the best thing is to just try not to spill any in the first place and avoid the waste of some good wine! 😉

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  12. I love the bottle, I think I would buy it just for the bottle. Fortunately I have no carpet in my house except in guest bedrooms (usually my guests don’t take wine to bed). Clothing on the other hand, that might be a good experiment.

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  13. Only in the U.S they would come up with something like this, quite fascinating really. But what do you do you go to the restaurant or bar with the bottle of spill removal stuck in your pants just in case?….. I agree with your last assessment as to what you learned, just don´t spill the wine, specially if it´s mine!!

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  14. That would make me sad spilling wine on purpose. While its a bummer to get a wine stain on any fabic or favorite item of clothing, that is just a little accident that happens from time to time. No biggie!

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  15. Hi Conrad: Sorry we’ve been ghosts as of late, but we’ve finally finished book 2 in our P-7 series so we’re back in the blogosphere visiting our old haunts. Your blog being one of them. What a way to bring in the reunion too. Luv this post. However, my idea for cleaning up red wine is simply the best. Don’t spill a drop of that delicious grape!!! lol But if your tipsy & happen to drop a bit, definitely don’t waste the white!!! 😉 All kidding aside, I wasn’t aware that there was anything like this and the marketing & name is pretty brilliant!!! Our best friend & drinking buddy, (Dawn) got us into wine these past three years and we’ve truly enjoyed it. We refer to her as the “Sangria Queen” but she’s always bringing in new wines for us to try; more recently during our trip to Myrtle Beach. I’m sure she’ll love this post as we did. Sharing it now. 😉

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  19. FUNNY!! Love this post. As a Costume Designer & Film set professional, it is a necessary skill to be able to remove stains…. sometimes on the spot with the entire crew watching…. waiting… money ticking away.
    Firstly. I 100% agree that spilling wine is a drag, and if it’s good wine, a few tears are in order. However, tears do not remove the stain.
    Secondly, have the actors not drink red wine on set. It is very hard to remove on the spot … however, regular grape juice is just as bad. Have the actors drink clear liquids only.
    Third and finally, wear a 100% cotton shirt while drinking red wine. Bleach will take care of that stain…. lickity split. Oh.put shirt in washer with water and said bleach. Do not attempt to remove stain w/o a tub of water.
    Hope this is helpful! 🙂

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  20. Oops! That would be a white, 100% cotton shirt. DO NOT BLEACH COLORED SHIRTS!
    Bleach is hard on the environment, so once again good & proper non-spill techniques are really the way to go!

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  21. […] It is always a pity to spill wine, especially great wine but sometimes it does happen and can be frustrating. Conrad, from the Wine Wankers, a hugely successful Australian site, has written about the subject and sampled a red wine stain remover called Chateau Spill. What difference is there to using white wine to remove the stains? You can see the results here.You can see the difference in results here. […]

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  22. Here’s a query for you and your readers, Conrad: How to get a red wine stain out of porous white wallpaper? In one grand gesture an unnamed guest swept a favorite wineglass containing a goodly amount of some excellent Saint Emilion into the wall. I tried soap and water, then bleach. Next up is paint, or the possible necessary replacement of the wallpaper! Any other ideas?

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  23. I once had to use half a bottle of Saint-Jean-de-Minervois muscat to remove a red wine spill on a sofa – I was bereft at the time, but the sofa came up clean!! In France a brand called Eau Ecarlate produce an aerosol spray stain remover which is very effective on red wine stains, even dried on. It even worked on a painted wall when someone knocked over a glass. Needless to say, they were never invited back 😀

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