On my way back from Madrid, after flying across Western Europe with 3 different carriers, I have noticed that all of them offered red wines with 12% or 12.5% abv.
It got me thinking whether they are taking into account that we get dehydrated during flights and alcohol doesn’t help with that matter, or this is just a measure to keep passengers a bit more sober (especially when they are heading to warmer countries for some holidays)?
Even though it is not such a drastic reduction of alcoholic strength, I must add that the taste was there (well, as much as it is possible with these in flight miniature bottles) and it was pleasant.
Would the consumers drive this trend onto general retail as well? Consumers want to cut down on excessive alcohol and should there be consistent winemaking practices allowing to cut a few percent off the usual powerful red without a compromise on flavour then it is for the better. Are these lower alcohol wines becoming a norm on the supermarket shelves as well?
Drinking a lot of water is essential in flight!
