A report published by the Daily Mail highlights the practice of popular wine brands reducing alcohol content and secretly hiking prices. The popular Blossom Hill brand have dramatically reduced the alcohol content at the same time increasing their prices. A 75cl bottle of white Zinfandel was 11% alcohol two years ago and cost £5.25. Today its strength has dropped to 8.5% with the price increasing to £5.75. with one consumer comparing it to an alcohol - free fizzy grape drink.
The brands Soft & Fruity Red Wine has also been reduced in alcohol content from 12.5% to 10.5%. Other wine brands mentioned include Hardys Stamp Shiraz Cabernet, which was reduced from 13.5% to 11% in 2023 while the cost has risen from £5.00 to £5.25.
This trend stems from the changes made by the previous government upping taxes on stronger % drinks (covered in detail in a previous blog) meaning that some wines spirits and beers are now sold with less alcohol in them. It seems that getting less and paying more is creeping into other aspects of the food and drink sector especially with regards to confectionery.
Experts have said that the trend in the reduction of alcohol content is likely to have a small positive health impact. Colin Angus, a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Sheffield, an expert in alcohol consumption quoted ' Only people who are drinking for the specific purpose of getting drunk are being short-changed. Writing after the well known beer brand Heineken announced similar measures last year, he said ' Reducing the alcoholic strength ... is in the commercial interests of [manufacturers]. 'But it also aligns with trends in consumer demands and is likely to be a benefit to public health by reducing overall alcohol consumption'.
'it's increasingly rare for these competing interests to be pulling in the same direction, so perhaps the current trend is worth celebrating for everybody'.
Wine has now become the UK's favourite tipple. Last year the World Health Organisation warned that there was no safe level of alcohol consumption. Estimating that excessive alcohol consumption kills 3 million people around the world each year.
Read the aforementioned article here.
