Many wine drinkers are now consuming more units of alcohol than ever before without realising it, this is because of the rise in the number of higher alcohol wines being made. Weather patterns are changing dramatically, and this is undoubtedly having an affect on the ripening of grapes in hot countries which are renowned for the production of heavier styles of wine.
More sun means more natural sugar in the grapes, which in turn means more alcohol in the wine. But do we really need more alcohol in our wines? I don’t think so, and here are my reasons why we should not right-off lower alcohol wines:
- White wines with an abv. (Alcohol by Volume) greater than 13% taste thick and heavy, almost cloying in the mouth – a lack of finesse. Also missing is that lighter refreshing taste that say a 10-11.5% white wine has. For example, if we taste a 13% abv. Chardonnay, this is what we are likely find:
- A rich overpowering nose with little or no subtlety.
- A lack of freshness or petillance (spritz or fizz), which is so desirable in an everyday white wine.
- Ones palate would quickly tire of this sort of heavyweight style, so after a few glasses, the wine would appear dull and boring and lifeless with no zing or character.
- Higher alcohol red wines fare somewhat differently to whites. Although they lend themselves to having plenty of alcohol, occasionally made up to 15% abv., but going above 13.5% seems unnecessary. Again, the full, heaviness of the wine makes it less attractive against a similar wine made to 12% abv. or less. Even when accompanying a full-flavoured meat dish, the strength of alcohol is not always what is required. It is the balance of the fruit (the natural sugars from the grapes) with the acidity and/or tannin levels that is important.
- Evidence of excessive alcohol masks most other flavours to a certain degree. Being very ripe there should be plenty of aromas and flavours there in the first place so I say to winemakers all over, ‘why hide them by making unattractive, heavyweight blockbusters?’
We really ought to reduce the alcohol content in our glasses, or at least be aware of it. And, more doesn’t mean better when it comes to alcohol content in wine, unless you look at it from ‘the more the merrier’ aspect! Too much alcohol affects our overall wellbeing with many other health side effects as well. Reducing the volume of our alcohol intake is not always as easy as it sounds, especially to those who rely on it, and are unable to break a habit. But reducing the level of the alcohol within the volume goes some way towards addressing a problem.
Supermarkets are at last taking a longer look at how to promote these so-called niche style wines on their shelves. Traditionally wines are grouped by country of origin and colour, and not by not alcoholic strength. Perhaps now is a good time to turn the retailing of wines on its head and concentrate on abv. first to enable easy identification quickly rather than having to search through all the wines irrespective of alcohol content.
European regulations have so often hampered the growth of this market, however it is now legal sell wine that has had its abv. reduced by up to 2%. This reduction can be achieved by two specialist techniques, the “spinning cone” method and reverse osmosis. Learn more about these techniques by clicking on the Low Alcohol Wine link below.
Source by Rob Hemphill
