If your holiday celebration calls for nonalcoholic options, there are plenty to choose from.
“Your guests may be driving, sober, pregnant, on medication, whatever the reason, it’s a good idea to have some nonalcoholic options available,” Consumer Reports’ Trisha Calvo said.
To find out which nonalcoholic sparkling wines are worth serving, CR enlisted 12 staffers to do a blind taste test.
They tested eight de-alcoholized sparkling wines, which are made the same way as wine, but the alcohol is removed at the end, and two sparkling wine alternatives, which are blends of ingredients like tea, herbs and fruit.
Testers evaluated each beverage for flavor, bubbliness, and whether they would buy it for themselves. So, which ones did the testers like?
A hit with most of the testers was Vinada Tinteling Tempranillo Rosé, which they found to be refreshing and sweet but not too sweet.
For fans of sweeter wines, the runner-up might be for you — Sutter Home’s Fre Alcohol-Removed Wine, Sparkling Brut.
And if you’re looking not to spend too much, testers found the more affordable Rondel Zero De-Alcoholized Sparkling Wine a great pick for a party because it was found to be easy to drink.
While nonalcoholic beverages can be great alternatives, keeping expectations in check is important. Don’t expect the nonalcoholic versions to taste the same as their counterparts, but they are getting close.