All the medallists from the Low and No Alcohol Wine Masters
By Patrick Schmitt
We reveal all the medal-winning brands from December’s Low and No Alcohol Wine Masters in which Australia, France and Spain took home Gold medals, using residual sugar and bubbles to compensate for the absence of alcohol.
Alcohol brings brings richness and sweetness to wine, so removing it can leave a thin and tart result without compensatory measures
AS WITH all our Global Wine Masters competitions, an extensive tasting provides not only a chance to pick out the stars, but also to perform a health check on the category in question. In this case, the sector is one that’s relatively new and fast-growing – no and low alcohol wine.
Attracting much interest at the moment from the wine world, following the success of alcohol-free spirits and beer, it’s hoped that wine can benefit from the increasing number of consumers who want to drink, but not consume any alcohol – or a reduced quantity. This could be for any number of reasons, and could see them choose a less alcoholic alternative, or one with none of the hard stuff in it whatsoever. It may also see them flit between the two, going for a full-strength drink for one round, and then a no- or low-alcohol drop as a means to moderate their intake.
However they approach the category, and whatever their motives for going no or low, it’s obviously important that the products taste good. And it seems, judging by this year ’s tasting, and by our inaugural competition for the sector in 2022, that creating palatable wine with lower or no alcohol is difficult. The problem stems in particular from alcohol’s role in providing body and sweetness. Take it out, and a wine can taste thin and tart. Furthermore, in the case of red wines specifically, where tannins are present at high levels, an absence of alcohol can leave the wine not only tasting weedy and acidic, but unpleasantly grainy too, leaving one with a drying sensation on the finish.
So what are the solutions? It involves finding ways to introduce a full and smooth mouthfeel to a wine, whatever the colour. The techniques are myriad, but a common approach is replacing the alcohol with some form of sweetness – and, as a result, many of the top-scoring samples had at least some residual sugar in them. Bubbles help too, with the fizz bringing a creamy texture to the mid-palate, and – if there is sweetness in the wine – a refreshing and cleansing feel to the finish.
However, the most impressive to my mind were those with very low levels and zero alcohol, because such samples were closest in style to a standard wine. Indeed, Cordier, Australian Vintage and Oddbird showed that it is possible to create a convincing zero-alcohol alternative to full-strength wine – something that a few years ago I wasn’t sure was possible. Opting for such wines still represents a compromise in terms of taste and texture, but it’s not a disappointment.
As for the low- and lower-alcohol wines that stood out for quality, these tended to be more wine-like – even 5.5% ABV makes a big difference to the character. But I couldn’t help feeling that the wines from 5.5% to 9% do have existing competition in the marketplace from longstanding wines that haven’t been doctored or deliberately made for a particular purpose. By that I mean Moscato d’Asti in fizz and, among still white wines, Mosel Rieslings. The difference, though, with these wines is that they are not marketed specifically as low- and lower-alcohol wines – they are just great, unique products that happen to have a low ABV.
With high-quality judges and a unique sampling process, The Global Low and No Masters provides a chance for your wines to star. The 2023 competition was judged on 6 December at Aspen & Meursault in London, employing experienced judges. The top wines were awarded Gold, Silver or Bronze medals according to their result, and those expressions that stood out as being outstanding received the ultimate accolade – the title of Low and No Master. This report features the medal winners only. Please visit The Global Wine Masters website for more information or, to enter future competitions – giving you the chance to feature online and in print – please call: +44 (0) 20 7803 2420 or email Sophie Raichura at: sophie@thedrinksbusiness.com
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