FANCY A REAL GLASS OF VINO — BUT NOT A FUZZY HEAD?

WE’VE become used to many modern wines from warmer climates — in particular Australia and California — containing 13.5 to 15 per cent ABV (alcohol by volume).

If you want to enjoy a tipple but also keep a clear head, there are, of course, lots of lower or no-alcohol wines on the market, but these have usually had the alcohol removed.

The result can be a wine that tastes ‘tired’, has high acidity or hidden sugar. But in fact there are great wines with naturally lower alcohol levels that offer the pleasure of a ‘real’ glass without the fuzziness. This is often due to picking grapes earlier before the sugars have thoroughly developed (higher sugar levels result in higher alcohol levels during the wine-making process).

Here are five to try:

Brancott Estate Flight Sauvignon Blanc White Wine

£8.50, Sainsburys, 9% ABv KIWI Sauvignon lends itself to early picking, which means you can keep alcohol levels lower as grapes are less ripe. Brancott has done well with this one.

Várzea do Marão Vinho Verde £7, Ocado, 8.5% ABv

FANS of wine spritzers would do well to look to Portugal and its Vinho Verde wines for naturally light offerings that are perfect for spring.

The Doctors’ Sauvignon Blanc

£9.50, Tesco, 9.5% ABv

DOCTOR John Forrest has been making naturally low ABV wines in Marlborough, New Zealand, for more than 30 years. Delicious and crisp.

Toro Loco Hermanito Spanish Red

£4.09, Aldi (in-store), 10.5% ABv LOW ABV red wine is trickier to find than white but Toro Loco has nailed it with this early picked and bright Tempranillo and Bobal blend.

Tread Softly Rose

£9.99, Waitrose, 9.9% ABv THIS pink wine is delicate with flavours of strawberries and cream. Buy six and you’ll not just get a discount, they’ll plant a tree, too!