Anyone got any recommendations?
Saw a bottle of Shiraz AF in Aldi for 2.99 the other day and thought I'd give it a go (having never tried af wine before.) Unsurprisingly, it's rank. But are there any good ones!?
Some good ones white or rose. The reds seem to lack body. It's the one thing I really miss, a good red.
Tried it once, it was just like er.... plain grape juice. Nice enough but soon got bored with it.
M and S Fizzero alcohol free prosecco is plenty drinkable and better than some cheap prosecco.
https://www.marksandspencer.com/food/fizzero/p/fdp60203527#intid=pid_pg1pip96g2r4c2
I've tried lots over the years and yet to find a truly decent one. Someone In know quite likes the Kylie fizzy one however, not tried it yet. I heard on a podcast that quite a few wineries are putting serious money into it looking to capture the non alcohol drinking Middle East market. Still waiting though!
The Gordons alcohol free gin is very good but I tried 1 alcohol free whisky substitute and it was undrinkable
I'm after a good attempt at a red really. This Shiraz smells like a wine, at first it kind of tastes passable, then you swallow it and it's like having swallowed a load of dishwater. I wonder if it's because there's the expectation of the alcohol bite, which never hits 🧐
My friend was off the booze for a year for medical reasons and she went AF.
She says the Zeno liberated red was the only one that was anywhere near drinkable. She tried a lot!
I dipped a toe into this recently. The first one I tried was Not Guilty red. I was expecting Shloer, I was shocked at how good it was.
I'm wholly unsurprised that a discount supermarket own-brand AF wine at sub-£3 wasn't great. I made that mistake once with bourbon, it was really good for cleaning paintbrushes.
. I wonder if it's because there's the expectation of the alcohol bite
I've heard it said that AF beer tastes like beer because beer has a low enough ABV that the alcohol is not a big part of the flavour profile whereas it is with wine. So there might be nice tasting AF wines out there but they're not going to replicate the taste of normal wine.
Is there not a fundamental difference between wine and beer that you can brew an af beer but you have to make wine and strip it of alcohol so you lose the flavours that are attached to the volatiles or something.
I was pretty pissed when it was explained to me.
I know it's not wine but M&S do a non alcoholic gin and tonic which is just excellent. When I do my alcohol free month, it's my go to tipple. I gave up on AF wines-just couldn't find one I liked.
I really like the German Enduro magazine. And they’re also wine fans and coffee snobs. They recently had one test for alcohol free red wine, and another episode for AF white wine. From memory, all of the reds were crap, but some of the whites approached being drinkable.
I went to Booths today, the only red they had in was "No regrets" which is an annoying name. £6.
It tastes less dish watery than the Aldi Shiraz, but it's pretty much just like strong Robinsons apple & blackcurrant squash.
I'll keep an eye out for the recommendations above
Having tried many, and even had a alcohol free wine tasting at a 2 Michelin starred restaurant, I concluded that there is no good red ones. Fizz is OK, and certainly drinkable, and I found a rare white one that was passable. But the reds just didn't work at all.
Madame has been making kombucha for the last few years and the various flavour profiles very from fruity to sharp. Clearly they are not wine but the less sweet flavours can have a taste and mouth feel that works with food. Some are more beery than af beer.
I've tried a few af wines, very disappointed. Af champagne at Christmas was particularly unpleasant - much too sweet, as are most I've tried
McGuigans AF red is what the wife drinks. It's not horrendous
So, to sum up the above responses, there's no such thing as a good alcohol free wine!
(My personal experience is the same, never found a drinkable one).
I think the trick with alcohol free stuff - or anything you're substituting really if you have to cut out certain food types - is go with something unfamiliar. If you drink an alcohol free version of a type of wine you normally like then you're more acutely aware of how different it is even if the difference is actually pretty subtle. If you don't drink alcohol at all thats less of a problem but if you do and you're looking for an occasional alternative - drink the alcohol free version of a type of booze you don't normally drink - its easier to enjoy it for what it is rather than finding your comparing it to your normal tipple.
McGuigan Zero Shiraz is an acceptable one to me, and more commonly available in shops. I've spent more on posher stuff but just tasted like watered down fruit juice.
Don't know about whites though, I just go for red. I've replaced white with cider for dishes I'd drink that with, and Thatchers zero is pretty good IMO.
Lots of AF beers are vile to me. I currently go with Corona Cero which is almost spot on if more a larger. I know Guinness AF gets good reviews, but I don't really like Guinness.
AF booze for me is about psychology. I drink with food basically and have it in my head that certain food needs certain drinks. I could just go with juice but I can't get my head around that, but AF stuff works. Not close to the real thing when it comes to wine, but some is nice enough to drink.
I know Guinness AF gets good reviews, but I don't really like Guinness.
I don't really like Gunness. Guinness Zero is great. Give it a go.
I prefer not to drink, same for Mrs g. But some recipes need a glass or so of wine. I know there are those little bottles of cooking wine , but an af red that made a nice drink and would work in cooking would be handy.
I tried a lot of AF wines last year and this year. In summary, some of the AF Prosecco is passable, but nothing else actually tastes like a £10+ bottle of actual wine. They’re all too sweet or too vinegary and lack any complexity whatsoever. They also totally lack any “warming” that you get from the swallowing part of a good red wine.
I don't really like Gunness. Guinness Zero is great. Give it a go.
As someone who loves a Guinness far too much*, I have to state that Guinness AF does not taste like "just like Guinness" as some people claim but it is a very good copy.
It's kind of like a supermarket own brand homage. It's similar but there is something missing. If you like the taste then bingo.
* I used to drink the dregs out of my Grandad's glass when I was very young. I spent every weekend of my early drinking years on the black stuff.
I don't really like Gunness. Guinness Zero is great. Give it a go.
As someone who loves a Guinness far too much*, I have to state that Guinness AF does not taste like "just like Guinness" as some people claim but it is a very good copy.
It's kind of like a supermarket own brand homage. It's similar but there is something missing. If you like the taste then bingo.
* I used to drink the dregs out of my Grandad's glass when I was very young. I spent every weekend of my early drinking years on the black stuff.
Totally agree, ‘real’ Guinness is my drink of choice in pubs (not so much at home as don’t find any cans really the same).
But as a non alcoholic drink I really like the Guinness zero. Makes me feel like I’m having a proper drink and has a taste close enough (but different) to the full fat one.
I prettty much gave up alcohol a few years ago. Recently i tried this Rose: Oddbird rose
https://www.decantalo.co.uk/en/oddbird-sparkling-rose.html
Got to say it was pretty damn good.