Non-Alcoholic Sparkling Wine: Champagne Alternatives for a Toast

The best non-alcoholic sparkling wines for a toast start as real wine and have the alcohol removed, so they keep the character of the base wine. French Bloom, Oddbird and Thomson & Scott’s Noughty are made this way. Check the label: 0.0% means none, while non-alcoholic can mean up to 0.5% ABV.

How non-alcoholic sparkling wine is made

Most non-alcoholic sparkling wine is fermented as normal wine first, then dealcoholized. Smithsonian Magazine traces the method to German winemaker Carl Jung, whose vacuum distillation process, patented in the US in 1913, lowered alcohol’s boiling point from about 176°F to below 95°F, which avoids a cooked flavor.

A Food Technology article from the Institute of Food Technologists describes reverse osmosis and spinning cone columns as other methods used by large producers. Many makers add bubbles once the alcohol is out: Thomson & Scott says Noughty is dealcoholized by vacuum distillation with aroma recovery, then lightly carbonated.

Some makers age the wine before removing alcohol. Oddbird says its wines are made by traditional methods and matured for up to 12 months, then have the alcohol removed by vacuum distillation at low temperatures.

0.0% or non-alcoholic: reading the label

A label that says non-alcoholic does not promise zero. Under the TTB’s rules for malt beverages, non-alcoholic means less than 0.5% alcohol by volume and alcohol free means none. Wine labels follow their own rules, so read the ABV figure itself rather than the wording.

For a guest who must avoid alcohol completely, choose a bottle labeled 0.0% and say what it is when you pour.

When buying online, look for a sealed bottle whose listing shows the ABV, and a best before date well past the day of the toast. Lyre’s notes that non-alcoholic drinks lack the preserving power of alcohol, so freshness matters more. Order early for a wedding or New Year’s Eve, and buy one extra bottle to taste before the day.

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Champagne alternatives without alcohol

Champagne itself cannot be alcohol free under that name. Wine Spectator explains that the word refers only to sparkling wine made by traditional methods from grapes grown in the Champagne region of France, and that the French protect it closely. Alcohol-removed bottles are sold as sparkling wine instead.

The closest match to a Champagne style is a sparkling wine made from Chardonnay, a Champagne grape. French Bloom and Noughty both use it. French Bloom describes Le Blanc as opening with citrus zest and crisp pear, moving to dried fruit, honey and beeswax, with a saline finish.

A sparkling Riesling is the more aromatic option. Imbibe reports that Leitz, a Rheingau grower, has bottled zero-alcohol wines under its Eins Zwei Zero label since 2007, removes the alcohol by vacuum distillation at low temperatures, and sells a sparkling Riesling in cans. The Riesling shows peach, lemon and minerality. A can suits a toast for two without opening a full bottle.

Serving non-alcoholic sparkling wine for a toast

Serve it as cold as Champagne. French Bloom recommends serving its wines very cold, 36 to 39°F, in a flute.

Glass shapes for a toast, from flutes to coupes, are covered in the cocktail glasses guide. For a host who pours zero-proof drinks, the home bar gift guide has ideas, and the home bar setup guide shows the rest of the bar. For other drinks without alcohol, see non-alcoholic spirits, zero-proof cocktails and premium cocktail mixers.