B.C. summer in a can? It’s a Stretch

/

ONES+ Sparkling Red and Rosé passable but fail to ignite olfactory fireworks

Summer in B.C. is a time for wine. Okanagan wine.

Home to the majority of B.C. wineries, the Okanagan is hot. So hot, in fact, it’s the closest thing Canada has to a desert, though it’s technically classified as semi-arid shrubland. Either way, it’s a great place to grow grapes. As a result, over 170 wineries are found there in well-known growing regions like the Golden Mile and the Naramata Bench.

Having gone on more than one booze-fuelled Okanagan wine tour, I was excited to try a non-alcoholic release from the area.

ONES+ is, in fact, the Okanagan’s only non-alcoholic wine. It’s made without added chemicals or sugars (no carbs here) and weighs in under one percent ⏤ thus the name. The current catalog includes a 2021 Sparkling Red made from cabernet sauvignon, and a 2022 Sparkling Rosé made from merlot, cabernet franc, and malbec. Each weighs in at a skinny 18 calories per serving.

My delivery of ONES+ arrived just in time for Canada Day.

ONES+ is packaged in sleek 250ml cans. The labelling is functional ⏤ the rosé is pink, the red is red ⏤ but not particularly eye-catching. A can of white would have rounded out the colour palette nicely, I thought. I put the cans in the fridge to chill as recommended.

On the big day, from the top floor of Victoria’s tallest apartment building, I cracked a can of ONES+ Rosé as the first fireworks of the provincial capital’s much-anticipated annual display lit up the sky.

It is undeniably quaffable. But it did not leave me wanting to open another. The bouquet offered up subtle strawberry notes, but was otherwise subdued to the point of undetectable. (One of the perils of drinking chilled canned wine… or was it because of the smoke from the fireworks wafting over?) The flavour was equally underwhelming. I’d describe it, as other reviewers have, as watery. The bubbles imparted a lively tingle to the mouthfeel, but I couldn’t help but think I was drinking a wine-flavoured Bubbly.

*Editors note: We would totally drink a wine-flavoured Bubbly!

Undaunted, I cracked the can of ONES+ Red. And, to give it a fair chance, I poured it into a glass.

Pouring the can awakened the carbonation, which delivered soft notes of Okanagan cherries. It was definitely fuller-bodied, but still suffered from wateriness. I threw it back faster than I would have with a glass of alcoholic wine, perhaps in pursuit of some semblance of the experience delivered by its active ingredient.

The fireworks ended unexpectedly, the sudden finale drawing tepid applause from the crowd. Tonight was not my night.

Had I had a can of ONES+ at hand on one of my aforementioned wine tours, I would have welcomed a break from the near day-long consumption of alcohol. ONES+ would be great for extending a session, slaking a wine-induced thirst, and staying hydrated in the desert-like heat.

As a standalone drink, ONES+ falls flat. But paired with the proper accompaniments ⏤ the rosé, Okanagan sunshine and a swimming pool; the red, a Neapolitan pizza fresh from the wood-fired oven, enjoyed al fresco ⏤ it might prove to be a suitable stand-in to alcoholic wine.

There’s only one way to find out. I am overdue for another trip to the Okanagan, after all.

Liam Ford, Contributor

Liam is a poet, writer, and editor with a decade of experience as a bartender under his belt. His mission? To find an alcohol-free craft beer that satisfies his craving for hops.