Giesen 0% New Zealand Merlot

Giesen 0% Premium Red is an alcohol-free New Zealand Merlot that takes on one of the hardest challenges in the category, because red wine is notoriously difficult to dealcoholise well. Giesen's answer is to start with a genuinely good wine rather than trying to construct a substitute, and the result carries the soft, rounded fruit character and gentle structure that make Merlot such an approachable variety, delivered in a lighter, easy-drinking style.

Giesen has been family-owned by three brothers since 1981 and farms vineyards throughout Marlborough's Wairau Valley. Their 0% wines begin as full-strength wine and complete the entire winemaking process before the alcohol is gently removed using spinning cone technology, which works at low temperatures to protect the delicate aromatics. Those aromas are then returned to the body of the wine, with a small amount of premium grape juice used to round out the final blend. The wine contains no more than 0.5% alcohol by volume. This Merlot has been recognised at the Global Low and No Alcohol Wine Masters in the UK, the Mundus Vini Non-Alcoholic Wine Competition, and the Melbourne International Wine Competition, and took a Gold Medal at the highly regarded International Wine and Spirit Competition.

Serve it lightly chilled, which suits its lighter body and lifts the fruit. It pairs well with tomato-based pasta dishes, mushroom and lentil ragus, grilled vegetables, and hearty plant-based mains, and makes a welcome option at the table for anyone driving, moderating, or simply not drinking that evening.