Copenhagen Sparkling Tea Company GRØN

This is another marvel from the Copenhagen Sparkling Tea Co – a lower alcohol sparkling wine (5% ABV) that is both dry and delicious.  This one, the GRØN, is an almost perfect lower alcohol alternative to Champagne – crisp, bubbly and delicately flavoured.

Its secret is not to be a dealcoholised a wine at all. It s base is a good Riesling wine but to this is added teas which brings in the dry notes and hints of tannins which are matched with lemon juice and lemongrass.  The result is perfectly balanced, opening with apricots and apple, followed by herbal notes of ginger and pine and closing on a long mineral finish of light tannins and almost beer like hoppyness.

I tried it with a group of friends who were uniformly enthusiastic.  For my own part, I found the RØD even more exciting, with its slightly lower sugar content and use of black and Earl Grey teas to increase the tannins and exotic flavours.  You’d be well advised to try both, if you can afford them.  For the only downside of these two drinks is their price; at around £17 per bottle for many they’re likely to remain an occasional treat.