You no longer have to skip that extra glass of wine because it has too much sugar and will leave you feeling unwell the next day. So whether you’re on a low-carb diet and trying to avoid drinks that will throw you off course or simply hunting for a wine with less residual sugar, you’ll be happy to know that there are now sugar-free wine options.
These wines can help you maintain your health and wellness goals by offering a lower sugar intake. Below, you’ll find information on sugar-free wine and how you can start enjoying some excellent wine options with low sugar content.
What Is A Dry wine Or A Sugar-Free Wine, Anyways?
After fermentation, dry wine has low natural sugar content. You have likely had at least one dry wine in the past, with some popular options. You can recognize a dry wine by its taste, which is not very sweet or only provides a light sweetness (the opposite of dessert wines). Generally, dry wine has 10g of sugar or less per liter.
A sugar-free wine has one gram of sugar or less per liter. Sugar-free wines can be created using a traditional method where the grape is picked earlier, with minimal sugar content. This does alter the alcohol level, though many Europeans enjoy this type of wine as it pairs better with food than overly sweet wines.
Why Does Wine Contain Sugar?
Sugar is part of the fermentation process and is necessary to create alcohol in wine. Once grapes are plucked from the vine, they contain natural sugar that yeast feeds on during fermentation. Without sugar, the alcohol in wine wouldn’t develop, and it wouldn’t change from grape juice to white or red wine.
Which Has Less Sugar -White Or Red Wine?
Surprisingly, they typically have about the same sugar content. This does not include sweet wines and dessert wines, which can have around 30g of sugar per liter. Ultimately, red wine does have a slightly lower sugar content than white wine.
For each six-ounce glass, red wine has about 0.9g of sugar. Comparatively, white wine has about 1.4g of sugar per six-ounce glass. The higher sugar level in white wine also means that it will have a higher calorie content, which can impact health goals if you follow a calorie-conscious diet.
As mentioned above, sugar-free wines typically have much lower sugar per glass. Low-sugar wines are available in both white and red wine options. Below are a few choices you can incorporate into your week that will affect your sugar intake somewhat.
Best Red Sugar-Free Wines
Pedroncelli Mother Clone Zinfandel 2018
The Pedroncelli Mother Clone Zinfandel 2018 is fruity, warm, smoky, and has just a hint of spice. It’s also low in sugar and can last in your pantry for about 3-5 years if you don’t get to it right away.
FitVine Cabernet Sauvignon
This cabernet sauvignon has about 0.06g of sugar in each glass. These wines are created for those who have wellness on their mind. FitVine can offer lower sugar wines due to their lengthier fermentation process, which gives the yeast more time to consume the sugar, leaving less residual sugar behind.
Best White Suger-Free Wines
UN’SWEET Pinot Grigio
This white wine offers white wine drinkers a sugar-free and gluten-free option. It’s a fruity and crisp option that’s ideal for summer days. UN’SWEET makes two varieties of wine, including this pinot grigio.
Kim Crawford Illuminate Sauvignon Blanc
White wine doesn’t have to be high in calories, and this sauvignon blanc proves it. Each glass offers a deliciously citrusy flavor at only 70 calories.
Are There Sugar-Free Sparkling Wine Options?
There are even sugar-free sparkling wine options for special occasions and celebrations. Brut is the most common choice for low-sugar or sugar-free wines as it typically has the lowest grams of sugar per liter. However, that does not mean that all brut is low-sugar or sugar-free.
The most low-carb diet-friendly sparkling wine options will be from the brut nature category. These typically contain between 0 and 3g of sugar per liter with no added sugar. Brut is the best for people on the hunt for low-carb wines.
Best Wine Clubs For Low-Sugar Wines
If you have a busy schedule, you may find it daunting to read through each wine label to choose the options with the lowest sugar content.
There are wine clubs that offer low-sugar wine deliveries to your door. Below are a few wine delivery clubs that drop various wines at your door each month.
Firstleaf
Firstleaf is a well-known wine delivery company that provides affordable options to wine drinkers without charging a high cost. Before receiving your first shipment, you’ll fill out a detailed quiz that helps match you with recommendations for your delivery.
You can opt-out of certain wines and choose which wines you want to receive for each shipment. Afterward, you can rate the wines you received. This allows Firstleaf to more accurately curate a list of wines for you to try in your next shipment.
You’ll be able to see the details of each wine before you select or scroll past it, even the sweetness level. For example, opt for dry wines with lower sugar content.
Winc
We’ve previously noted Winc as the Best Low Sugar Wine Club, with 68 different wines to choose from. Each month, you’ll receive four wines to try, with comprehensive guides on the tasting notes of each wine. The wines from Winc are sourced mainly from California.
Winc offers delicious low-sugar and low-carb wines.
For more information on low-sugar wine deliveries, read our article Best Low-Sugar Wine Clubs for 2022.
Final Thoughts
When in doubt, select a dry wine. It’s always with a lower sugar content than sweet wine.
If you don’t have time to choose your wine personally or need help figuring out where to start, plenty of wine delivery companies can aid you in selecting good dry-wines to try.
Keeping sugar intake low from wine consumption is even easier with the above wine and wine club recommendations.
