If you’re trying to lead a healthier lifestyle, cutting calories and sugar is essential. However, that doesn’t mean that you have cut wine out of your life entirely.
In fact, there are plenty of wines that are under 100 calories per serving.
Therefore, making a few simple adjustments to your wine collection will enable you to continue enjoying wine and start shedding pounds.
Here are a few of our top wine replacement recommendations for those trying to live a healthier lifestyle.
Amarone Wine For Pinot Noir
The Amarone Italian red wine may taste delicious in the moment, but you’ll probably feel a little bloated the next day. In addition, its alcohol concentration is shockingly high (up to 17 percent!), so you’ll feel tipsy quickly and have a hangover the next day.
Instead, consider opting for an organic Italian Pinot Noir. You’ll still enjoy the same classic notes of cherry and black fig, but you’ll be able to skip the hangover.
Riesling For a Dry Riesling
A glass of typical riesling wine has a lot of added sugar. In fact, just five ounces of a semisweet German Riesling may contain up to 14 grams of sugar (which amounts to about 43 calories from sugar alone!).
However, dry rieslings tend to have less residual sugar and are therefore significantly healthier at about 115 calories per glass.
Port Wines For Merlot
Port wines are, unfortunately, very high in both sugar and alcohol. In fact, some port wines contain an alcohol concentration of up to 20 percent and up to 100 grams of sugar per liter. They are made with neutral grape spirits, which help retain the sugar and give the wine its sweet taste.
Therefore, a great red wine to replace your favorite port wine is a merlot with a low alcohol concentration. This wine typically has three to four grams of carbs and less than one gram of sugar, making it a much healthier choice than a sweet port wine.
Moscato For a Sauvignon Blanc
Another favorite dessert wine, a Moscato is probably not going to bode well with your diet. The sugar content gives it a sweet flavor, but you’ll also pay the price with over 16 grams of sugar. In fact, that’s nearly 65 calories in sugar alone.
Therefore, you may consider swapping it out for a Sauvignon Blanc. A Sauvignon Blanc is still a favorite white wine, and it comes in at less than one gram of sugar per glass and roughly 120 calories per glass. Just be sure to choose an option that has a relatively low alcohol concentration (ideally under 12 percent).
Final Thoughts
When you first think of dieting, you probably think of cutting. However, simply making healthy replacements will enable you to enjoy all of your favorite treats without the added pounds. In addition, replacing certain drink choices rather than cutting them from your diet completely is much more sustainable and will help you develop healthy lifestyle habits.
If you’d like to hear about more wine replacement tips and recommendations, you can always contact one of our specialists.
About the Author
Jon Notarius is the Vice President of Premier Gourmet Corp. which operates the store’s online business via WineDeals.com.