Behind the Scenes: How We Test Non-Alcoholic Wines

Savouring a glass of non-alcoholic wine is an exercise in presence—a moment where nuance matters and pleasure doesn't require compromise. But how exactly do we craft the honest, nuanced reviews that guide your discoveries on our platform? Grab a glass of something splendid as we unveil the delightfully unfussy yet thoughtful process behind our tasting notes.

Real People, Real Tastes

At the heart of our selection process is a simple truth: taste is deeply personal. Rather than relying solely on industry experts disconnected from everyday consumers, we've built our testing approach around the very people our platform serves.

Our tasting circles bring together a wonderfully varied mix of people – from busy professionals unwinding after hectic workdays to passionate home cooks seeking the perfect dinner companion. You'll find the friend who hosts legendary dinner parties sitting beside someone simply exploring alcohol-free options for health reasons. What unites this eclectic group? A shared appreciation for flavour, quality, and those perfect moments when people, food and drink create something magical together.

We want to create a selection process that honours the subjective nature of taste.

Our Tasting Framework

While we keep our process approachable, we ensure consistency through a structured evaluation framework.

Each tasting session follows a clear methodology:

1. Blind Tasting: All wines are initially presented without labels or identifying information to eliminate brand bias

2. Contextual Evaluation: Wines are tasted both alone and with small food companions to evaluate versatility

3. Multi-Sensory Assessment: Panel members evaluate appearance, aroma, taste, texture, and finish

4. Standardised Questionnaire: Our carefully designed form captures both objective characteristics and subjective impressions

The Expert Touch: Professional Pairing Guidance

While we believe in the wisdom of our community panels for selection, we also partner with trained sommeliers for reviews and food pairing recommendations. These wine professionals apply their extensive knowledge of flavour principles to create pairing suggestions that harmonise with the wine and your meals.

Our sommeliers consider elements like:

• Complementary and contrasting flavours

• Weight and intensity matching

• Regional and cultural affinities

• Occasion appropriateness

Absolute Transparency: Our Review Philosophy

Here's where our approach might surprise you: we include nearly every wine we taste on our platform, accompanied by unvarnished reviews reflecting our panel's genuine experience.

Why? Because taste is subjective, occasions vary, and your Wednesday night dinner might be perfectly complemented by a bottle our Thursday panel found merely adequate.

We believe in providing honest guidance rather than limiting choice. Our reviews might note that a particular sparkling has "a finish that disappears faster than the last canapé at a gallery opening" or celebrate another for "bringing the kind of zippy acidity that makes a Swiss watch of your Wednesday fish tacos."

This transparency means you'll find wines across the spectrum on our platform—from revelatory to serviceable—each with thoughtful notes about what works, what doesn't, and when you might want to reach for it.

Community Wisdom: Your Feedback Matters

The final—and perhaps most important—part of our selection process happens after wines join our platform: your feedback. User ratings and reviews continually inform our curation, helping us understand which wines truly resonate with our community.

This dynamic approach ensures our selections evolve alongside changing preferences and the rapidly improving quality of non-alcoholic wines available in the market.

Join Our Tasting Community

Passionate about non-alcoholic wines and curious about joining a future tasting panel? We aim to invite community members to participate in our selection process. Download our app to create your taste profile, and you may receive an invitation to our panel.

After all, who better to help shape our offerings than those who will enjoy these wines in their everyday lives?