Guest Columns
Non-Alcoholic Wines : Tom C. Zom
For health reasons I stopped drinking alcoholic beverages about seven years ago. This, not smoking, the Mediterranean diet, olive oil in place of butter, skim milk, and regular exercise, has improved my health to the point where my physical age is around 52 or 54 (as opposed to my actual 70). But to maintain the healthful effects of moderate consumption of red wine, I searched for an alcohol-free substitute.
According to the labels on the bottles and their website (www.frewines.com), Fre wines are made by separating real wine into alcohol (discarded or maybe used for tractor fuel; they don't say), lower-boiling point components, and higher-boiling point components (althought the wine is cleverly evaporated, not boiled). The third component may be further concentrated by evaporation of some of the water. Then the non-alcoholic components are re-mixed, with the possible addition of water and/or unfermented grape juice. Or (my opinion) possibly other fruit juices, at least to the extent that California labeling laws permit.
Fre wines are widely available nationwide and may be bought online. Our local groceries carry several of the varieties. We sampled Chardonnay and Merlot. Note that the Chardonnay label says "27 per cent juice" and the Merlot label says "20 per cent juice."
Because the Chardonnay has a hint of Seyval Blanc and a strong suggestion of Riesling or possibly Gewurtztraminer (or both), I suspect that these have been blended into the grape juice additive. On a scale of 0 to 10 for taste I'd give it a 6. It does not taste much like "real" Chardonnay.
The Fre Merlot is more complex. Both the aftertaste and bouquet give a very strong sensation of raspberry. There are other, more elusive, aromas --- possibly blackberry and pear --- but they are overwhelmed by the raspberry. The taste and aroma are therefore rather perfumed, much like an old lady's elderberry wine. It is drinkable but I would not buy it unless nothing else were available. Perhaps a 3 out of 10.
Inglenook (www.inglenook.com,)makes the St. Regis label, available locally in the Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, and sparkling (they call it "Champagne"). These are quite inexpensive and relatively good as alcohol-free wines go. In the order listed, I'd rate them as a 7 (a slightly bitter aftertaste), an 8 (slightly bland), and 8 (the tiny bubbles suggest bottle fermentation, although it must be the bulk process).
Ariel (a division of J. Lohr) make a number of alcohol-free wines, with restricted local availability but which can be ordered online (www.arielvineyards.com). In my opinion, these are the best, and seem to be made by a different process that preserves the "fine wine" taste as well as could be expected. I have tried the Merlot (8 out of 10), the Cabernet Sauvignon (9), the champagne-style Brut Cuvee (9), Ariel Blanc (7), the Ariel Rouge (7), and the Chardonnay (9 out of 10). The Brut Cuvee is so good that many people I've shared it with (without telling them it is dealcoholized) believe it to be better than most French Champagnes.
Note that "alcohol free," "alcohol removed," and "dealcoholized" are not, strictly, synonymous terms, but have been applied to all these wines --- all of which contain less that 0.5 per cent alcohol: about the same as freshly squeezed orange juice.
For reliable information on the health effects of "alcohol-free" red wine, see the article "Alcohol-Free Red Wine Enhances Plasma Antioxidant Capacity in Humans" in the Journal of Nutrition Vol. 18, No. 6, June 1998, pp. 1003--1007. The article may be found online (one of the few URLs it's possible to understand).