Mid Strength Wines with John Forrest of Forrest Wines

This show was published Friday, October 9, 2026

Overview

Mid strength wine that still tastes like the real thing? John Forrest of Forrest Wines in Marlborough, New Zealand, has been at it for 20 years and says drinkers are fed up with zero alcohol wines that don't taste anything like wine.

In this episode Chris Scott catches up with John, who he first interviewed in the Waitaki Valley back in 2009. John explains how he gets a Sauvignon Blanc down to around 9 to 9.5% by taking the right leaves off the vine at the right time, why he avoids spinning cone and other ways of stripping out alcohol, and why he reckons 4.5% is a tipping point for flavour. They also talk about the early push back from anti alcohol campaigners and what scaling up could look like.



Host: Chris Scott
Guest: John Forrest, Forrest Wines

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The music used for the UK Wine Show is Griffes de Jingle 1 by Marcel de la Jartèle and Silence by Etoile Noire.