Non-alcoholic-wine: is there such a thing? Apparently, yes, and you just visited the right site to tell more about that! In this article, we bring you all there is to know about wine as a non-alcoholic drink.
Whether you are looking for non-alcoholic wine because you are an expectant mother or you just dislike the taste of alcohol, you will learn all you need to know about this drink. But before getting into much clamor, let’s first get this right: What is non-alcoholic wine? Also Read what happened to wine during prohibition?
What is non-alcoholic Wine?
You may want to imagine that non-alcoholic wine is simply juice made from grapefruit. Well, that’s not necessarily true as there are other processes involved in wine preparation. Basically, non-alcoholic or alcohol-free wine refers to wine, which has the alcohol content removed to 0.00% or has little to no alcohol content left. The alcohol is usually removed using a spinning code, and also some sweetening effects such as sugar are customarily added to make it sweeter.
Non-alcoholic Wine Preparation
Firstly, the grapes are harvested. The harvesting can be done using a machine or by human hand picking. Note that the grapes’ flavor-sweetness and acidity are normally determined by the season in which the harvesting is done. After harvesting, all the grapes are taken to a winery where the rotten and unripe grapes are separated from the ripe ones.
After the assortment, the grapes are crushed by a mechanical press through a destemmer. The process, in turn, enhances the longevity and the sanitation quality of the wine.
Difference between Non-alcoholic White wine and Red wine
With non-alcoholic white wine, the grapes are typically crushed pretty fast to separate the grape juice from the grape’s skin, seeds, and solids. This way, there won’t be any undesired color or tannins leaching your red wine. And yes, alcohol-free wine packs some health benefits too.
On the other hand, the red wine grapes are crushed in contact with the skins to ensure that the wine acquires more flavor, tannins, and a deeper taste.
Fermentation Process
Surprisingly, non-alcoholic wine also undergoes fermentation the same way as regular wine. This is where the difference between grape juice and alcohol-free wine strikes. With grape juice, you crush the grapes, and you will be having a sweet glass of wine within no time. On the other hand, the non-alcoholic wine goes through fermentation only for the alcohol content to be removed at the end of the aging process. This process ensures that you end up with rich flavors on your wine with just a minus of the alcoholic content.
Alcohol Removal
Removing alcohol from your ferment juice can be done in two ways, including distillation and filtration. The distillation method occurs by removing the alcohol content by exposure to a relatively low temperature that won’t cause it to oxidize. When the wine is exposed to temperature as low as 70 degrees Fahrenheit, alcohol distills from the wine.
The filtration process occurs by exposing the wine to extreme pressure whereby the wine is forced against a fine membrane whereby only water and alcohol can get through. The process leaves a concentrate behind; then, water is added into it to create the non-alcoholic wine.
Wrapping up
Now that you know what non-alcoholic wine is made of, it’s probably time you gave it a try. It comes with plenty of varieties, and you’ll be surprised by the rich wine flavor you can still enjoy without the alcohol content. Nevertheless, it’s important to note that alcohol-free wine may cause some individuals to crave for the regular wine, hence not a great option for anyone in the process of quitting alcohol.
