Mcguigan Zero
Cover Mcguigan Zero

The Australian winery offers imbibers three non-alcoholic options, in case they want to partake in the sober curious lifestyle

Wine has become an important part of my meals where after a heavy dinner of steak or pasta, I would usually crave for something to cleanse the palate—be it a fruit-forward cabernet sauvignon or crisp sauvignon blanc. But I must admit that with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, I felt the need to live a healthier lifestyle by working out more (I run three times a week now), eating more nutritious foods and, of course, cutting down on alcohol.

The latter was hard at first, until I came across zero-alcohol pours from Mcguigan Wines. Interestingly, the Australian winemaker located in Hunter Valley has been making wines with the usual 14.5 per cent ABV for about four generations. But with the rise of the sober curious movement, where one re-examines their relationship with alcohol, they launched Mcguigan Zero to give more options to this market.

How do they make these non-alcoholic wines? The winemakers follow the same process as those with alcohol, but at the end stage, they use the spinning cone technology that extracts the alcohol content at a low temperature to ensure the delicate fruit flavours and aromatics remain.

Related: How to be a Mindful Drinker in Singapore

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Photo 1 of 3 Zero Chardonnay
Photo 2 of 3 Zero Shiraz
Photo 3 of 3 Zero Sparkling

There are three varietals available—Zero Sparkling, Zero Chardonnay and Zero Shiraz. I tried the Chardonnay first, which, on the nose, had delicate hints of white peach and vanilla. Though it wasn’t as flavoursome as Chardonnay (I felt that it tasted thin and flat), there were traces of honey melon and stone fruits on the palate that made for a decent finish—and a good accompaniment to my home-cooked carbonara.

The Zero Shiraz and Zero Sparkling were more to my liking; the former had fragrant plum and cherry aromas that were balanced with notes of spice and vanilla, while the bubbly made for a good aperitif with its crisp texture enriched with the taste of pear, green apple and lime. My friends and I enjoyed the latter with small bites of cheese, seafood and salad.

While I’m on this road to a healthier lifestyle, it doesn’t mean I’ll give up my wines completely. But it’s good to know that we already have a bevy of non-alcoholic options to satiate my palate from time to time.


Mcguigan Wines are now available islandwide at Cold Storage outlets.