434612 Fri Aug 24 11:12:34 -0700 2007 16 34 Wine 0 2878009 Does anyone have a recommendation for an alcohol-free wine that might actually be tasty? Preferably white. Fri Aug 24 11:12:34 -0700 2007 81032 yeoyeo 1 2878028 No. Not even close. Go with water, ice tea or lemonade. Trying to find an alcohol-free "wine" is a profound waste of money. Fri Aug 24 11:16:59 -0700 2007 2878009 13225 FoodieJim 1 2879075 What's the point? When I am off wine for one reason or another, I make a drink of 1/2 pomegranate juice and 1/2 sparkling water served in a champagne flute. Fri Aug 24 15:37:44 -0700 2007 2878009 75002 Megiac 1 2879447 Alcohol free wine? What's next? Meat-free burgers. What's that, someone is actually selling this stuff? What's the world coming to :) Fri Aug 24 17:53:16 -0700 2007 2878009 22801 bkhuna 1 2879540 Years ago, my wife had some GI issues and could not have alcohol for months. In that time, we tried several alcohol-free wines and sparklers. She chose to NOT consume any of it, and wait. That was then, but I have not heard of anything good, along those lines, since. Hunt Fri Aug 24 18:34:37 -0700 2007 2878009 11329 Bill Hunt 1 2880016 I don't have any experience...when ordering some wine recently from Navarro I noticed they had a section of non-alcoholic and juices made from the grapes. Here's the link so you can check it out. http://www.navarrowine.com/shop/productlist.php?catid=2 Fri Aug 24 23:53:17 -0700 2007 2878009 104704 sweetnspicy 2 3683560 Juice and alcohol-free wine are two separate beasts, almost entirely. If one is looking for wine specifically, they are usually disappointed with juice (it's sweet, first off), and usually only just tolerant of de-alcoholized wine. However, our juice is made from grape varieties that are traditionally used for wine; Pinot Noir and Gewurztraminer. Many of the notes that one tastes in a finished wine are imparted by the grape, and duly found in the juice as well. It's not accurate to call it non-alcoholic wine, but it is misleading calling it just juice too. I prefer to think of it as not-yet-fermented wine. :) Tue May 13 13:21:36 -0700 2008 2880016 191954 NavarroVineyards 1 2880056 Part of the problem is that no sensible winery would take good wine, go to the trouble and expense to dealcoholize it and then have to sell it for less. Alcohol free wine is made from the worst your friendly vintner has to offer, stuff he can't sell any other way. Sat Aug 25 00:59:17 -0700 2007 2878009 41118 inuksuk 1 2882803 There are three methods used to produce alcohol-free wines: 1. Heat the wine to just below boiling, and literally vacuum away the alcohol molucluse (which have a lower boilingpoint than water). That ruins the wine's flavors. 2. "Spinning cone" technology -- http://www.conetech.com/SpinningConeColumn.html -- can strip away more than just the alcohol, as the alcohol molecules are "spun away." 3. Reverse osmosis forces the wine through a membrane to separate the alcohol from the rest of the wine. http://www.vinovation.com/custequip.htm This can be -- and is -- used to remove some of all of the wine's alcohol. They ALL alter the flavor and texture of the "wine." Navarro grape juice, iced tea, fruit-and-sparkling water mixtures -- all are MUCH better alternatives than "alcohol-free wine." Jason Sun Aug 26 10:37:31 -0700 2007 2878009 28122 zin1953 2 4775945 Today I was the "peanut gallery" at an interview taping of Anthony Dann. He was at Stanford, being interviewed for a video (promo?) for Stanford Hospital. Mr Dann had had a serious heart condition correctly diagnosed and successfully treated there, and was giving Stanford credit for giving him the renewed energy to take his company to new heights of success. He told of the initial scepticism of winemakers, but his company now services wineries worldwide with its alcohol-reduction technology. This man flies millions of miles back and forth around the world to all the major winemaking regions. He has been in the wine business for years. Surely he would not sell a tehcnology which would harm wine, nor would the winemakers allow their wines to be diminshed... I'd like your take on this, several years after the comment above. Do you still feel the same? Have you recently had any of the altered wines? I for one, would love to go back to the days of lower alcohol content. Hoping to hear a reply from you, you always have interesting and considered viewpoints. Mon Jun 15 18:26:22 -0700 2009 2882803 11234 toodie jane 3 4776136 Toodie, if you want lower alcohol, try German wine. Many are lower. Mon Jun 15 19:19:31 -0700 2009 4775945 322528 crw77 3 4783351 "Lower(ed) alcohol" is a VERY different thing than what to OP was asking about: "Alcohol-free." This, in turn, is very different (obviously) from non-alcoholic grape juice, such as that bottled by Navarro Vineyards (i.e.: Pinot Noir and Gewürztraminer grape juice). When it comes to beverages with less than 0.05 percent of alcohol -- essentially alcohol-free -- I'd opt for a glass of Navarro grape JUICE over a glass of St. Regis, Sutter Home Fré, Ariel or any other non-alcoholic WINE . . . EVERY time! Wines do not need to be 14, 15, or 16 percent alcohol to be delicious. Alcohol contributes more than just inebriation, and so (IMHO) one needs to be very careful in removing/lowering the alcohol. But it IS possible to do so without fatally damaging the wine. I would just prefer other options. Cheers, Jason Wed Jun 17 21:31:43 -0700 2009 4775945 28122 zin1953 1 3683793 From what I've experienced, alcohol free wine isn't a poor substitute for regular wine, it's a poor substitute for most grape juice. Tue May 13 14:16:26 -0700 2008 2878009 124704 Icantread 1 3790644 More-and-more wine growers are trying to make alcohol-free wines. Yes, the process of removing the alcohol is deleterious to the flavor, but for some people, such as my wife who loves wine, a recent diagnosis reveals that alcohol is dangerous to her health. We both love wine, so we are trying to find something that is, at least, palatable, as we are not obsessive oenophiles. So, here are two companies that are doing something better than Ariel or Sutter: 1. Eisberg (eisberg.co.uk) - A German wine producer that uses osmosis to remove the alcohol. 2. Carl Jung wines (carljungwines.com) - Also from Germany. They have been doing this for a century. You'll just have to check with local suppliers to see if they are available in your area. To get a better idea of what non-alcoholic wines are look at the lono.co.uk site, which sells a variety of non-alcoholic wines, albeit in the UK. And thanks to sweetnspicy for the Navarro suggestion. We have not tried their juices yet. Wed Jun 18 08:59:18 -0700 2008 2878009 201810 DuchampStaircase 2 3791022 >>> More-and-more wine growers are trying to make alcohol-free wines. <<< Then why have I not seen any ??? Wed Jun 18 10:24:38 -0700 2008 3790644 28122 zin1953 1 3793136 When I was pregnant... 11 years ago. All I drank was water, Navarro and my ONE GLASS OF WINE a WEEK!!!!! My husband and I were so happy those Sunday nights when I drank my ONE GLASS of wine. All the other non-alcoholic wines and beers just didn't measure up. Wed Jun 18 21:08:41 -0700 2008 2878009 180467 WineUnleashed 1 3795480 No, alas, herbal teas are probably your best bet. But depending on your motivation for not drinking, you might be better off slowly enjoying a half glass of wine then switching to sparkling water. Thu Jun 19 14:40:54 -0700 2008 2878009 177724 tmso