I’ve been railing against higher-alcohol wines since they began appearing widely in this country in about 2000, and I received lots of criticism from people who saw me as anti-flavor.
The real reason these folks were so upset a quarter century ago was that I suggested that the “high alcohol = high flavor” people were all wrong. Higher-alcohol wines had less wine flavor, I wrote!
But the higher-alcohol stuff kept appearing because many were receiving high scores from reviewers who adored higher-alcohol wines because they were sweeter. At the time, this was evident in the huge popularity of zinfandel, a grape that always seemed to perform best when its alcohols were 16 percent or more.
All that has changed. In the past few years, a widely observed phenomenon for many consumers of alcoholic beverages is their search for lower-alcohol wines or other beverages, and for wines with no alcohol at all.
The World Health Organization issued a statement a year ago referencing “an expanding market of no- and low-alcohol beverages (NoLos).” There is even a new brand called No&Low.
What is being called the no-lo movement has swept the world, putting some domestic wine producers in a difficult position. Many domestic wines have alcohol levels that are higher than found in European wines, with 14.5 percent alcohol or more—with the emphasis on “more.”
The result has been a consumer backlash and a consequent slowdown in sales of many different wines, notably zinfandel. Sales of 16 percent alcohol products have declined.
In their place are various alternatives with low or zero alcohol. The traditional “dry January” that has pervaded the culture for years has put an exclamation point on declining sales of all alcoholic beverages.
One of the most interesting situations today is the development of exceptionally fine beer with zero alcohol, including some craft beers that are so good you can’t tell they are alcohol-free!
As for the wine flavor-seekers, if they’re truly interested in the flavors of wines, they should look more carefully at wines that don’t exceed 13.5 percent alcohol. It has long been known that alcohol, all by itself, has its own distinctive aroma. That aroma has nothing to do with grapes. Just sniff vodka and you'll see what alcohol smells like. It’s that very aromatic that masks wine flavors and aromatics.
The result is that you get more flavor when the alcohol is moderate. To prove this, pour a 4- or 5-ounce glass of a 15 percent alcohol red wine and add a tablespoon of water without chlorine (i.e., spring or distilled water). Swirl the glass. You'll notice far more aroma than the wine poured directly from the bottle.
In fact, this is a terrific tactic for dealing with higher-alcohol wines. Put in about a tablespoon of water to a wine glass and you'll notice that the wine’s aroma and taste are better balanced.
Since higher alcohol wines usually are slightly sweeter, adding water makes it taste a little drier and thus allows it to work better with your dinner. (However, adding too much water will make the wine taste thin and vapid.)
A final observation: I’m a huge fan of German riesling. There are many versions with alcohol levels below 11 percent; some are as low as 7 percent! The only drawback: Most such wines have traces of sugar, which may make them difficult to pair with some foods.
