Best non-alcoholic wine: The best low-alcohol and alcohol-free red, white, sparkling and rosé wines
Enjoy a glass of wine – without the hangover. Here's our guide to the best non-alcoholic and low-alcohol wine you can buy
Whether you’ve vowed “never again” (again) after another hangover, need to improve your health or simply want to cut back on booze, the best non-alcoholic wines prove that you can ditch the demon drink without sacrificing flavour. You’ll save cash, too.
Low-alcohol drinks have shot up in popularity in recent years. Drinks makers aren’t ones to pass up an opportunity, so they’re busy creating an ever-expanding range of low and zero-alcohol products. We’ve already brought you our guide to the best non-alcoholic beer, and now it’s the turn of a slightly more tricky product to perfect: non-alcoholic wine. As winemakers perfect their techniques, their alcohol-free drinks are improving fast.
Read on for our handy buying guide to choosing the right alcohol-free wine for you, whether you lean towards reds, whites, rosés or sparkling wines. Then we’ll reveal our favourite alcohol-free 0% ABV wines currently available, followed by a few low-alcohol wines. Raise a glass to our pick of the best.
Best non-alcoholic wine: At a glance
- Best alcohol-free red wine: Oddbird Domaine de la Prade Organic Merlot/Shiraz
- Best alcohol-free sparkling wine: Thomson & Scott Noughty Sparkling Chardonnay
- Best mixed case of alcohol-free wine: Dry Drinker’s Spanish Collection Case
- Best case of alcohol-free red wine: Eisberg Cabernet Sauvignon Alcohol-Free
Best low-alcohol wine: At a glance
- Best low-alcohol rosé: Adnams 0.5% Garnacha Rosé
- Best low-alcohol red wine: Carl Jung Dry Cabernet Sauvignon
- Best low-alcohol dessert wine: Saracco Moscato d’Asti 2021
How to choose the best low-alcohol or alcohol-free wine for you
Can zero-alcohol wine really taste like the real thing?
When researching the best non-alcoholic wines, we looked for products that genuinely rival standard wine for complexity and satisfaction. It’s true that low-alcohol wine can struggle to replicate the thick mouthfeel and long finish you might expect from a good full-alcohol wine, but things have improved fast in recent years as winemakers race to create the best products.
Low-alcohol booze is big business, and established winemakers including Adnams and Hardys are building ranges of low and no-alcohol wines. We’ve also seen the rise of dedicated alcohol-free winemakers, following in the footsteps of German pioneer Carl Jung (not the psychiatrist!). Now there’s Eisberg in Germany, Thomson & Scott and Belle & Co in the UK, and Richard Juhlin in Sweden. We’re happy to recommend wines from all these specialists in our list below.
READ NEXT: Best prosecco
Low-alcohol or alcohol-free – what’s the difference?
A trace amount of alcohol, even 0.2%, makes it easier for winemakers to replicate the complex flavours, dryness and mouthfeel of their full-strength counterparts. That compares with around 15% for a standard Sauvignon Blanc. So if you’re not teetotal, it may be worth trying low-alcohol wine and getting used to the difference, rather than going straight for alcohol-free and being put off by the experience. We’ve included a separate list of low-alcohol recommendations below.
Are you old enough to (not) drink?
Retailers, including online stores and supermarkets, insist you’re 18 or over when buying these products – even the 0% ABV wines. This is partly because they may contain trace amounts of alcohol following the de-alcoholisation process used in creating most of these drinks. Also, these products are aimed at adults and sold alongside full-alcohol booze. Amazon, one of the retailers we’ve linked to below, sends all drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) by signed delivery, so you’ll be asked for proof of age if you’re lucky enough to look under 18.
READ NEXT: Best non-alcoholic beer
The best alcohol-free wines to buy
1. Oddbird Domaine de la Prade Organic Merlot/Shiraz: The best alcohol-free red wine
Price: £37 (Three bottle case) | Buy now from Dry Drinker
Swedish wine enthusiast Richard Juhlin has won awards for his own wines and Champagnes since the 1990s. In 2015 he launched his own range of non-alcoholic wine, using careful de-alcoholisation processes that preserve the flavour he’s always expected from the finest wines. It’s elegantly balanced with a gorgeous vibrant colour, fragrant aroma and lingering freshness.
At roughly £12 per bottle, it’s pricey (most alcohol-free drinks are cheaper than their boozy counterparts), but it’s also one of the best-reviewed red wines you can buy online. It combines toffee-rich Merlot grapes and crisp Shiraz, all organically grown in certified vineyards in Southern France, then carefully treated to preserve the natural bouquet and character while removing all the alcohol.
Key specs – Volume: 75cl x 3; ABV: 0%; Wine type: Merlot; Country of origin: France
2. Thomson & Scott Noughty Alcohol Free Sparkling Chardonnay: The best alcohol-free sparkling wine
Price: £9.50 per bottle | Buy now from Abel & Cole
British winemaker Amanda Thomson created Thomson & Scott to make low-sugar, vegan-friendly alternatives to prosecco. This gently fizzy Chardonnay is made using organic grapes from southern Spain, then de-alcoholised via vacuum distillation and lightly carbonated. It’s dry with a touch of sweetness, and lacks the cloying sweetness you get with certain alcohol-free wines. It’s got just the right level of acidity and a lovely fizz that’s not overbearing.
