Sure, they both get you drunk – but are there any other benefits from wine or beer? Laura Dannen gets the low-down and teaches you how to live longer as a drinker

Nutrients
Wine drinkers have reason to be cocky. “Red wine is higher in antioxidants than white wine or beer,” says registered dietitian Debra Waldoks. “Cabernet sauvignon is the highest.” Processed with the skin of the grapes, the reds have more tannin, a type of antioxidant also found in tea. White wine and beer (particularly dark beer) also contain antioxidants, but not tto the extent of red wine.

Waldoks notes that beer may have one up on vino, however, as a recent study showed that it may help you on the calcium front. “That’s kind of a hot topic right now,” she says. “Beer might protect your bone density by allowing calcium to deposit in the bones.”

Verdict: That recent study was done by Brits – leave it to them to find new ways to defend brew. Wine takes this one.

Effect on vital organs
Research has shown that moderate alcohol consumption can reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes, and increase good cholesterol. Also, remember the antioxidant factor, which gives red wine the edge. But don’t count on alcohol to protect your heart if you’re scarfing down a Big Mac a day, says Dr Susan Kleiner, author of The Good Mood Diet.

“You don’t drink alcohol to be healthy,” she chides. “The biggest impact it’ll have is as a stress reducer,” but going for a run and stopping those 12-hour workdays is the better idea.

Verdict: When it comes to your organs, wine has it by a nose.

Calories
You know the answer already, but remember the numbers the next time you’re out: a 355ml can of beer typically has 153 calories, while a can of light (or “lite”) beer weighs in at around 103 calories, Waldoks says (a pint clocks in at 200). Compare that to a 150ml glass of wine – red or white – which has around 100 calories (white’s a little lighter).

Verdict: Yep, it’s wine again, fatties.

Drunkenness
Different factors can contribute to how quickly you get drunk – imbibing on an empty stomach, or chugging beers versus sipping shiraz. Ultimately, it comes down to simple math when pitting a 355ml bottle of beer against a 150ml glass of wine, which have comparable alcohol contents, says Kleiner.

“You only have 355ml of fluid versus a 150ml, so you should get drunker faster drinking wine,” Kleiner says. “[Wine] is more concentrated. You could say that it’s twice as much alcohol for the same amount of fluid. That’s the best way to look at it, if you’re going to compare apples to apples.”

Verdict: Beer – because you can last longer

Attractiveness
Both beverages have some unseemly side effects (besides beer goggles). Brews are naturally carbonated, of course, thanks to the carbon dioxide produced by yeast during fermentation. Hence that bloated feeling and the there’s-no-way-to-make-this-silent farts. On the flip side, wine can give you skanky breath and magenta teeth.

Verdict: No one wins here. No one at all.

Final tally?
Red wine comes out on top – again. So pop a cork, grab a tongue scraper, and l'chayim!

Other stories in this feature:

Wine and beer in Hong Kong

Critic face-off

Best bars for wine in Hong Kong

Best bars for beer in Hong Kong

To your health