5 vegan wines you must try in 2024

Yellow Tail Shiraz

Vegan wines have been gaining in popularity around the world as the number of people following a vegan lifestyle increases. Perhaps you’re vegan and would simply like to try something different? Or you may be holding a dinner party and want a quick recommendation of vegan-friendly wines to serve. Whatever your occasion, we’ve got a great selection to choose from.

What is vegan wine?

To be vegan, wine must be made without the use of any animal products or byproducts. But isn’t wine already vegan? Grapes and yeast are the only constituents, after all. It may surprise you to learn that traditional winemaking often involves the use of animal-derived substances to clarify and stabilise the wine. For example, winemakers may use isinglass (from fish bladders) and albumen (from eggs) in the fining process.

To produce vegan wine, winemakers use alternative substances such as clay, activated charcoal, or vegetable-based fining agents like pea protein. Omitting the fining process altogether produces a type of wine known as “natural wine”.

A vegan-friendly wine selection for 2024

Here’s our pick of 5 vegan wines we really think you should try this year:

  1. If you haven’t tried Trumpeter Malbec yet, you’re missing out. This is a fantastic bold red wine at an entry level price which will stand up to a range of strong flavours in food.
  2. New Zealand produces some amazing wines and Yealands Estate Winemakers Reserve Sauvignon Blanc is a great example of a Marlborough sav blanc. It’s complex, crisp and elegant.
  3. Do you love an Aussie shiraz? Yellow Tail Shiraz is a bold and fruity, easy drinking wine which is not only vegan but also budget-friendly.
  4. For a top-shelf vegan wine, look no further than Rutini’s Single Vineyard Cabernet Franc. Layered and complex, this wine is full of blackcurrant aromas and flavours rounded off with smoke and spice.
  5. Finally, a vegan Californian chardonnay at an accessible price: Ménage à Trois Chardonnay has tropical fruit flavours underlain with creamy oak.

It’s worth noting that not all vegan wines are labeled as such, even if they are made without animal products. This is because certification can be expensive and time-consuming for winemakers. Many smaller producers may not have the resources to obtain certification. So if it’s important to you to buy vegan, always read the labels carefully and do some research on the winery’s production methods before making your purchase.