In the wonderful world of wine, 2025 is shaping up like a prizefight so far.
Just a few days into Dry January, a public health challenge in which people sign up to abstain from alcohol, the bell rang to start the first round. Into the ring strode the Surgeon General of the United States. He immediately threw a gut-wrenching punch to the wine industry. Alcohol, he announced – any amount of alcohol – increases your risk for seven types of cancer. Further, every alcoholic beverage should include this warning. (Source)
The wine industry reacted by questioning the science. Last month, the U.S.-based National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Health (NASEM) issued a report citing a 16% lower risk of all-cause mortality among those who consumed moderate levels of alcohol compared with those who never consumed alcohol. (Source)
Meanwhile, outside the main event, a growing number of health-conscious consumers, especially young consumers, are opting to abstain from alcohol year-round. The global non-alcoholic wine market is predicted to increase from a value of $2.57 billion in 2024 to $6.94 billion by 2034. (Source)
For our wine writers’ January theme, “Wine Topics of Interest for 2025,” the timing seemed right to explore non-alcoholic wines. I’ve been shifting my diet gradually toward plant-based foods. These foods tend to pair best with light-body, low-alcohol wines. But what about non-alcoholic wines? I was curious. Are you?
The set-up
Non-alcoholic wines are terra nova for me, so first, I needed recommendations. I found a 2024 Wine Enthusiast article by Maria Yagoda that, along with suggesting sparkling, red and white non-alcoholic wines, explains the four approved methods for removing alcohol from wine: vacuum distillation, reverse osmosis, spinning cone distillation and thermal gradient processing.
Vacuum distillation and reverse osmosis are the most common methods. In vacuum distillation, the beverage is heated to the point where the alcohol evaporates – being careful, of course, not to cook the wine. Reverse osmosis uses water to strain out the alcohol molecules through a filter.
My next step was to find two of the recommended wines. I was able to locate a 2023 Lumina Napa Valley Red Blend and a Giesen 0% Dealcoholized Pinot Gris from New Zealand, and many other non-alcoholic wines, at our local Total Wine. The article recommended the Giesen premium red, but hey, you do what you can do.
The wines
Giesen uses the spinning cone technique to dealcoholize this wine. This method uses spinning cone-shaped columns in a form of low-temperature vacuum distillation. The alcohol is pushed upwards, centrifuged, as it were, so that the wine remains at the bottom of the cone. (Source)
“This advanced form of distillation allows us to handle the wine gently, maintaining the integrity of our distinctive flavor palate and texture throughout the process,” Giesen states. (Source)
All Giesen wines contain no more than 0.5% alcohol by volume – “about the same levels that naturally occur in fruit juice.” Ingredients are listed on the label: dealcoholized wine (94%), grape juice (6%), sulfur dioxide.
- My tasting notes: Enticing aromas of white flowers, pear and grape (the website notes muscat grape, but I get white grape juice). Mostly grape juice and citrus on the palate, not what I expected after sniffing the wine. Short finish. Price: $12.99.
Luminara’s 2022 red blend consisted of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petite Syrah and 6% “Red Blend.” Ingredients listed on the 2023 vintage include “dealcoholized premium red wine, grape concentrate, natural flavors, sodium benzoate, potassium sorbate and potassium metabisulfite.” Luminara uses proprietary spinning cone technology. Remaining alcohol is less than 0.5%. The finished wine is aged in both French and American oak. (Source)
- My tasting notes: Blackberry, black cherry, a hint of violet and some baking spices on the nose. Once again, the palate surprised me. I got sour cherry and a grapey taste. High acidity. Short finish. Price: $19.99
I paired both wines with polenta topped with fresh tomato ragu and sauteed oyster mushrooms. The pairing didn’t enhance either the wine or the food. Over several days, I got accustomed to drinking these two non-alcoholic wines. Of course, it’s impossible to know whether I’d like other non-alcoholic wines without expanding this experiment. But for now, I’m going to stick to low-alcohol wines – pét-nat (a natural sparkling wine), Brachetto d’Acqui, Vinho Verde.
What else are the bloggers investigating? Let’s have a look:
- Andrea of The Quirky Cork visits Albania: A New Wine Frontier
- Terri of Our Good Life explores The Unveiling of Red Wine’s Hidden Health Benefits and the Surgeon General’s No-Alcohol Stance
- Gwendolyn of wine predator is Celebrating the New Year the Armenian Way: Ghapama and Lamb Kebabs Paired with Areni Wine from Yacoubian-Hobbs
- Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm is Exploring a Dealcoholized Wine
- Camilla of Culinary Cam discusses From Xers to Zoomers: Exploring the Decline in Wine Consumption + Our Thanksgiving Wines from Tablas Creek
- Jeff of Food Wine Click! explores Hot Topics: A Zero Alcohol Primer
- Jennifer of Vino Travels showcases The Alcohol Removed Wines of Starla
- Linda of My Full Wine Glass asks What’s all the hubbub about non-alcoholic wine?
- Robin of Crushed Grape Chronicles explains Wine and Food Pairings – exploring the logic and the science
From what I have read and tasted so far, I’m not leaning into dealcoholized wines. Perhaps it is perception, they don’t end up tasting like what we expected.
I do think there is a place for beverages of this type. Something that has the impact of a bottle of wine, a beverage shared, without the alcohol.
On a political note, I feel the surgeon general is leaning a bit far. All things in moderation. We are surrounded by things containing carcinogens…from non organic produce to the chemicals in processed foods, to often even tap water. There a socioeconomic issues here also. Additives in less expensive mass produced alcohol products are likely not so good for your health and people who drink excessively are likely to have health issues from lifestyle choices beyond alcohol.
Moderating your alcohol intake is a responsible thing to do and that looks different for everyone. But the Surgeon General saying that no amount of alcohol is safe? That takes it to an extreme.
Well said, Robin. Carcinogens are indeed everywhere, including in our water, sad to say. I’m glad there are alternatives for people who truly need them and want to be included in fun social activities. I will continue to drink in moderation.
Wine has been around forever and is sourced from natural ingredients. I would look more at the chemicals being used to grow the grapes (and all produce) as the source of cancers before attributing it to the alcohol content. That being said I will continue to drink, sustainably grown, organic wines that contain alcohol. The Luminara was very disappointing to me as well.
I totally agree with you! I’m in favor of growing grapes sustainably and having rules that require producers to list ingredients on their labels.
Thanks for the explanation of how the alcohol is removed by those two processes. Honestly, given that non-alcoholic wines aren’t a need of mine, I haven’t paid much attention. But I appreciate the details. Though, after reading your thoughts, I will definitely steer clear of the Luminara. Cheers, Linda!
I was curious about non-alcoholic wines. Somehow I thought that because they are actual wines, these non-alcohol wines would taste similar. That’s not the case! I was surprised. By the way, I felt the same way about both non-alcohol wines I tried.
If there’s one takeaway for me, it’s that we can’t expect these products to taste even close to a well made wine. That said, I continue to search for some that taste good in their own way for friends who aren’t consuming alcohol, whatever the reason.