Key specs – Volume: 75cl; ABV: 0%; Wine type: Sparkling Chardonnay; Country of origin: Spain
3. Dry Drinker’s Spanish Collection Case: The best mixed case of alcohol-free wine
Price: £54 for 6 bottles | Buy now from Dry Drinker
If you’re not sure where to begin your alcohol-free odyssey, a mixed case from seasoned hangover-avoiders Dry Drinker (who also sell low and no-alcohol beers and spirits) is a wise choice. This Spanish case includes two white wines including Spanish Dry Torres Natureo 2017 Muscat Alcohol Free – great with fish and rice dishes – and four reds including Win Tempranillo Spanish Red Wine, which is a spicy off-dry wine that makes a great Rioja substitute.
Key specs – Volume: 6x75cl; ABV: 0%; Wine type: Various; Country of origin: Spain
4. Eisberg Cabernet Sauvignon Alcohol-Free: The best case of alcohol-free red wine
Price: £21 for 6 bottles | Buy now from Amazon
Eisberg is another alcohol-free specialist winemaker that carefully de-alcoholises its wines in a way that retains the grapes’ original flavour and character. The company also makes a Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and sparkling rosé, but the Cabernet Sauvignon stands out with its thick mouthfeel, deep ruby colour, plummy aroma and fantastic full flavour. It’s the perfect match for a wintry casserole. And what a fantastic price – you’d pay more for cola!
Key specs – Volume: 75cl; ABV: 0%; Wine type: Cabernet Sauvignon; Country of origin: Germany
5. Jukes 6: The best alcohol-free red wine alternative
Price: £35 (dilutes to make around three 75cl bottles) | Buy now from Selfridges
No, that’s not the world’s biggest wine glass – it’s a very tiny bottle of highly concentrated cordial, which you can dilute to your liking. Unlike most other wines in our rundown, this one isn’t de-alcoholised but made from apple cider vinegar that never contained any alcohol in the first place. It’s fruity, deep and spicy, and very low in calories, stacking up just 16cal per glass when diluted. You get nine 30ml bottles in the box – the 6 refers to the fact that it was the sixth recipe created by the London-based Jukes alcohol-free drinks project.
Key specs – Volume: 9 x 30ml (diluted makes around 3 x 75cl bottles); ABV: 0%; Wine type: Red; Country of origin: UK
6. Belle & Co Sparkling Rose Alcohol-Free Wine: A great alcohol-free alternative to pink Champagne
Price: £3.60 per bottle | Buy now from Amazon
This crisp, sweet but not too sweet prosecco-style rosé wine is made from a base of fermented grape juice blended with green tea. The result is the closest you’ll get to pink Champagne without the booze content, and it’s also vegan. At just £3 a bottle it’s a bargain for parties.
Key specs – Volume: 75cl; ABV: 0%; Wine type: Sparkling Rosé; Country of origin: Germany
The best low-alcohol wines to buy
1. Adnams 0.5% Garnacha Rosé: The best low-alcohol rosé
Price: £5.49 | Buy now from Adnams
Southwold-based brewery Adnams makes a range of low alcohol wines using state-of-the-art spinning cone technology to remove alcohol from full-strength wine, in the gentlest way possible, retaining the aromatics and flavour. Using grapes sourced from Spain, this 0.5% ABV Garnacha Rosé is a lovely fresh wine with delicate berry flavours. Bright and fruity, without being too sweet.
Adnams also makes a 0.5% Cabernet and Sauvignon Blanc, both out of stock at the time of writing. We’ll keep an eye on Adnams’ low-alcohol wine page and update you when stocks are replenished.
Key specs – Volume: 75cl; ABV: 0.5%; Wine type: Garnacha Rosé; Country of origin: Spain
2. Saracco Moscato d’Asti 2020: The best low-alcohol dessert wine
Price: £17 | Buy now from Vivino
Hoiking up the booze content a little, this 5.5% Italian white wine is a fresh, fruity drink with notes of summer flowers, peaches and red apples. The aroma is packed with fruit, from orange blossom to gooseberry, and herbs like sage and thyme. This makes for a remarkably fragrant wine which is so easy to drink that it’s the one wine on our list that may actually land you with a hangover the next morning.
Key specs – Volume: 75cl; ABV: 5.5%; Wine type: Muscat; Country of origin: Italy
3. Carl Jung Dry Cabernet Sauvignon: The best low-alcohol red wine
Price: £7 | Buy now from Dry Drinker
Carl Jung winemakers have been producing low-alcohol drinks for more than 100 years. At Castle Boosenburg in the Rhine valley, founder Jung developed a method of extracting alcohol from wines back in 1908, and his company is still seen as the pioneer of the non-alcoholic wine industry. The company’s wine is still made at the castle today.
This low-alcohol Cabernet Sauvignon is a fruity and fresh red wine with a hint of vanilla and blackcurrant. It has a pronounced acidity with firm tannins, which many non-alcoholic red wines lack.
Key specs – Volume: 70cl; ABV: 0.2%; Wine type: Cabernet Sauvignon; Country of origin: Germany
