Gostilna Pri Lojzetu at Zemono Manor is quite a regular stop when I’m coming back from Italy. They don’t make a fuss about reservations and, if they have a free table, they’re happy to welcome you in. Vegans are no problem for them either, because they understand that some people eat differently. But this time something else surprised me: an alcohol-free wine pairing with the vegan menu. Yes, you read that correctly.
Before anyone starts going on about wine simply being wine, and alcohol-free wine not being allowed to call itself wine: yes, I agree, but that’s semantics. It’s irrelevant, and only people with nothing better to concern themselves with bother about it.
Anže Kristan, the sommelier at Zemono Manor, knows I don’t drink alcohol. Instead, I drink Coca-Cola, which isn’t always ideal, as its sweetness spoils the flavours of the food.
This time, he asked whether I’d be interested in having different alcohol-free wines paired with the food. I’m not usually keen on these “approximations”, because otherwise I’d drink real wine, so I rather sceptically said yes. I’d try it and form my own opinion.
When I was given the sparkling “wine”, Machio, as an aperitif, I was surprised. It was very tasty and, above all, easy to drink. As I couldn’t compare it with alcoholic drinks, because I haven’t tried those, it seemed excellent to me. And I’m not usually easy to please. Just sweet enough and just refreshing enough.
The next course came with the “rosé” La Galiniere. It had a wonderful, delicate flavour and, above all, it was light. Just right with vegan food, which is already rather light in itself.
Another round followed, this time the white “wine” Masso Antico. A little less sweet, with a little more acidity, but still 0.0 alcohol. Naturally, I kept asking Anže every time whether it really was all 0.0. His smile said enough, as did his comment that demand for these 0.0 “concoctions” is growing and that more and more major producers are heading in this direction.
Finally came Joig Haider 36° Grenache, with an exceptionally strong, astringent pomegranate flavour, and sweet enough to work as a dessert wine too.
Overall, it all seemed rather mad to me and I admit I was pleasantly surprised. Until now, I’d always drunk various kombuchas, homemade brews or Coca-Cola in Michelin restaurants. Clearly, times are changing and the 0.0 trend is now becoming increasingly present everywhere.
When I looked at Tomaž Kavčič’s wine cabinet, with its 1988 Petrus Pomerol, I imagined that in a few years there will be 0.0 sommeliers too, and bottles of 0.0 wine in wine cabinets worth as much as that Petrus. Its price is well over €2,000.
Times are changing. Michelin restaurants once fought off guests who ate vegan food, whereas now it has become routine. And the drinks side of things has changed considerably in recent years too. I’m just glad that, alongside excellent food this time, I also got excellent wine – alcohol-free.
